7 articles in this issue
Johann Kinghorn
The sociology of religion is not an unknown academic enterprise in South and Southern Africa. But is is equally true that it is not widely practised.For at least two reasons this is quite surprising. Firstly, around the globe a new alliance between theolo... see more
James A Beckford
From the beginning of sociology in the mid-19th century, the dominant concern was with the emergence of industrial society. Early sociologists had a lot to say about the significance of religion to this development and vice versa. They laid down a pattern... see more
I have been complaining for some years about the isolation and insulation of the sociology of religion (Beckford 1985a; 1989a). It tends to operate with its own special vocabulary and problematics which are not shared with other sociological specialisms. ... see more
James R Cochrane
‘We have depended,’ says Teresa Okure, ‘either on expatriates … or on African men to speak for us theologically and otherwise. Has the time now come to speak for ourselves? Okure’s question is asked as an African woman, but in South Africa at least, it ca... see more
Johann Kinghorn,Hennie J Kotze
There is little doubt that South Africa is one of the world’s social test tubes. In many ways it is a microcosm of macro-global issues. This applies equally to an area which is not being studies as much as it should be: the interface of religion with soci... see more
J A Loubser
Our immediate challenge in South Africa is to balance the need for a redistribution of wealth with a regeneration of the economy; to stimulate democratic creativity and conflict while still preserving law and order. This is especially difficult because in... see more
The sociology of religion in the UK has been dominated for thirty years at least by the secularization debate. It continues to shape discussion because it is virtually unique in offering a fairly economical overview of development in religion and non-reli... see more