Michael Stausberg is Professor of the Study of Religion at the University of Bergen and his publications include Zarathustra and Zoroastrianism, Religion and Tourism, Contemporary Theories of Religion (editor), and Theorizing Rituals (co-editor).

• Table of ContentsPremlimsAcknowledgmentsPart I IntroductionPart II The theories1 Geertz: “Religion as a Cultural System” (1966)2 Luckmann: The Invisible Religion (1967) 3 Berger: The Sacred Canopy (1967) 4 Bourdieu:“An Interpretation of the Theory of Religion According to Max Weber” &“Genesis and Structure of the Religious Field” (1971) 5 Luhmann: Function of Religion (1977) 6 Crosby: Interpretive Theories of Religion (1981) 7 Greeley: Religion, a Secular Theory (1982) 8 Prozesky: Religion and Ultimate Well-Being (1984) 9 Stark and Bainbridge: A Theory of Religion (1987)10 Goodman: Ecstasy, Ritual, and Alternate Reality (1988)11 Hick: An Interpretation of Religion (1989/2004)12 Lawson and McCauley: Rethinking Religion (1990)13 Guthrie: Faces in the Clouds (1993)14 Hervieu-Léger: Religion as a Chain of Memory (1993)15 Hatzfeld: The Roots of Religion (1993)16 Boyer: The Naturalness of Religious Ideas (1994)17 Derrida: “Faith and Knowledge” (1996)18 Burkert: Creation of the Sacred (1996)19 Rappaport: Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity (1999)20 Luhmann: Die Religion der Gesellschaft (1997/2000)A Systems Theory of Religion (2013)21 Fitzgerald: The Ideology of Religious Studies (2000)22 Stark and Finke: Acts of Faith (2000)23 Boyer: Religion Explained (2001) 10324 Pyysiäinen: How Religion Works (2001)25 Atran: In Gods We Trust (2002)26 Wilson: Darwin’s Cathedral (2002)27 Kirkpatrick: Attachment, Evolution, and the Psychology of Religion (2005)28 Rue: Religion Is Not about God (2005)29 Dennett: Breaking the Spell (2006)30 Tweed: Crossing and Dwelling (2006)31 Riesebrodt: Cultus und Heilsversprechen (2007) /The Promise of Salvation (2010)32 Lewis-Williams: Conceiving God (2010)33 Vásquez: More Than Belief (2011)34 Bellah: Religion in Human Evolution (2011)35 Flood: The Importance of Religion (2012)36 Dworkin: Religion without God (2013)37 Smith: Religion (2017)38 Henriksen: Religion as Orientation and Transformation (2017)39 Turner, Maryanski, Petersen, Geertz: The Emergence and Evolution of Religion(2018)40 Tremlett: Towards a new Theory of Religion and Social Change (2020)41 Krech: Evolution of Religion (2021)42 Levy: Beyond Heaven and Earth (2022)43 Stowers: History and the Study of Religion (2024)Part III ProspectsEnd MatterAppendixReferencesIndex

Michael Stausberg is Professor of the Study of Religion at the University of Bergen and his publications include Zarathustra and Zoroastrianism, Religion and Tourism, Contemporary Theories of Religion (editor), and Theorizing Rituals (co-editor).

• Table of ContentsPremlimsAcknowledgmentsPart I IntroductionPart II The theories1 Geertz: “Religion as a Cultural System” (1966)2 Luckmann: The Invisible Religion (1967) 3 Berger: The Sacred Canopy (1967) 4 Bourdieu:“An Interpretation of the Theory of Religion According to Max Weber” &“Genesis and Structure of the Religious Field” (1971) 5 Luhmann: Function of Religion (1977) 6 Crosby: Interpretive Theories of Religion (1981) 7 Greeley: Religion, a Secular Theory (1982) 8 Prozesky: Religion and Ultimate Well-Being (1984) 9 Stark and Bainbridge: A Theory of Religion (1987)10 Goodman: Ecstasy, Ritual, and Alternate Reality (1988)11 Hick: An Interpretation of Religion (1989/2004)12 Lawson and McCauley: Rethinking Religion (1990)13 Guthrie: Faces in the Clouds (1993)14 Hervieu-Léger: Religion as a Chain of Memory (1993)15 Hatzfeld: The Roots of Religion (1993)16 Boyer: The Naturalness of Religious Ideas (1994)17 Derrida: “Faith and Knowledge” (1996)18 Burkert: Creation of the Sacred (1996)19 Rappaport: Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity (1999)20 Luhmann: Die Religion der Gesellschaft (1997/2000)A Systems Theory of Religion (2013)21 Fitzgerald: The Ideology of Religious Studies (2000)22 Stark and Finke: Acts of Faith (2000)23 Boyer: Religion Explained (2001) 10324 Pyysiäinen: How Religion Works (2001)25 Atran: In Gods We Trust (2002)26 Wilson: Darwin’s Cathedral (2002)27 Kirkpatrick: Attachment, Evolution, and the Psychology of Religion (2005)28 Rue: Religion Is Not about God (2005)29 Dennett: Breaking the Spell (2006)30 Tweed: Crossing and Dwelling (2006)31 Riesebrodt: Cultus und Heilsversprechen (2007) /The Promise of Salvation (2010)32 Lewis-Williams: Conceiving God (2010)33 Vásquez: More Than Belief (2011)34 Bellah: Religion in Human Evolution (2011)35 Flood: The Importance of Religion (2012)36 Dworkin: Religion without God (2013)37 Smith: Religion (2017)38 Henriksen: Religion as Orientation and Transformation (2017)39 Turner, Maryanski, Petersen, Geertz: The Emergence and Evolution of Religion(2018)40 Tremlett: Towards a new Theory of Religion and Social Change (2020)41 Krech: Evolution of Religion (2021)42 Levy: Beyond Heaven and Earth (2022)43 Stowers: History and the Study of Religion (2024)Part III ProspectsEnd MatterAppendixReferencesIndex

Michael Stausberg is Professor of the Study of Religion at the University of Bergen and his publications include Zarathustra and Zoroastrianism, Religion and Tourism, Contemporary Theories of Religion (editor), and Theorizing Rituals (co-editor).

• Table of ContentsPremlimsAcknowledgmentsPart I IntroductionPart II The theories1 Geertz: “Religion as a Cultural System” (1966)2 Luckmann: The Invisible Religion (1967) 3 Berger: The Sacred Canopy (1967) 4 Bourdieu:“An Interpretation of the Theory of Religion According to Max Weber” &“Genesis and Structure of the Religious Field” (1971) 5 Luhmann: Function of Religion (1977) 6 Crosby: Interpretive Theories of Religion (1981) 7 Greeley: Religion, a Secular Theory (1982) 8 Prozesky: Religion and Ultimate Well-Being (1984) 9 Stark and Bainbridge: A Theory of Religion (1987)10 Goodman: Ecstasy, Ritual, and Alternate Reality (1988)11 Hick: An Interpretation of Religion (1989/2004)12 Lawson and McCauley: Rethinking Religion (1990)13 Guthrie: Faces in the Clouds (1993)14 Hervieu-Léger: Religion as a Chain of Memory (1993)15 Hatzfeld: The Roots of Religion (1993)16 Boyer: The Naturalness of Religious Ideas (1994)17 Derrida: “Faith and Knowledge” (1996)18 Burkert: Creation of the Sacred (1996)19 Rappaport: Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity (1999)20 Luhmann: Die Religion der Gesellschaft (1997/2000)A Systems Theory of Religion (2013)21 Fitzgerald: The Ideology of Religious Studies (2000)22 Stark and Finke: Acts of Faith (2000)23 Boyer: Religion Explained (2001) 10324 Pyysiäinen: How Religion Works (2001)25 Atran: In Gods We Trust (2002)26 Wilson: Darwin’s Cathedral (2002)27 Kirkpatrick: Attachment, Evolution, and the Psychology of Religion (2005)28 Rue: Religion Is Not about God (2005)29 Dennett: Breaking the Spell (2006)30 Tweed: Crossing and Dwelling (2006)31 Riesebrodt: Cultus und Heilsversprechen (2007) /The Promise of Salvation (2010)32 Lewis-Williams: Conceiving God (2010)33 Vásquez: More Than Belief (2011)34 Bellah: Religion in Human Evolution (2011)35 Flood: The Importance of Religion (2012)36 Dworkin: Religion without God (2013)37 Smith: Religion (2017)38 Henriksen: Religion as Orientation and Transformation (2017)39 Turner, Maryanski, Petersen, Geertz: The Emergence and Evolution of Religion(2018)40 Tremlett: Towards a new Theory of Religion and Social Change (2020)41 Krech: Evolution of Religion (2021)42 Levy: Beyond Heaven and Earth (2022)43 Stowers: History and the Study of Religion (2024)Part III ProspectsEnd MatterAppendixReferencesIndex