Reflections on Sociology and Theology is a collection of essays by a distinguished sociologist exploring the relationship between sociology and religious issues. After laying out the main themes to be explored, David Martin divides the essays into three sections: Part I: Theoretical Considerations have a strong methodological content, and examine the nature of sociology and theology, and their
inter-relationship. Part II: Practical Issues discusses sociological and practical issues of interest to theologians, such as peace studies, Christian Unity, and the nature of religious comment on
politics. Part III: Addresses to Clergy and to Teachers of Sociology divides into two parts: the first address is directed against the notion of collective guilt as propagated by both religious and secular sources. The second, aimed at the clergy, sets out the empirical situation of western Christianity and suggests a socio-theological response. David Martin presents an elegant, compelling argument that religion and sociology can - and
should - co-exist.
Industry Reviews
`beautifully written ... an insightful and stimulating read'
Professor Peter Jarvis, Methodist Recorder
`For every contention, Martin offers telling illustrative material which in itself provides tantalising glimpses of his encyclopaedic knowledge of contemporary and historical religion.'
The Tablet, 5 July 1997
`No one in Britain, probably, is better qualified to reflect on the relationship between sociology and theology than David Martin. ... For every contention, Martin offers telling illustrative material which in itself provides tantalising glimpses of his encyclopaedic knowledge of contemporary and historical religion.'
The Tablet, 5 July 1997
`No one is better equipped than Martin to defend the sociology of religion ... On Martin's account, theology and sociology can and should exist in constructive dialectical relationship. This is not just a nice idea, it is the fundamental conviction which guides all Martin's work, and of which that work serves as the most powerful demonstration.'
Times Higher Education Supplement
`The influence of David Martin on British sociology of religion has been immence ... Like most of his works, the predominant mode of the essays here is sociological, yet underlying them are a number of implicit, and sometimes explicit, theological commitments. As always, his essays are multi-layered, creative and, in places, elusive ... Martin is at his most powerful when he has a fashionable concept to de-construct ... David Martin remains a thoughtful
critic, offering a reliable bridge between the worlds of theology and sociology.'
Robin Gill, Journal of Theological Studies
`... the apperance of a volume which endeavours to sort things out is timely.'
Roger Homan, The Prayer Book Society no.43
Martin's book - a demanding but rewarding text - reveals the complexity of the issues at stake.
As a sociologist of religion, he is surely the English Weber. There is the same breadth of vision (both spatial and temporal), the same capacity to locate beliefs, ideologies and institutions within convincingly comparative frameworks and the same deployment of "elective affinities" and verstehen to enhance historical understanding...these superb essays deserve close attention from sociologists, churchmen and theologians alike. His own contribution remains a
unique and persuasive one. - Graham Howes. Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol 13 1998.
`incisively thoughtful essays ... the striking feature of this one is the steadiness of vision, as well as the sprightly attention to contemporary detail.'
David Lyon, Archives de Sciences Sociales des Religions, no 104, 1998
