This book examines how ancient myths have developed and still survive in the collective public imagination in order to answer fundamental questions concerning the individual, society and historical heritage: On what basis do we form our opinion and develop attitudes about key issues? What is, and how should, the relationship between ourselves and nature be oriented? And what is the relationship between ourselves and others? Advancing a critical analysis of myths, Andrea Cerroni reveals the inconsistencies and consequences of our contemporary imagination, addressing neoliberalism in particular. The book elaborates a sociological theology from historical reconstruction, drawing together analytical concepts such as political theology and sociological imagination. It brings into focus a cultural matrix comprising ancient myths about nature, society and knowledge, in opposition to modern myths built around reductionism, individualism and relativism. Providing suggestions for deconstructing these myths, Contemporary Sociological Theology explores concepts of reflexive complexity, Gramscian democratic politics and a general relativisation of knowledge. Highly interdisciplinary, this book will be an insightful read for sociology and social policy scholars, for students with a particular interest in sociological theory, cultural sociology and innovation policy and for all those who seek awareness of the imagination that rules our world.

Complex knowledge, in many different forms, is generated, shared and accessed globally. Andrea Cerroni turns to this knowledge society to offer a comprehensive social theory of its processes and specificities, outlining controversies of knowledge and bridging the gap between knowledge and democracy. Proposing a systematic and interdisciplinary typology to deal with multitudes of knowledge types, the author builds a theoretically grounded framework around the sociology of knowledge. This book offers a panorama of the extant literature on knowledge types and takes advantage of suggestions from different scientific disciplines, from neurosciences and epigenetics, to anthropology and physics. Drawing on a long-term historical perspective, Cerroni assembles a cultural matrix, comprising ancient myths on nature, society and knowledge and modern myths of reductionism, individualism and relativism to inspire contemporary sociological imagination. Comprising an innovative and authoritative approach, this eclectic book will appeal to advanced scholars seeking a new theoretical framework for understanding the knowledge society. Students of sociology and epistemology will also benefit from its insights into the origins and philosophical background of the sociology of knowledge.