Christian metal has always defined itself in contrast to its non-Christian, secular counterpart, yet it stands out from nearly all other forms of contemporary Christian music through its unreserved use of metal's main musical, visual, and aesthetic traits. Christian metal is a rare example of a direct combination between evangelical Christianity and an aggressive and highly controversial form of popular music and its culture."Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene" is the first full exploration of the phenomenon of Christian metal music, its history, main characteristics, development, diversification, and key ideological traits from its formative years in the early 1980s to the present day. Marcus Moberg situates it in a wider international evangelical cultural environment, accounts for its diffusion on a transnational scale, and explores what religious meanings and functions Christian metal holds for its own musicians and followers. Engaging with wider debates on religion, media and popular culture, "Christian Metal: History, Ideology and Scene" is a much-needed resource in the study of religion and popular music.

Marcus Moberg offers a new model of religion and religious life in the post-war era, through focusing on the role of markets and media as vectors of contemporary social and cultural change - and therefore institutional religious change. While there is wide agreement among sociologists of religion that there this area is transforming on a global scale, there is less agreement about how these changes should best be approached and conceptualized. In a time of accelerating institutional religious decline, institutional Churches have become ever more susceptible to market-associated discourse and language and are ever more compelled to adapt to the demands of the present-day media environment. Using discourse analysis, Marcus Moberg tracks how new media and marketing language and concepts have entered Christian thinking and discourse. Church, Market, and Media develops a framework that approaches changes in the contemporary religious field in direct relation to the changing socioeconomic makeup of contemporary societies on the whole. Through focusing on the impact of markets and media within the contemporary religious setting of mainline institutional Christian churches in the Western world, the book outlines new avenues for further theorizing the study of religious change.

This book focuses on the utility and application of discourse theory and discourse analysis in the sociological study of religious change. It presents an outline of what a ‘discursive sociology of religion’ looks like and brings scholarly attention to the role of language and discourse as a significant component in contemporary processes of religious change. Marcus Moberg addresses the concept of discourse and its main meta-theoretical underpinnings and discusses the relationship between discourse and ‘religion’ in light of previous research. The chapters explore key notions such as secularism and public religion as well as the ideational and discursive impact of individualism and market society on the contemporary Western religious field. In addition to providing scholars with a thorough understanding and appreciation of the analytic utility of discourse theory and analysis in the sociological study of religious change, the book offers a cohesive and systematized framework for actual empirical analysis.

This book focuses on the utility and application of discourse theory and discourse analysis in the sociological study of religious change. It presents an outline of what a 'discursive sociology of religion' looks like and brings scholarly attention to the role of language and discourse as a significant component in contemporary processes of religious change. Marcus Moberg addresses the concept of discourse and its main meta-theoretical underpinnings and discusses the relationship between discourse and 'religion' in light of previous research. The chapters explore key notions such as secularism and public religion as well as the ideational and discursive impact of individualism and market society on the contemporary Western religious field. In addition to providing scholars with a thorough understanding and appreciation of the analytic utility of discourse theory and analysis in the sociological study of religious change, the book offers a cohesive and systematized framework for actual empirical analysis.

It has become increasingly clear that an adequate understanding of the contemporary processes of social, cultural, and religious change is contingent on an appreciation of the growing impact of social media. Utilising results of an unprecedented global study, this volume explores the ways in which young adults in seven different countries engage with digital and social media in religiously significant ways. Presenting and analysing the findings of the global research project Young Adults and Religion in a Global Perspective (YARG), an international panel of contributors shed new light on the impact of social media and its associated technologies on young people's religiosities, worldviews, and values. Case studies from China, Finland, Ghana, Israel, Peru, Poland, and Turkey are used to demonstrate how these developments are progressing, not just in the West, but across the world. This book is unique in that it presents a truly macroscopic perspective on trends in religion amongst young adults. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars working in religious studies, digital media, communication studies, sociology, cultural studies, theology and youth studies.

In an era of heightened globalization, macro-level transformations in the general socioeconomic and cultural makeup of modern societies have been studied in great depth. Yet little attention has been paid to the growing influence of media and mass-mediated popular culture on contemporary religious sensibilities, life, and practice. Religion, Media, and Social Change explores the correlation between the study of religion, media, and popular culture and broader sociological theorizing on religious change. Contributions devote serious attention to broadly-defined media including technologies, institutions, and social and cultural environments, as well as mass-mediated popular culture such as film, music, television, and computer games. This interdisciplinary collection addresses important theoretical and methodological questions by connecting the study of media and popular culture to current perspectives, approaches, and discussions in the broader sociological study of religion.

In an era of heightened globalization, macro-level transformations in the general socioeconomic and cultural makeup of modern societies have been studied in great depth. Yet little attention has been paid to the growing influence of media and mass-mediated popular culture on contemporary religious sensibilities, life, and practice. "Religion, Media, and Social Change "explores the correlation between the study of religion, media, and popular culture and broader sociological theorizing on religious change. Contributions devote serious attention to broadly-defined media including technologies, institutions, and social and cultural environments, as well as mass-mediated popular culture such as film, music, television, and computer games. This interdisciplinary collection addresses important theoretical and methodological questions by connecting the study of media and popular culture to current perspectives, approaches, and discussions in the broader sociological study of religion.

It has become increasingly clear that an adequate understanding of the contemporary processes of social, cultural, and religious change is contingent on an appreciation of the growing impact of social media. Utilising results of an unprecedented global study, this volume explores the ways in which young adults in seven different countries engage with digital and social media in religiously significant ways. Presenting and analysing the findings of the global research project Young Adults and Religion in a Global Perspective (YARG), an international panel of contributors shed new light on the impact of social media and its associated technologies on young people's religiosities, worldviews, and values. Case studies from China, Finland, Ghana, Israel, Peru, Poland, and Turkey are used to demonstrate how these developments are progressing, not just in the West, but across the world. This book is unique in that it presents a truly macroscopic perspective on trends in religion amongst young adults. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars working in religious studies, digital media, communication studies, sociology, cultural studies, theology and youth studies.

The second edition of The Bloomsbury Handbook of Religion and Popular Music provides an updated, state-of-the-art analysis of the most important themes and concepts in the field, combining research in religious studies, theology, critical musicology, cultural analysis, and sociology. It comprises 30 updated essays and six new chapters covering the following areas: · Popular Music, Religion, and Performance · Musicological Perspectives · Popular Music and Religious Syncretism · Atheism and Popular Music · Industrial Music and Noise · K-pop The Handbook continues to provide a guide to methodology, key genres and popular music subcultures, as well as an extensive updated bibliography. It remains the essential tool for anyone with an interest in popular culture generally and religion and popular music in particular.

Marcus Moberg offers a new model of religion and religious life in the post-war era, through focusing on the role of markets and media as vectors of contemporary social and cultural change - and therefore institutional religious change. While there is wide agreement among sociologists of religion that there this area is transforming on a global scale, there is less agreement about how these changes should best be approached and conceptualized. In a time of accelerating institutional religious decline, institutional Churches have become ever more susceptible to market-associated discourse and language and are ever more compelled to adapt to the demands of the present-day media environment. Using discourse analysis, Marcus Moberg tracks how new media and marketing language and concepts have entered Christian thinking and discourse. Church, Market, and Media develops a framework that approaches changes in the contemporary religious field in direct relation to the changing socioeconomic makeup of contemporary societies on the whole. Through focusing on the impact of markets and media within the contemporary religious setting of mainline institutional Christian churches in the Western world, the book outlines new avenues for further theorizing the study of religious change.