Peter Beyer has been a central figure in the debate about religion and globalization for many years, this volume is a collection of essays on the relation between religion and globalization with special emphasis on the concept of religion, its modern forms and on the relation of religion to the state.

Featuring a newly written introduction and conclusion which frame the volume and offer the reader guidance on how the arguments fit together, this book brings together ten previously published pieces which focus on the institutional forms and concept of religion in the context of globalizing and modern society. The guiding theme that they all share is the idea that religion and globalization are historically, conceptually, and institutionally related. What has come to constitute religion and what social roles religion plays are not manifestations of a timeless essence, called religion, or even a requirement of human societies. In concept and institutional form, religion is an expression of the historical process of globalization, above all during modern centuries. What religion has become is one of the outcomes of the successive transformations and developments that have brought about contemporary global society.

Including some of the most important theoretical work in the field of religion and globalization, this collection provokes the reader to consider paths for future research in the area, and will be of great interest to students and scholars of religion and politics, globalization and religion and sociology.

Peter Beyer, a distinguished sociologist of religion, presents a way of understanding religion in a contemporary global society - by analyzing it as a dimension of the historical process of globalization. Introducing theories of globalization and showing how they can be applied to world religions, Beyer reveals the nature of the contested category of 'religion': what it means, what it includes and what it implies in the world today.

Written with exceptional clarity and illustrated with lively and diverse examples ranging from Islam and Hinduism to African traditional religions and new age spirituality, this is a fascinating overview of how religion has developed in a globalized society. It is recommended reading for students taking courses on sociology of religion, religion and globalization, and religion and modernity.

Peter Beyer, a distinguished sociologist of religion, presents a way of understanding religion in a contemporary global society - by analyzing it as a dimension of the historical process of globalization. Introducing theories of globalization and showing how they can be applied to world religions, Beyer reveals the nature of the contested category of a ~religiona (TM): what it means, what it includes and what it implies in the world today.

Written with exceptional clarity and illustrated with lively and diverse examples ranging from Islam and Hinduism to African traditional religions and new age spirituality, this is a fascinating overview of how religion has developed in a globalized society. It is recommended reading for students taking courses on sociology of religion, religion and globalization, and religion and modernity.

Peter Beyer has been a central figure in the debate about religion and globalization for many years, this volume brings together some of his key essays which together focus on the form and role of religion in the context of globalization. Each of the ten chapters explores a different but related aspect of how religion and globalization are historically, conceptually, and institutionally connected. Through the course of the book, Beyer provides both theoretical and historical analysis of how over time and across the globe, the idea of religion changes along with its institutional expressions; what religion is understood to be and what counts as religion change as the global social world changes. Featuring a newly written introduction and conclusion which frame the volume and offer the reader guidance on how the arguments fit together, the book is divided into three broad sections: Part I: Observing Religion in the Contemporary Global Context Part II: The Formation of Religion and Religions in Global Society Part III: Religion and the Political Domain Including some of the most important theoretical work in the field of religion and globalization, this collection provokes the reader to consider paths for future research in the area, and will be of great interest to students and scholars of religion and politics, globalization and religion and sociology.

This comprehensive volume focuses on the world's religions and the changes they have undergone as they become more global and diverse in form. It explores the religions of the world not only in the regions with which they have been historically associated, but also looks at the new cultural and religious contexts in which they are developing. It considers the role of migration in the spread of religions by examining the issues raised for modern societies by the increasing interaction of different religions. The volume also addresses such central questions as the dynamics of religious innovation which is evidenced in the rise and impact of new religious and new spirituality movements in every continent.

What role does religion play in a globalized society? Religion and Globalization explores the interaction between religion and worldwide social and cultural change. The author examines major theories of global change and discusses ways in which such change impinges on contemporary religious practice, meaning, and influence. He explores some of the key issues confronting religion today, including religion as culture, pure and applied religion, privatized and publicly influential religion, and liberal versus conservative religion. He then applies these themes to five illustrative cases of contemporary importance: the American Christian Right, Liberation Theology movements in Latin America, the Islamic Revolution in Iran, religious Zionists in Israel, and religious environmentalism-the response of religions to the degradation of the natural environment. Religion and Globalization is a vital resource for understanding the place of religion in global culture, and the relation between religion and globalization. This book is essential reading for scholars and students of sociology and religious studies as well as all those interested in the nature and direction of global cultural change. "The book would be useful in a graduate course in which globalization theory is an explicit focus, given the extended and informed review of the literature, as well as the case studies." -Contemporary Sociology "This is an innovative, important, and timely book that offers much to social scientists with an interest in the role of religion in the contemporary world. On the one hand, the book challenges the social scientist with an exceptionally wide-ranging theoretical argument, but equally, on the other, it confronts the practitioner with a powerful and suggestive explanation of the function and potential of contemporary religion-and therefore with an opportunity that must not be overlooked." --Richard Roberts, University of St. Andrews

In the immense literature on globalization, the work of Roland Robertson stands out. In particular, his insistence that globalization manifests itself primarily as glocalization, the simultaneity of the global and the local, of homogenization and heterogenization continues to influence how a wide variety of observers understand the process, including those who contest it. In honour of Robertson's lifetime contributions, this volume brings together a set of essays that demonstrate the cogency of his approach, point out directions in which it can be further developed, and illustrate the insight it can provide in topics as varied as religion, football, wine, morality, and UFOs. Contributors include: Peter Beyer, John Boli, Didem Buhari Gulmez, Rebecca Catto, Richard Giulianotti, Ulf Hannerz, David Inglis, Paul James, Habibul Haque Khondker, Anne Sophie Krossa, Frank Lechner, Kristian Naglo, John H. Simpson, Manfred B. Steger, and George M. Thomas.