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Intro -- Acknowledgments -- Contents -- About the Author -- 1 Introduction -- References -- 2 Religion and Conflict in Northern Ireland: Context -- Brief History -- Religion in Northern Ireland -- Religious Landscape -- Secularisation -- Conservative Religious Culture -- Religion and Political Orientation -- References -- 3 Religion as Source of Conflict: Interpretations and Evidence -- General Overview -- The Weight of History -- Religion Is Important… Because It Is -- The Test Case: Protestantism and Unionist Politics -- References -- 4 Religion and the Reproduction of Social Divisions in Northern Ireland -- Anti-Catholicism and Subjectivism -- Religion in Socio-economic Context -- Sectarianism, Intra-Class Dynamics and Politics -- References -- 5 Sociology and Conflict: Epistemological Challenges -- The Anti-Catholic Illusio -- Double Play and Historical Materialism -- Politics and the Sociological Understanding of Inequalities -- Inequalities and the Sociology of Religion in Northern Ireland -- Anti-Catholicism, Anti-Protestantism, Reciprocity and Equivalences -- References -- Conclusion -- Synthesis -- Critical Sociology and Social Conflict -- What Does Religion Do? -- References -- Index.

"Cover" -- "Half Title" -- "Series" -- "Title" -- "Copyright" -- "Contents" -- "Preface" -- "Acknowledgements" -- "Chapter 1 Introduction" -- "Chapter 2 Accommodating Diversity: Paradigms and Patterns" -- "Postmodernity: The contemporary context of religious diversity" -- "Diversity: Plurality versus pluralism" -- "Pluralism: Paradigms of diversity affirmation" -- "Standard pluralism" -- "Radical pluralism" -- "Interdependent pluralism" -- "Ethical pluralism" -- "Comprehensive integrated pluralism" -- "Inclusivism: Paradigms of incorporation" -- "Triumphal inclusivism" -- "Gatekeeper inclusivism" -- "Imperialist inclusivism" -- "Mutual co-inherence inclusivism" -- "Conclusion" -- "Chapter 3 Diversity Resisted: Exclusion and Fundamentalism" -- "Exclusivism: Patterns of diversity rejection" -- "Open exclusivism" -- "Closed exclusivism" -- "Extreme exclusivism" -- "Religion and fundamentalism" -- "The origin and nature of 'fundamentalism'" -- "The phenomenon of fundamentalism: Phase, feature and factors" -- "Phase I: Passive Fundamentalism" -- "Feature 1 – Principal presuppositions" -- "Feature 2 – Authority derivation" -- "Feature 3 – Implicit verification" -- "Phase II: Assertive (hard-line) fundamentalism" -- "Feature 4 – Epistemological construction" -- "Feature 5 – Identity structure" -- "Feature 6 – Contextual scope" -- "Feature 7 – Condemnatory stance" -- "Phase III: Impositional fundamentalism" -- "Feature 8 – Value application" -- "Feature 9 – Explicit justification" -- "Feature 10 – Enacted extremism" -- "Conclusion" -- "Chapter 4 Texts of Terror: Scriptural Motifs for Extremism" -- "Extremism and the Hebrew Bible" -- "The Ban: Ethno-religious purity extremism" -- "Zealotry: The model of the priest Phineas" -- "Extremism in the New Testament and the Qur'an" -- "Conclusion

This new volume gives discursive shape to several key facets of the relationship among politics, theology and religious thought. Powerfully relevant to a wealth of further academic disciplines including history, law and the humanities, it sharpens the contours of our understanding in a live and evolving field. It charts the mechanisms by which, contrary to the avowed secularism of many of today's polities, theology and religion have often, and sometimes profoundly, shaped political discourse. By augmenting this broader analysis with a selection of authoritative papers focusing on the prominent sub-field of political theology, the anthology offsets a startling academic lacuna. Alongside focused analysis of subjects such as conscience, secularism and religious tolerance, the discussion of political theology examines the tradition's critical moments, including developments during the post-World War I Weimar republic in Germany and the epistemological imprint the theory has left behind in works by political thinkers influenced by the three major monotheistic traditions

Intro -- Political Religion, Everyday Religion: Sociological Trends -- Copyright -- Contents -- About the Authors -- Introduction -- Part 1: Recent Developments in the Sociology of Religion: Theories and Approaches -- Religious Diversity: Sociological Issues and Perspectives -- From Theories of Secularization and Return of Religion - to Religious Complexity -- Social Semiotics in the Study of Religion -- More Dialogue between Approaches: Everyday Religion and Political Religion -- Religious Practices in the Framework of Ash Scattering and Contact with the Dead -- Methodological Challenges to the Study of Religious Peacebuilding -- Part 2: Normativity and Empirical Studies: Sociology of Religion in a Wider Context -- Sociology of Religion in Contexts: Institutional Constraints and Personal Beliefs -- Empirically Informed Theology -- Empirically Informed Ethics -- Hell, Perdition and Feelgood -- Part 3: Research Notes from Young Norwegian Sociologists of Religion -- Camping with God and Goffman -- From Sin to a Gift from God -- Street Religion: Faith among Romanian Beggars -- A Pilgrimage in the Mountains -- Preaching at Funerals -- Name and Subject Index.

In contemporary Western world religion has long lost its status of a default legitimating formula and has been relegated, in liberal political philosophy, to the private sphere. Institutionally, religious organizations have been largely separated from government institutions. Despite these adverse circumstances, religion – both as a system of ideas, values and norms and in its institutional expression – has adopted effective survival strategies guarding it from social and political marginalization. Religion has been accorded special status among other ideologies. In science, it results in a sort of methodological agnosticism, which treats religious and scientific statements as belonging to two incommensurable spheres. In politics, religious organizations are often granted special legal status among other political actors and religious freedom has been constitutionalized as a special case of general freedom of expression. As judicature and political practice show, religious arguments can often trump non-religious claims when fundamental value conflicts arise. In their political activity, religious organizations have used strategies characteristic for other political actors (lobbying, mass mobilization etc.), thereby gaining democratic legitimacy, as well as unique, religion-specific strategies. Armed with these and other empowering tools, religion can continue to influence democratic political systems in significant ways. ; Utraciwszy status dominującej formuły legitymizacyjnej w świecie zachodnim, religia została też instytucjonalnie oddzielona od państwa i, w myśl ideologii liberalnej, zepchnięta na margines życia publicznego. Pomimo tych niesprzyjających okoliczności, religia – zarówno jako system idei i norm, jak i w wymiarze instytucjonalnym – zdołała obronić się przed marginalizacją, zapewniając sobie szczególny status wśród innych ideologii. W nauce objawia się to swego rodzaju metodologicznym agnostycyzmem, nakazującym traktować twierdzenia religijne jako niewspółmierne z naukowymi, a zatem niepodlegające krytyce. W polityce, organizacje religijne uzyskały w wielu państwach zachodnich szczególną pozycję, a wolność religijna została ukonstytuowana jako szczególny przypadek swobody wypowiedzi. W swej działalności politycznej organizacje religijne stosują zarówno metody identyczne z innymi aktorami politycznymi (lobbying, masowa mobilizacja itp.) – co nadaje im legitymację w ramach demokratycznych systemów politycznych – jak i specyficzne strategie religijne. Działania te są w artykule analizowane głównie na przykładach polskich i amerykańskich. Uzbrojone w takie narzędzia, religijne podmioty polityczne mogą wywierać znaczący wpływ na demokratyczne systemy polityczne.

Among the main topics discussed by Sarpi scholarship, the question of the Servite's religious attitude is undoubtedly the most popular. No other topic attracted more interest and produced such deep disagreement, especially since the rediscovering of his manuscript Pensieri (whose first trustable edition dates only to 1996). In this essay, I will analyse the most important interpretations of Sarpi's attitude towards religion and theology that have emerged so far. This analysis will open the way for a more direct examination of some of Sarpi's texts that have been used to support the different readings of his thoughts. Finally, I will propose some considerations regarding the possibility to include Sarpi in the history of early modern atheism. ; ABSTRACT Among the main topics discussed by Sarpi scholarship, the question of the Servite's religious attitude is undoubtedly the most popular. No other topic attracted more interest and produced such deep disagreement, especially since the rediscovering of his manuscript Pensieri (whose first trustable edition dates only to 1996). In this essay, I will analyse the most important interpretations of Sarpi's attitude towards religion and theology that have emerged so far. This analysis will open the way for a more direct examination of some of Sarpi's texts that have been used to support the different readings of his thoughts. Finally, I will propose some considerations regarding the possibility to include Sarpi in the history of early modern atheism.