Finke explores religious freedom in Birkett Williams Lecture

Emphasizing that almost every country has some sort of assurance of religious freedoms, Dr. Roger Finke recently delivered Ouachita Baptist University\u27s spring 2014 Birkett Williams Lecture

Usos e limites da teoria da escolha racional da religião

Este artigo tem por objetivo apresentar e analisar as principais concepções teóricas propostas por Rodney Stark, Roger Finke e Laurence Iannaccone, formuladores da teoria da escolha racional da religião. Sem pretender ser exaustivo, enfoca suas inovações e limitações, e o debate teórico que suscitaram, examinando as noções de racionalidade, desregulação estatal da religião, monopólio, pluralismo, competição, mercado, oferta, demanda e stricteness.This aim of this article is to present and analyze the main theoretical conceptions proposed by Rodney Stark, Roger Finke and Laurence Iannaccone, formulators of the rational choice theory of religion. Without aiming to be exhaustive, it focuses on their theory's innovations and limitations and the theoretical debate provoked in its wake, examining the notions of rationality, state deregulation of religion, monopoly, pluralism, competition, market, supply, demand and 'strictness.

Book review: the price of freedom denied: religious persecution and conflict in the twenty-first century

Rachel Dearlove discovers an invaluable evidence-based book on the role of religion in modern conflict, essential reading for students and for policy maker

Rodney Stark, One True God. Historical Consequences of Monotheism

Déjà auteur de nombreux livres importants, comme The Future of Religion: Secularization, Revival and Cult Formation (Berkeley and Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1983) ; avec William Sim Bainbridge, A Theory of Religion (New Brunswick, N.J., Rutgers University Press, 1987), The Rise of Christianity. A Sociologist Reconsiders History (Princetown, N.J., and Chichester, G.B., University of Princetown Press, 1996) (cf. Arch. 104.52) ; avec Roger Finke, Acts of Faith: Explaining the H..

Societal Rather than Governmental Change: Religious Discrimination in Muslim-Majority Countries after the Arab Uprisings

This study examines shifts in governmental religion policy and societal discrimination against religious minorities in Muslim-Majority states after the Arab Uprisings by using the Religion and State round 3 (RAS3) dataset for the years 2009-2014 and by focusing on 49 Muslim-majority countries and territories. We build on threads of literature on religious pluralism in transitional societies to explain the changes in governmental religion policy and societal discrimination against religious minorities after the Arab Uprisings. This literature predicts a rise in all forms of discrimination in Arab Uprising states as compared to other Muslim-majority states, and an even more significant rise in societal religious discrimination since societal behavior can change more quickly than government policy, especially at times of transition. The results partially conform to these predictions. There was no significant difference in the shifts in governmental religion policy between Arab Uprising and other Muslim-Majority states, but societal religious discrimination increased substantially in Arab Uprising states as compared to non-Arab Uprising states. Understanding the nature of religion policies and religious discrimination provides further opportunities to unveil the dynamics of regional politics as well as conflict prevention in the region

Subsidizing Religious Participation through Groups: A Model of the “Megachurch” Strategy for Growth

Either despite or because of their non-traditional approach, megachurches have grown significantly in the United States since 1980. This paper models religious participation as an imperfect public good which, absent intervention, yields suboptimal participation by members from the church’s perspective. Megachurches address this problem in part by employing secular-based group activities to subsidize religious participation that then translates into an increase in the attendees’ religious investment. This strategy not only allows megachurches to attract and retain new members when many traditional churches are losing members but also results in higher levels of an individual’s religious capital. As a result, the megachurch may raise expectations of members’ levels of commitment and faith practices. Data from the FACT2000 survey provide evidence that megachurches employ groups more extensively than other churches, and this approach is consistent with a strategy to use groups to help subsidize individuals’ religious investment. Religious capital rises among members of megachurches relative to members of non-megachurches as a result of this strategy

Religious Capital and Religious Rewards: A Study in the Economics of Religious Life

Religious life is studied by way suggested by the rational choice theory and the religious capital theory. The basic contentions of the theory on the nature of religious life having to do with an exchange upon a religious market, by firms offering compensators and rewards, and consumers, is considered. In the empirical analysis, it was validated that the independent (religious capital) and dependent (religious rewards of two types) were empirically separate constructs. Cross-sectional analysis of survey data indicated a very strong association between religious capital and institutional and ritual experience rewards within religious life, at a cross-cultural analysis, including Bosnian Muslims, Serbian Orthodox, Slovenian Catholics and US Protestants. The association was confirmed as robust at regression inspection with religious socialization. This extends further support for the empirical validity these novel theories of religious life and extensions of economic analysis into religious lifeReligious capital, Economics of religious life, Rational choice, Religious costs, Religious rewards

A Critical Study on the Religious Economy of the Korean Mission Field (1884 - 1910)

The church in Korea is well known for its rapid growth between 1960 and 1990, but remarkable church growth has been a part of Korean church history since the first missionaries arrived. This paper is the result of critical dialogue between the field of sociology and the study of religion. It applies the theory of religious economy to the Korean mission field during the period of 1884-1910. Religious economy is a sociological theory which has made unique and influential contributions to recent religious studies, especially in the United States. The theory attempts to explain the human side of religion based on \u27sect-church\u27 continuum theory and rational choice theory. On the supply side of religious economy, this thesis addresses how the dynamics within Christianity in the U.S. at the time shaped the early Korean church. Especially in the earliest period, the Korean mission field was heavily populated by American missionaries who were from Presbyterian and Methodist denominations. In the sect-church continuum perspective, Presbyterians and Methodists had already become a \u27church\u27 in late nineteenth century North America. Yet, higher mission involvement is a sect characteristic. This thesis examines this interesting phenomenon within \u27sect-church theory,\u27 which is one of the main components of a religious economy. This thesis suggests that para-church organizations, such as the Student Volunteer Missionary movement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, can play the role of sect-formation within the church without splitting a denomination. On the demand side of the religious economy, this paper considers the reasons for the success of the Presbyterian Church in Korea. The question is, why (when Presbyterians and Methodists arrived in Korea at same time) did Presbyterians become the winners in the race to convert the nation, while Methodists did not? This study critically reviews previous studies from a religious economy perspective. The adoption of Nevius mission methods has been considered the most important basis for Presbyteriru1 victory on the Korean mission field. This paper looks beyond explanations of the Nevius Methods\u27 appeal, such as \u27high demands and high rewards,\u27 to the socio-economic conditions that are prerequisites for the successful implementation of Nevius methods

Individual s religiosity enhances trust: Latin American evidence for the puzzle

This paper explores the effect of religious observance and affiliation to the dominant religion (Catholicism) on trust in institutions, towards others and market attitudes. The analysis is performed using a Latin American database of twenty thousand respondents from 2004 by means of ordered probit models. The most interesting results are: i) Trust toward others is positively correlated with religious observance and with Catholic affiliation. ii) There is a positive correlation between trust in the government, in the police, in the armed forces, in the judiciary and in the banking system and religious practice in general. Identical positive results are obtained for Catholic affiliation. iii) Correlations with attitudes toward the market, in general, are heterogeneous but never negative. In sum, individual s level of religiosity crucially affects trust in institutions and toward peers. We also found that Catholicism encourages both trust in institutions and towards others. Thus, we found a positive effect of religiosity on social capital. In fact, we never found any negative (and significant) effect on the variables considered.trust in institutions, economic behavior, religious practise, Catholics.