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The social
scientific study of religion began in earnest a scant century ago.
Although precedents for a "scientific attitude" toward
religion may be found at least as far back as the pre-Socratics of
ancient Greece, it is principally with the works of Émile Durkheim, Max
Weber, and Sigmund Freud that we can begin to chart something of the
development of today's insights into the "phenomenon" of
religion.
The
Encyclopedia of Religion and Society marks a unique venture in that
it attempts to bring together in a single-volume compendium a
state-of-the-art summary of the insights gained by the principal social
sciences of religion: anthropology, psychology, and sociology. To do so
is to take, admittedly, a "one-sided" approach to the
religion-and-society nexus. One could perhaps consider an alternative
posture, more ethical in nature-namely, one that considers what
religions think about society. This would really be an encyclopedia of
religious social ethics, and it is not within the scope of this project.
We have tried
to assemble entries, both lengthy and brief, that survey as broadly as
possible the different theoretical traditions and research styles that
have emerged over the century. Although more heavily oriented toward
North America, the scope is global, and an effort has been made to
address the major traditions of world religious experience.
We also have
attempted to provide a historical reference tool particularly with
regard to the major professional societies in the social scientific
study of religion: the Association for the Sociology of Religion, the
Religious Research Association, the Society for the Scientific Study of
Religion, and the Société Internationale de Sociologie des
Religions-and as much as possible the Association for the Social
Scientific Study of Jewry and Research Committee 22 (sociology of
religion) of the International Sociological Association. Entries are
also provided for the sections of the major professional organizations,
the American Psychological Association and the American Sociological
Association. This resource is intended to aid each of these
organizations in historical retrieval, and we hope that subsequent
editions of this work may increase the detail that can be provided.
The
encyclopedia began its course initially in the spring of 1993, more in
earnest from 1994 to the present. Charting new ground called for a
number of decisions to be made about inclusion and exclusion; some of
the decisions were purely practical, but for most at least an attempt
was made at rationality. The work began with an extensive citation study
of various journal indexes, texts, and bibliographies in the field.
These generated a quantitative measure from which decisions about
initial subject inclusion and the length of subsequent entries were
determined. To these were added the names of those persons who had been
elected president of any one of the major societies mentioned above,
even if the individual did not qualify by the quantitative index.
Subsequently, the publisher and editors consulted about modifications
based upon more subjective criteria.
We have not
taken up the philosophical background to the social sciences. There are
no entries for Plato or Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas or Ibn Khaldun* ,
or Hobbes, Locke, Hume, or Kant. We pick up with brief entries for
Rousseau in the French tradition and Hegel in the German. One could say
the American tradition actually begins with the Frenchman Tocqueville,
but more so H. Richard Niebuhr, on the one hand, and H. Paul Douglass,
on the other.
Similarly, we
have not taken up religion "in itself." Neither the great
religious founders nor subsequent generations of theologians are to be
found here. When an exception is made to this rule, it is because of a
unique encounter with the social sciences, as in the case of Paul
Tillich or Gayraud Wilmore. There are certainly great encyclopedias of
both philosophy and theology for those who wish to pursue these lines.
The index to this volume will provide the names of those figures in both
philosophy and theology of whose work the social scientific study of
religion has taken account.
A word on usage:
The actual commissioning of entries had to depend on the persons with
time available and how things could be conceived by them. In some cases,
topics are taken up under biographical entries; in others, there are
separate entries for both a topic and an individual closely associated
with that topic. In general, topics associated with a single individual
are taken up in his or her biography only. For example, the
"dilemmas of institutionalization" are almost uniquely
associated with Thomas O'Dea, hence they are discussed there;
"civil religion," by contrast, although certainly given new
birth by Robert Bellah, has also taken on a life quite its own-a
separate entry is called for.
Also with regard
to usage, the word religious normally should be presumed as a
modifier. With the exception of the professions of religious education
and religious studies, there are no entries under "religious."
Readers interested in religious roles, for example, should refer to the
entry on "roles"; those interested in religious evolution
should refer to evolution ; and so on. There is also no entry on
"religion." Depending on one's interest, this topic will be
treated either in the "definition of religion" entry or that
for "religious studies." There is similarly no entry for
"society"; the reader should consult that aspect of the social
structure that is of interest-for example, attitudes, status,
stratification, values.
This
encyclopedia owes much to the goodwill of the contributors, none of whom
was paid for his or her work. All have contributed from a sense of
professional responsibility and dedication. Those of us who have worked
closely over the years with the men and women who keep the social
scientific study of religion alive and vital recognize a great esprit de
corps among them, and this project has certainly benefitted from that. A
total of 109 authors have contributed. These individuals range from some
exceptionally talented students to world-renowned senior and emeritus
professors. Most of the members of the editorial board also have
contributed entries; all have worked enormously hard to bring out the
best in the entries they have reviewed. For myself, mindful that Samuel
Johnson ended the entry on "lexicographer" in his pioneering Dictionary
(1755) with the words "a harmless drudge," I hope I have been
perhaps a helpful drudge in bringing it all together.
It is the case,
nevertheless, that in breaking new ground as we are, there is a moment
of trial and error. And that is about to come upon us. So we share with
you our hope that what you find here is readable, meets your needs, and
is also a bit inspirational, that you might join with us in a vocation
that challenges humanity's highest hopes and greatest dreams.
To that end,
finally, we also invite you to become a participant in this project. If
there are entries you think should be included in a future edition,
entries you would like to see expanded, or entries you found
particularly helpful, contact us at bill4329@hotmail.com
through the end of
1999.
-WILLIAM
H. SWATOS, JR
*
Didn't find any information about a specific topic?*
If
you would like to see the topic covered in the next edition of the
Encyclopedia, send an email with your suggestion to the editor William
H. Swatos, Jr. and he will consider it. |
