The many books on the world's religions typically emphasize doctrine ( religion "in the air"), while sociology of religion books typically emphasize behavior (religion "on the ground"). Stephen Sharot does both in this masterful study, the product of many years of research. His book should have great classroom potential as well as a prominent place on religion scholars' bookshelves."--Phillip Hammond, D. Mackenzie Brown Professor of Religious Studies, University of California Santa Barbara

"This book belongs in libraries of all sorts. It strikes me as a paradigm of analytical comprehension that should set a standard for the field."— Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, September 2002"This is a commendably ambitious project...The coverage is excellent."

—Journal of Religion

"In his fine study Sharot succeeds in discerning a specific trajectory of popular religions. He has assembled a tremendous amount of evidence and arguments in favor of the independent existence and development of popular religion, effective still in the secularized world."

—History of Religions

"He is adept at articulating overarching patterns of similarity and differences, and furnishes a much-needed synthesis of recent scholarship concerning many of the major religious traditions."—Contemporary Sociology

A Sociology of World Religions presents a comparative analysis of the world's religions, focusing on the differences and interrelationships between religious elites and lay masses. In each case the volume contextualizes how the relationships between these two religious forms fit within, and are influenced by, the wider socio-political environment.

After introducing the book's major themes, the volume introduces and builds upon an analysis of Weber's model of religious action, drawing on Durkheim, Marxist scholars, and the work of contemporary sociologists and anthropolgists. The following chapters each focus on major religious cultures, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, Judaism, and the religions of China and Japan. This ambitious project is the first to offer a comparison of the popular, or folk, forms of religion around the world.

Sharot's accessible introductions to each of the world religions, synthesizing a vast literature on popular religion from sociology, anthropology, and historians of religion, make the project ideal for course use. His comparative approach and original analyses will prove rewarding even for experts on each of the world religions.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

I Concepts and Theories 1

1 World Religions, Elites, and Popular Religion 3

2 Religious Action: A Weberian Model 20

3 Elites and Masses: Max Weber, Weberian Scholars,and Marxist Analysis 37

II Religious Action in the World Religions 67

4 China: State Religion, Elites, and Popular Religionin a Syncretistic Milieu 70

5 India: Brahmans, Renouncers, and Popular Hinduism 102

6 Nirvana and Spirits: Buddhism and Animism inSri Lanka and Southeast Asia 131

7 Hierocracy and Popular Religion: Catholicism inTraditional Europe 166

8 Elite Scholars and Popular Saints: A Brief Excursuson Islam and Judaism 202

9 Protestants, Catholics, and the Reform ofPopular Religion 211

10 Comparisons 242

Notes 263

Bibliography 309

Index 337

About the Author 344