Why is religion still important? Can we be fully modern and fully religious? This book, written by one of the leading figures in the field, works at two levels. First it sets out the agenda - covering the key questions in the sociology of religion today. At the same time, it interrogates this agenda - asking if the sociology of religion, as we currently know it, is 'fit for purpose'. If not, what is to be done? This book: describes the origins of the sociology of religion; demystifies secularization as a process and a theory; relates religion to modern social theory; unpacks the meaning of religion in relation to modernity and globalization; grasps the methodological challenges in the field; provides a comparative perspective for religions in the west; introduces questions of minorities and margins; and, sets out a critical agenda for debate and research. In a single volume, Grace Davie captures the nature and forms of modern religion, the current debates in the field and the prospects for future development.