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Although religion once occupied a central position both in sociological theory and in the writings of the "founding fathers" of sociology, subsequently the subject lost its significance. As a consequence of the widespread acceptance of the secularistic paradigm, sociological studies of religion became marginalised as did the branch of sociology promulgated after WWII; religion and the sociology thereof were simply condemned to extinction. However, the worldwide religious revival of the late 20th century changed the situation altogether. Religion and spirituality as well as - albeit to a much lesser degree - the sociologies thereof have become topics of discussion within general sociological thought. The author describes and analyses the development of the sociology of religion in the second half of the 20th century. He maintains that "behind" the two grand paradigms - i.e. the secularisation and rational choice theories - different approaches exist, impacted by national academic traditions and other factors. Multi-paradigmatical approaches, an emphasis on ethnographical research and adoption of a "humanistic" perspective form common themes in the contemporary sociology of religion, especially in Europe; the Czech and Slovak sociologies of religion are no exception. Unfortunately, the sociological mainstream still devotes little attention to such developments, while the sociology of religion itself is rather closed to (post-) modern theories, including those dealing with religion. The central position in recent sociological thought is thus occupied by a specific subject - various forms of religion and spirituality - rather than by any special theories, methods or knowledge accumulated by sociologists of religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article traces the development of American sociology in the second half of the twentieth century in relation to the project to advance the shared disciplinary foundations. The author reconsiders the prominent role of sociological theory in this process and devotes special attention to current criticism of any project designed to found sociology on a unified theory. Between 1945 and 1970, a period often described retrospectively as the "Golden Age" of sociology, scientists heralded the coming of the era of sociological thinking, a view supported by the unprecedented institutional expansion of the field. However, enthusiasm over the potential growth of the field was in the ensuing period replaced with an escalating sense of dissatisfaction with the absence or unsatisfactory nature of the general vision of development. The idea of unified sociological theory was attacked and the field became more and more contested, fragmented, and compartmentalised. The article analyses the disintegrating impact that the inability to push through the promised programme of unification of the field had. The account of the development of American sociology is tied in with an argument about the conditions for sociological theory today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]