Early Sociology of Religion : Fundamental Readings (9 Vols-Set)

Contents: Vol. I. Custom and Myth (Reprint): 1. Introduction. 2. The method of folklore. 3. The bull-roarer. 4. The myth of Cronus. 5. Cupid, psyche, and the \'Sun-Frog\'. 6. A far-travelled tale. 7. Apollo and the mouse. 8. Star myths. 9. Moly and Mandragora. 10. The \'Kalevala\'. 11. The divining rod. 12. Hottentot mythology. 13. Fetichism and the infinite. 14. The early history of the family. 15. The art of savages. Index.

Vol. II. The Making of Religion: 1. Introductory chapter. 2. Science and \'Miracles\'. 3. Anthropology and religion. 4. \'Opening the Gates of Distance\'. 5. Crystal visions, savage and civilised. 6. Anthropology and hallucinations. 7. Demoniacal possession. 8. Fetishism and spiritualism. 9. Evolution of the Idea of God. 10. High Gods of low races. 11. Supreme Gods not necessarily developed out of \'Smrits\'. 12. Savage supreme beings. 13. More savage supreme beings. 14. Ahone. Ti-Ra-Wa. Na-Pi. Pachacamac. Tui Laga. Taa-Roa. 15. The Old Degeneration Theory. 16. Theories of Jehovah. 17. Conclusion. Appendices. Index.

Vol. III. Primitive Religion : Its Nature and Origin: Preface. Introduction. I. Synthetic sketches: 1. Crow religion. 2. Ekoi religion. 3. Bukaua religion. 4. Polynesian religion. II. Critique of theories: 5. Animism. 6. Magic. 7. Collectivism. III. Historical and psychological aspects: 8. Historical schemes and regional characterization. 9. History and psychology. 10. Woman and religion. 11. Individual variability. 12. Religion and art. 13. Association. 14. Conclusion. Bibliography. Index.

Vol. IV. The Positive Evolution of Religion : Its Moral and Social Reaction: Introductory. 1. Orthodox criticism. 2. Orthodox criticism (Continued). 3. Deistical criticism. 4. Nature worship. 5. Polytheism. 6. Catholicism. 7. The Catholic Church. 8. The Institutions of the Catholic Church. 9. The Anglican establishment. 10. Orthodox dissent. 11. Neo-Christianity. 12. Theism. 13. The religion of humanity. 14. The jubilee of Auguste Comte.

Vol. V. The Evolution of Religion : The Gifford Lectures Delivered Before the University of St. Andrews, Vol. I. (Reprint): 1. The possibility of a science of religion. 2. Different methods of defining religion. 3. The definition of religion. 4. The idea of the infinite as defined by Professor Max Muller and Mr. Herbert Spencer. 5. Mr. Spencer\'s dualistic view of the consciousness of the finite. 6. The idea of God as the beginning and the end of knowledge. 7. The main stages in the evolution of religion. 8. The objective form of the earliest religion. 9. Connexion of religion in its earliest phases with morality. 10. The religion of Greece. 11. The function of the imagination in the development of objective religion. 12. The logical justification of subjective religion. 13. The subjective religions--Buddhism and the philosophical religion of the Stoics. 14. The religion of Israel. Index.

Vol. VI. The Evolution of Religion : The Gifford Lectures Delivered Before the University of St. Andrews, Vol. II. (Reprint): 1. The contrast of objective and subjective religion. 2. The idea of the relation of Goodness to Happiness, and its development in the Old Testament. 3. The relation of Judaism to Christianity. 4. The problem of the later Judaism and the answer of Jesus. 5. The distinctive characteristics of Christianity as contrasted with Judaism. 6. The religion of Jesus. 7. The lesson of death and of the death of Jesus. 8. The teaching of St. Paul. 9. The Gospel of St. John and the idea of a divine humanity. 10. General characteristics of the evolution of Christianity in Post-Apostolic times. 11. The development of Christianity before the Reformation. 12. The development of Christianity after the Reformation. Index.

Vol. VII. Primitive Religion: Preface. 1. The nature and substance of religion. 2. The role of the religious formulator. 3. The economic determinants. 4. The magical substratum. 5. The crises of life and transition rites. 6. From Magicians to Priests: their nature and initiation. 7. From Magicians to priests: their function. 8. The approach to the supernatural. 9. The conciliation and propitiation of the supernatural. 10. From Ghosts to Gods: Ghosts, spirits and totems. 11. From Ghosts to Gods: Ancestor-spirits, deities and Gods. 12. Monolatry and Monotheism. 13. The soul: Its nature and destination. 14. The ritual drama. Appendix. Notes. Index.

Vol. VIII. The Golden Bough : A Study in Magic and Religion, Vol. I. (Revised and enlarged edition): 1. The king of the wood. 2. Priestly kings. 3. Sympathetic magic. 4. Magic and religion. 5. The magical control of the weather. 6. Magicians as kings. 7. Incarnate human Gods. 8. Departmental kings of nature. 9. The worship of trees. 10. Relics of tree-worship in modern Europe. 11. The influence of the sexes on vegetation. 12. The sacred marriage. 13. The kings of Rome and Alba. 14. The succession to the kingdom in ancient Latium. 15. The worship of the Oak. 16. Dianus and Diana. 17. The burden of royalty. 18. The perils of the soul. 19. Tabooed acts. 20. Tabooed persons. 21. Tabooed things. 22. Tabooed words. 23. Our debt to the savage. 24. The killing of the divine king. 25. Temporary kings. 26. Sacrifice of the king\'s son. 27. Succession to the soul. 28. The killing of the tree-spirit. 29. The myth of Adonis. 30. Adonis in Syria. 31. Adonis in Cyprus. 32. The ritual of Adonis. 33. The gardens of Adonis. 34. The myth and ritual of Attis. 35. Attis as a God of Vegetation. 36. Human representatives of Attis. 37. Oriental religions in the west. 38. The myth of Osiris. 39. The ritual of Osiris. 40. The nature of Osiris. 41. Isis. 42. Osiris and the sun. 43. Dionysus.

Vol. IX. The Golden Bough : A Study in Magic and Religion, Vol. II. (Revised and enlarged edition): 44. Demeter and Persephone. 45. The corn-mother and the corn-maiden in Northern Europe. 46. The corn-mother in many lands. 47. Lityerses. 48. The Corn-spirit as an animal. 49. Ancient deities of vegetation as animals. 50. Eating the God. 51. Homeopathic magic of a flesh diet. 52. Killing the divine animal. 53. The propitiation of wild animals by hunters. 54. Types of animal sacrament. 55. The transference of evil. 56. The public expulsion of evils. 57. Public scapegoats. 58. Human scapegoats in classical antiquity. 59. Killing the God in Mexico. 60. Between heaven and earth. 61. The myth of Balder. 62. The fire-festivals of Europe. 63. The interpretation of the fire-festivals. 64. The burning of human beings in the fires. 65. Balder and the Mistletoe. 66. The external soul in folk-tales. 67. The external soul in folk-custom. 68. The Golden Bough. 69. Farewell to Nemi. Index. 

"The study of sociology regularly involves a re-reading of the classics of the discipline, and this collection makes available some of the most important early texts for re-evaluation.

The early twentieth century was a crucial period of development for the emerging discipline of sociology. The primary focus during this period was on various aspects of society. Each of the volumes collected here contributes to our understanding of the importance of religion. The sociology of religion is a controversial field, and yet one which was central to the making of sociology.

This collection of rare and authoritative reprints of key texts representing differing perspectives on the sociology of religion, as well as examples of the smaller body of works which comprised early sociology. Comprehensive and fascinating, the nature of the facsimile provides a real sense of immediacy and authenticity for both students and scholars alike." (jacket)