Abstract
A comparative analysis of the sociological theories of religion of Saint-Simon, Comte, Proudhon, and Marx reveals that, although they agreed that the traditional institutions of Christianity had outlived their utility to society, their writings differ radically in the delineation of the specific role of religion in industrial society. Saint-Simon and Comte attempted to create a secular religion of humanity, based in the case of Saint-Simon on fraternity and technocracy; in the writings of Comte, on positivism and industry. Proudhon and Marx discarded both religion and humanism as false ideologies; Proudhon substituted the gospel of anarchism, Marx that of socialism. These diverse positions mask a common recognition of the social nature of religion. Implications of their ideas for contemporary research are examined with reference to the underlying postulates of representation, unity and integration, social control, alienation, relativism, and social change. Their recognition of the need to develop viable alternatives to the traditional religions is highly pertinent to the contemporary quest for solutions to the problem of secularization.
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