Beyond Belief collects fifteen celebrated, broadly ranging essays in which Robert Bellah interprets the interplay of religion and society in concrete contexts from Japan to the Middle East to the United States. First published in 1970, Beyond Belief is a classic in the field of sociology of religion.

Robert N. Bellah is Elliott Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley and co-author of Habits of the Heart (California, 1985).

"Anyone who is at all interested in the sociology of religion will want to own a copy of Beyond Belief if only to have access to 'Religious Evolution,' 'Civil Religion in America,' 'Transcendance in Contemporary Piety,' and 'Between Religion and Social Science.' . . . Most sociologists would not be brave enough to reveal the connection between their own deepest personal fears and longings of their professional work, and maybe most of us should not do so. But Bellah carries it off superbly. . . . His introduction notably improves the usefulness of the rest of the book, both as sociology of religion and as a record of the religion of a sociologist."—Andrew M. Greeley, American Journal of Sociology

"[Beyond Belief] excellently illustrates the trends, methods and contributions which are being made today to the academic study of religion. It merits the careful attention of all who are seriously concerned about religion in contemporary society."—John J. Mawhinney, Journal of Ecumenical Studies