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Originally published in 1977 this book places sociological discussion of the secularisation process within a theoretical framework. The author explores the variety and depth of analyses of the concept in the work of social theorists ranging from the 'founding fathers' of sociology to 20th century sociologists of religion and shows how secularisation has become an ideological tool reflecting the particular concerns of Western sociology through the construction of a sociological myth. The author does not deny that changes in the place of religion in society have occurred, but suggests that by relying upon varieties of systematic empiricism sociologists have failed to provide theoretical justification for them.

The study anchors the process of secularisation in theory, and offers a fundamental, methodological critique of a concept that has been the centre of much debate. The author concludes that it fits best into a taxonomy of religious change as a generic term from which a profile of the secularisation process in any society can be constructed; this may then be used in social planning as well as sociological research.