This study examines the reception of Thomas Luckmann’s The Invisible Religion (2023 [1967]) in the Iranian sociological sector, with a focus on the intersection of intellectual, cultural, and political aspects. Despite Luckmann’s popularity in the sociology of religion, his thesis has received little attention in Iran. This study employs the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD) to examine the selective adoption of Luckmann’s theory of religion by two prominent sociological discour…
Read moreThis study examines the reception of Thomas Luckmann’s The Invisible Religion (2023 [1967]) in the Iranian sociological sector, with a focus on the intersection of intellectual, cultural, and political aspects. Despite Luckmann’s popularity in the sociology of religion, his thesis has received little attention in Iran. This study employs the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD) to examine the selective adoption of Luckmann’s theory of religion by two prominent sociological discourses: Islamic/Fundamentalist and Reformist/Secular. The Islamic discourse views the “invisible religion” as a framework to highlight the ‘Embedded Sacredness,’ which acknowledges the undeniable presence of religion in the social fabric while also acknowledging the incomparability of Western church-related religiosity with the unique Iranian religious history. In contrast, the Reformist discourse confines Luckmann’s idea to the “privatization of religion” in modern society with an emphasis on the ‘Sacralization of the Subject,’ which speaks of individuals constructing religion from the assortment of “ultimate” meanings, echoing classical liberal sociology. The study highlights the application of Luckmann’s concept of “invisible religion” not for its fundamental explanatory value, but for its capacity to reinforce or contest opposing power/knowledge regimes. This limited engagement highlights a larger issue in Iranian sociology: the fragmented reception of sociological theory, which is influenced by ongoing discursive disputes and the politicization of intellectual output. This study illuminates the complex dynamics of knowledge formation in Iran by contextualizing Luckmann’s reception within the larger framework of raison d’État islamique and the ongoing interplay between sociological discourse and political conflicts over state formation. The findings advocate for more extensive engagement with Iranian intellectual traditions and global sociological frameworks to address these issues and foster meaningful conversations.
