Martin Riesebrodt

Martin Riesebrodt (April 22, 1948 – December 6, 2014) was a German-American professor of sociology and politics at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, in Geneva, Switzerland. He was also emeritus professor at the Divinity School and the Department of Sociology at the University of Chicago. He earned his doctorate at Heidelberg University, and his habilitation at LMU Munich.

In his book Cultus und Heilsversprechen, Riesebrodt examines the regeneration of religion and fundamentalism in the modern world. The book has been positively reviewed, one critic arguing that it is among the most important contributions to the sociology of religion in recent years. It was translated to English under the title The Promise of Salvation: A Theory of Religion.