DescriptionThis dissertation explores culture, particularly that of religion, arguing that religion transitioned its role as an historical authority structure to its current status as a marketplace for the production, distribution, consumption and investment of “god products”, which it is explained come from the pressures applied from late stage capitalism. I define god products as any direct or peripheral value acquired by spending time or money in a particular religious marketplace. The research demonstrates that, despite the appearance of fervent religiosity in two societies used as examples: the United States and Turkey, religions currently fail to meet their stated purpose as authoritative organizations that put forth a specific ethical and supernatural belief system, accompanied by specific rituals and practices agreed upon by the persons who take part in such organization. Due to the self-regulating nature of religiosity in the United States and Turkey, the supply and demand for god products strives to become a perfectly competitive market. Consequently, because of such self-regulation and low barrier to entry, suppliers continue to enter the marketplace until all consumers are serviced and the value of god becomes closer to zero. It is argued that consumers of, and investors in, god products are increasingly putting pressure on producers to invent new and low cost ways to produce and deliver these products. Because of this, religion has been transformed into a series of activities which center on the consumption and investment of personally constructed god products. Similar to other industries, this research suggests that democratic capitalist societies can modify macro and micro-economic policies, both in the broader economy and in the local religious goods economy to deliver more efficiently the societal benefits that these goods provide.