students are often told to think “outside the box" to think broadly, critically, unconventionally. Sociologists of religion are well served to do the same. Not all religion or religiousness is to be found inside the "God Boxes" we think of as churches, synagogues, temples, and mosques. Thinking "outside the God Box" allows us to understand some important social changes that have taken place in modern society and the religious adaptations that have resulted. Two of the most important aspects of contemporary society are the media and sport. These arenas are often not taken seriously by students of religion, however, because they are "mass" or "popular" cultural phenomena. Religion is seen as serious and important while popular culture is silly and frivolous, yet the two commonly intersect. One cannot understand some very important developments in religion without understanding its relationship to the media and sport. A number of social scientists maintain that religion is undergoing significant transformation as new forms of religion are emerging. Some of these new forms are nontheistic, and some even lack a supernatural dimension. For this reason, many sociologists prefer to call these processes "quasi-religious phenomena" or "functional alternatives to religion." Regardless of what one calls them, these value perspectives provide many people with a sense of purpose in life and with a center of worth (which is the etymological basis for the word worship). When any ideology or value system becomes a meaning system-one that defines the meaning of life, death, suffering, and injustice-it usually takes on a sacred cast in the eyes of the adherents. By looking only inside the God Boxes, we overlook these alternative phenomena.