Summary Of Peter Berger's Book 'The Sacred Canopy'

Introduction
Religion functions as a basic and important function for society by avoiding anomy which is finding the Nomos meaningless. Peter Berger in his book, The Sacred Canopy, describes what Nomos is which is the idea made up of the all the knowledge about how things are in other words society’s worldviews and all the values and ways of living also called society’s ethos. The nomos is the product of an extensive sequence of human choices, all of which could have been made differently. The nomos is an important theory that Peter Berger really stresses in his book associated with his key terms that deal with religion which are externalization, internalization and objectivation. Externalization is the ongoing expression of the human being into the world, both in the physical and mental activity. It is the process where people create their own socially constructed world which includes the construction of symbols, society, culture, and institutions. Objectivation involves the fulfillment by the product of people’s creation of a status which is independent of people. This is the process where the externalized products of human action are objectivized. Internalization is the …show more content…
It acts to reinforce the unity and stability of society by supporting social control improving established values and goals, and providing the means for overcoming guilt and alienation that can occur when one does not live by society’s norms. The contributions of religion to society may be either positive or negative. Religion may support society's continued existence or may perhaps play a part in undermining society. That is something every individual will make a conclusion that most fits them as a person in