Peter L. Berger and the Sociology of Religion

How and why did The Sacred Canopy by Peter L. Berger (19292017) become a classic? How have scholars used Bergers ideas over the past 50 years since its publication? How are these ideas relevant to the future of the sociology of religion? Peter L. Berger and the Sociology of Religion explores these questions by providing a broad overview of Bergers work, as well as more focussed studies. The chapters discuss both aspects of Bergers classic text: the systematic sociological theorising on religion and the historical theorising on secularisation. The articles also critically examine Bergers reversal regarding secularisation and the suggested desecularisation of the world. The approaches range from disciplinary history to applications of Bergers ideas. The book includes contributions from Nancy Ammerman, Steve Bruce, David Feltmate, Effie Fokas, Titus Hjelm, D. Paul Johnson, Hubert Knoblauch, Silke Steets, Riyaz Timol, and Bryan S. Turner.