Phenomenologists are interested in the ways in which we make sense of our world and the meanings that people attach to their actions.

The phenomenological approach has been criticized on a number of counts.

According to Luckmann, the function of religion can be understood to reduce uncertainty and complexity, to determine which seems to be indeterminate, and to make accessible what seems to be inaccessible.  

According to functionalists, this approach neglects to examine the conflict that sometimes rages between and within religious faiths.

Luckmann acknowledges that order is the primary imperative in social life.