Religious Experiences

Types
1. Mystical
  1. William James
    1. categorised mystical REs that cannot be described with words as PINT
      1. Passive
      2. Noetic
      3. Ineffable
      4. Transient
    2. Accepted that some REs can be induced but they still count
      1. It is the change in the person which matters
    3. Studied clients who had had REs - said the certainty of testimonies was enough
      1. there was a common core of change despite all the differences
      2. Don't need empirical/scientific fact because the subconscious self is just as useful
  2. Teresa of Avila
    1. Had a series of REs that cured her of illness
    2. Set out 4 stages of prayer in analogy of the garden
      1. Drawing water from the well
      2. Drawing water from well with pulley
      3. Irrigation
      4. Rain
  3. Julian of Norwich
    1. Prayed for serious illness at age 30, got one, had REs which healed her
  4. Sense of unity with the Divine and gaining of knowledge
  5. eg. visions, voices, dreams
    1. Visions can be corporeal, intellectual or imaginative
      1. Corporeal - seeing a form or an image of a person eg St Bernadette of Lourds
      2. Intellectual - seen as an experience rather than an observation
      3. Imaginative - often occurs within a dream
    2. Voices can be hearing the voice of God and may communicate knowledge
      1. Can be disembodied, noetic, authoritative
  6. Tillich - two stages: an encounter followed by a special understanding of that event which reveals a religious significance
  7. F.C. Happold
    1. 2 ways a mystical RE can be discussed
      1. 1. Mysticism of Love and Union
        Where a person longs to escape feelings of loneliness and seperation
        We want to be individuals but we want to be part of something bigger
      2. 2. Mysticism of Knowledge and Understanding
        Where a person attempts to find answers to ultimate questions
    2. 3 aspects of any mystical experience
      1. 1. Soul Mysticism - recognising and contemplating the soul, resulting in soul fulfillment
      2. 2. Nature Mysticism - recognising God in nature and realising he is immanent
      3. 3. God Mysticism - recognising that your soul wants to return to an immortal, infinite state with God, achieved through worship
2. Numinous
  1. Experiencing a sense of the Divine but with distance
  2. Buber - can have a personal relationship with God and still class RE as numinous. God can reveal himself on a personal level, leading to special RE of life and the world
3. Corporate
  1. A group experience of the Divine
  2. Toronto Blessings
4. Charismatic
  1. Can be dramatic, experience of the Holy Spirit, feel strong emotion
    1. Features
      1. induced through group prayer
      2. led by a leader - feel presence of God through preacher
      3. embodied by the holy spirit - knocked to the ground, speaking in tongues etc
      4. feel God through their body
      5. long lasting qualities - more piety (devotion)
5. Conversion
  1. RE that leads to conversion to a religious life often seen as miracles
  2. change in faith/personality. usually dramatic
  3. deepening of faith, sense of peace, connected to the divine indirectly or directly
  4. 3 types
    1. intellectual - have greater understanding of God, noetic.
    2. moral - change in morality and behaviour
    3. social - join church/community.
  5. can be conscious and voluntary or involuntary and unconscious
6. Prayer experiences
  1. Method of communication between God and humanity
7. Kierkegaard - can only know God through a leap of faith which can come from REs. Knowledge of God can be different for each individual
Scripture
1. Propositional
2. Non propositional
Veridical?
1. Yes
  1. Swinburne
    1. REs are either public or private
      1. Public - normal event interpreted in a religious way or witnessing unusual event with others
      2. Private - explained by normal language, nt explained with normal language, ongoing impression of presence
    2. Principle of credulity
      1. should believe unless we have a good reason not to, reasonable to believe someone's account
        Disbelieve if...
        Person was hallucinating under the influence of drugs
        do not believe in existence of God - cannot recognise as an RE
        Evidence that the event was caused by something else other than God eg. with twin brothers you think you see one but you actually see the other
    3. Principle of testimony
      1. should accept what appears to be the case unless there is good evidence against the RE, if the experience is genuine then it is evidence for God
    4. RE + other evidence = God exists
  2. Brian Davies analogy of a Wild Animal: if it has been sighted once but another group can't find it it doesn't mean it doesn't exist
  3. Alston - REs are sensory. Why shouldn't we trust our senses when we learn this way in everyday life?
2. No
  1. Flew - cannot use Res + other evidence. All evidence is weak and is like using a "leaky bucket". Lots of weak evidence doesn't equal strong evidence
  2. Alston - can't come to experience God and gain knowledge this way, may not inform us about God
  3. Freud
    1. REs are a defense mechanism to protect from trauma felt/repressed in the id, which prevents psychosis
    2. REs are a result of desiring something that is missing from your life eg father
    3. "collective neurosis" where religion is a safety blanket and REs are an extreme form of this
    4. Due to lack of ego or projections of oldest and ultimate ideas that people used to hold
  4. Marx
    1. A societal construct used by the bourgeoisie to control the proletariat - to keep them happy
    2. Happy workers = more efficiency, longer work lives, better attitudes to work
    3. "opiate of the masses"
    4. Imaginary projection of people's needs and the qualities deemed to be important
  5. James response to criticisms
    1. REs are not authentic because the God is different in each one depending on the religion
      1. REs are an expression of emotion/feeling therefore you cannot empirically test. It is the similarities between the feelings experienced that matters
    2. Need scientific techniques
      1. Subconscious self is just as important in making sense of REs. It could be the 'higher self' that we want unity with and to develop
    3. REs happen to most vulnerable in society, happen to mentally instable
      1. People who have had REs are often more fulfilled and have greater understanding of the world around them than those who have athiest views
  6. Visions - how can we be sure the voice is from God?
  7. Starbuck
    1. Conversion is a natural part of human development, common among 14-17 y/os
  8. conversions
    1. result of psychological causes
    2. Freud - 'reaction to the hostile world'
    3. prone to sudden and dramatic change in life = recreate in mind
    4. usually happen to weak of mind and vulnerable

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Religious Experiences

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