Philosophy Religious Experience

what does authenticity mean

being real or true

what does conversion mean

to change direction or to turn ground

what does description-related challenges mean

relating to descriptions of mystical experiences as a basis for challenging their authenticity

what does ecstatic mean

feeling or expressing overwhelming happiness or joyful excitement

what does ineffability mean

defies expression, unutterable, indescribable, indefinable

what does mysticism mean

experiences of systematic meditation, which causes a heightened awareness of the divine or an ultimate reality

what does naturalistic explanations mean

explanations that draw upon natural causes, such as biological or psychological causes

what does noetic mean

gaining special knowledge or insights that are unobtainable by the intellect alone, usually as a result of a mystical experience

what does numinous mean

an experience of the holy; something wholly other than the natural world and beyond comprehension

what does objectivity mean

being based on facts and not influenced by personal beliefs or feelings

what does object-related challenges mean

relating to the object that was experienced of mystical experiences as a basis for challenging their authenticity

what does passive mean

where the recipients of the mystical experience do not bring it about themselves - the actual moment is governed by a being or force external to them

what does physiological explanations mean

explanations that draw on physical and biological causes

what does prayer mean

the practice of spiritual communication with God

what does psychological explanations mean

explanations that draw on psychological causes

what does subject-related challenges

relating to the subject (recipient) of mystical experiences as a basis for challenging their authenticity

what does transcendent mean

having existence outside the maternal universe

what does transient mean

the experience may be short-lived, but the effects tend to last much longer than the experience itself

what does unitive mean

experience absolute unity or oneness. no sense of separation

what is veridical mean

when the object of the experience actually exists as a reality and not just in the imagination

what does verification mean

the process of establishing the truth, accuracy, or validity of something

what are the diff forms of religious experience

mysticism, visions, conversions and prayer

what is a religious experience

where God is experienced beyond ordinary empirical explanation

when is it most likely to take place

within a context of religious expectancy and hope

what are the phenomena of religious experience different from

traditional arguments for the existence of God or ultimate reality

what are mystical experiences

used to describe experience of direct contact or oneness with God or ultimate reality

whats conversion experiences

used to describe an experience that leads to an adoption of a new religious belief that differs from a previously held belief

whats visions

used to describe experience of God or another religious figure appearing with a message

whats voices

used to describe experience of hearing God or another religious figure, or having a conversation with them

whats prayer

used to describe the experience of communicating with God or a higher power through the medium of prayer

what does David Hay’s book “Religious Experience Today” present

some of the findings of the Religious Experience Research Unit

what do these findings include

• 31% of British people and 35% of Americans have had an experience that they might consider religious

• these experiences often last for a few seconds but can last much longer

• they generally give awareness that there is more to reality than this physical world

• they can produce a change in both behaviour and attitudes - including a sense of altruism, increased self esteem and a feeling of purpose

for many people throughout history, what has been the strongest demonstration of the existence of God

personal experience

who are famous examples of religious experience

Paul and Mohammed

how might a person with the opposite view to you challenge your explanation

could argue with scientific revelations, hallucinations, lying

what does Marilyn Adams say about religious experience

‘Not everyone who believes in God does so because they have had a religious experience’

what did Rudolf Otto write

the book ‘The idea of the Holy’ is a seminal work on religious experiences whose key theme is that humans are aware of something holy and divine outside of themselves

what did Saint Teresa of Avila have no doubt about

that she had experienced Jesus

what could people in different faiths agree

that they are experiencing something but disagree on the form of the experience

whats the highest form of mystical experience

where the mystic becomes one with the Divine; where there is no distinction between the human and the Divine subject

what two types can these be distinguished into

extrovertive and introvertive

what happens in an extrovertive experience

a person perceives a unifying force outside of themselves

example of an extrovertive experience from William Craig

‘as i grew up, i began a spiritual search where in the end i cried out to God to come into my life… i felt a tremendous infusion of joy’

what happens in introvertive mystical experience

the person finds the Divine within; in the deepest and darkest parts of the self. it is sometimes described as experiencing the spark of God within the human soul

what does William Alston say about introvertive mystical experience

‘science suggests that these experiences are what they claim to be; that people retain consciousness yet are not conscious of anything’

what did Richard Swinburne suggest

a Principle of Credulity - which should be kept in mind, that apparent perceptions should be taken at face value in the absence of positive reasons for challenging them

what does it suggest

that we all have some understanding of the reasons for questioning an experience. however, this is questionable in the case of religious experiences

what did William James argue in ‘The Will to Believe’

that in some instances we can make a decision on what he called our ‘passional nature’

what are the two groups of religious experience

direct and indirect experiences

what can indirect religious experiences refer to

experiences, thoughts or feelings about God that are prompted by events in daily life

whats an example of indirect religious experience

observing a sunrise and having thoughts about the greatness of God the Creator

why can everyday acts of prayer be seen as indirect religious experiences

as God is not directly revealed to a person nor is knowledge of God revealed, instead the person learns something about God through what is observed

what do direct religious experiences refer to

cases where a person encounters God in a direct way

whats an example of direct religious experience

the account of Paul on the road to Damascus where he meets the risen Jesus, who then communicates with them - because it is an event where God reveals her/himself directly to the person having the experience, in this case Paul

summarise the difference between direct and indirect religious experiences

direct - involve personal, firsthand encounters with the divine or a transcendent reality

indirect - these occur through secondary means, such as rituals, scriptures or the interpretation of religious teachings

summarise Paul’s direct religious experience

had a profound religious experience while travelling to Damasius to persecute Christians. on the way, he was stuck by a bright light and heard a voice calling his name, asking ‘Paul,Paul, why you persecuting me?’

why are religious experiences of visions and voices unusual

in that they are usually described in terms of ordinary perceptions

people who experience visions and choices describe them as

using phrases like ‘i saw’ or ‘i heard’

when can vision experiences happen

when a person is awake or in a dream. in the vision, information may be revealed to the recipient.

what are the three types of visions

1. sensory or corporeal

2. intellectual

3. dreams or imaginative

whats sensory/corporeal visions

a vision has a sensory characteristic if it is to do with sense experience

sensory visions - groups

Angel of Mons, during WW1, a vision of St George and a phantom bowman halted the Kaisers troops

sensory visions - individual

seen by only one person, for example St Bernadette of Lourdes had several visions of the Virgin Mary. in one of these visions she was told to dig in the ground at the feet of Mary. when she did, she discovered a mountain spring. people still visit the spring at Lourdes to pray and bathe, and many report being healed in some way

sensory visions - corporeal

an object that is external and appear to be physical in nature but only visible to certain people. for example, St Bernadette saw Mary as a form or image like a physical person

whats intellectual experiences

a vision can have an intellect quality if the vision brings the recipient a message of inspiration, insight or instruction. it can also maintain warnings, for example the Children of Fatima

what are dreams/ imaginative visions

some dreams can involve visions wherein the unconscious state experiences a series of images or dream narrative, which would not normally be available to the individual in conscious state

list examples of imaginative visions

Bible (Matthew 1) Joseph, while engaged Mary, has a dream telling him not to be afraid of marrying Mary - even though she is pregnant and he is the father. this is imaginative as it refers to a vision that occurs in a dream in which a message is received from God

whats the content of visions

• an image or event in which there is a message - St Peter - vision of heaven

• religious figures - St Teresa of Avila saw Jesus, Joan of Arc saw St Michael

• places (heaven or hell) - Guru Nanak

• fantastic creatures/figures - Ezekial - living creatures with form of a man and four wings

• future - children of Fatima

whats the Bible reference i need

Ezekiel 1-3

what is Ezekiel 1-3

a political, economic and religious crisis

what may did it seem to people

that the Gods of the Babylonians were stronger than the God of Israel, or that God had abandoned his covenant relationship with his chosen people

what did Ezekiel’s vision have

the usual hallmarks of a Biblical call - an encounter with God, a commission and an objection by the prophet

what did Ezekiel’s vision lead to

a call to preach his word to the people

what are some of the significant aspects of the experience

• it resembled the Jerusalem Temple where winged creatures surrounded the holy of holies

• it was completely beyond human experience

• it was radiant with glory

• his response was to fall face down - to prostate himself

• he is told to take Gods message into his life

• he is to confront corruption and injustice

what is Ezekiel’s vision typically

biblical - visions in the Bible always happen for a clear reason. they are not for the benefit of the individual, but are designed to communicate an urgent message to the world

visions - Roman Catholic Church

seeing the Mother of Christ - Mary

how do the CC view these

as being genuine and classes them as ‘private revelations’ to distinguish them from the public revelation completed during the Apostolic times

who was Bernadette Soubirous

born into poverty in Lourdes, southwest France on 7th January 1844

what happened on a day in Feb 1858

Bernadette was sent to the local river with her sister and a neighbour’s daughter to gather firewood. this landscape of great rock formations includes arches and grottos. when the 3 girls reached one grotto, the 2 younger ones took off their wooden shoes to wade across the millstream that joined the river. Bernadette stood behind

what happened to Bernadette once she stayed behind

she heard a sudden rush of wind and saw a golden cloud float out from the grotto. in the midst of the cloud, stood a beautiful young woman, who seemed to float to a niche in the rock. her eyes were blue and gentle and when she smiled and beckoned to Bernadette, the girl’s fear vanished

what happened to Bernadette when she drew closer

she fell to her knees and began to say the rosary. the woman also in the vision had a rosary. when they had finished saying the rosary, the Lady vanished

what happened when Bernadette told her priest of the vision

he made light of it, thinking the girl had suffered from a hallucination

what happened the following sunday

Bernadette returned to the grotto accompanied by friends, she knelt before the grotto and the vision reappeared. although the others saw nothing, they began to tell what they had ‘seen’ and more of the local people began hearing reports of what had happened

3rd vision - 18th Feb

same figure appeared, smiled warmly and asked Bernadette to come every day for 15 years

21st Feb

Bernadette was accompanied by many doubters, and the apparition said to her ‘You will pray to God for sinners’

what happened on 26th Feb - regarding water

Bernadette crawled into the grotto and at the Lady’s direction, uncovered with her bare hands a trickle of water rom which she drank and with which she washed her face. the water continued to well up and by the next day was flowing steadily down to the river. it continues to do so to this day, it’s discovery is regarded as a miracle

what did the Lady reply when Bernadette asked ‘would you kindly tell me who you are?’

‘i am the immaculate conception, i want a chapel here’

what did immaculate conception identify the lady as

the Virgin Mary - only 4 years before, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception had been introduced into the CC. the term was a term for the Virgin Mary that Bernadette would not have known

what was soon established

Lourdes as a place of pilgrimage

what evidence supports Bernadette’s visions as a genuine religious experience

the any claims of a cure as a result of visiting Lourdes, with the patients medical records prior to trip and after must be studied before a cure is recognised. 70 cures have officially been recognising, providing evidence

if they were not genuine religious experiences, what other explanations could be given to Bernadette’s visions

hallucinations, mental health issues, imagination

what is conversion experience

when someone’s life and worldview is transformed by an experience believed to be from God

how are some conversions triggered

visions, or through prayer in a time of need

an example of conversion

Paul’s conversion; saw blinding light and heard the voice of Jesus Christ calling him to ministry. his life was changed forever

why are conversion’s not limited to individual experience

communal conversion experiences can occur, in which a group of people experience a change in behaviour or beliefs at the same time

example of communal conversion

Acts of the Apostles chapter 2 - disciples gathered in a room and received the Holy Spirit

what are the 2 types of mental occurrence that lead to a difference in conversion processes

1. conscious and voluntary experience

2. involuntary and unconscious experience

what is conscious/voluntary experience

where people are seeking to change in their lives and gradually come to a new way of seeing the world

whats involuntary and unconscious experience

usually provoked by a vision, voice, prayer or mystical experience and the person feels they have no choice but to accept the new reality

what does gradual mean

the conversion takes place over a length of time, possibly even years