2.1 Religious Experiences Flashcards
What is a religious experience?
An encounter or sense of god of the spiritual world -> they vary considerably as almost every one is different, they are often INTANGIBLE and INEFFABLE
How does William James define a religious experience?
An OVERWHELMING FEELING of reverence and of belonging to God + which renewed ones approach to life -> it involves the whole person (mind, emotions, values and relationships)
How does Ninian Smart define religious experiences?
‘Some kind of perception of the INVISIBLE WORLD, or a perception that some visible person or thing is a manifestation of the invisible world’
How did Paul Tillich define religious experiences?
A feeling of ‘ultimate concern’ -> it is an encounter followed by a special understanding of its religious experience; it requires reflection
What is a conversion religious experience?
An experience that leads to the adoption of a new religious belief that differs from a previously held belief
What are the different types of a conversion religious experience?
Conscious and voluntary experience = gradual conversion
Unconscious and involuntary experience = sudden conversion
What is prayer?
The experience of communicating with god or a higher power
What are the different types of prayer?
Blessing, adoration, petition, asking forgiveness, intercession, thanksgiving and praise
What was St Teresa of Avila’s view on prayer?
Thought the purpose of life is union with god, which is also the purpose of prayer and therefore the purpose of life is union with god through prayer
What are the 4 stages of prayer according to St Teresa?
- Devotion of heart = mental prayer of devout concentration or contemplation
- Devotion of peace = human will is surrendered to God, a feeling of complete peace
- Devotion of Union = absorption in God, being in the presence of God
- Devotion of Ecstasy/ Spiritual Marriage = the consciousness of being in the body disappears, the climax of mystical experience
What is the interior castle?
Describes the 7 mansions/dwelling places that each represent a step towards unity with god -> it is a guide for spiritual development. Starts with the least spiritually enlightened and ends with the soul entering into a spiritual marriage with god.
What is revelation?
The previously unknown MADE KNOWN
What are the 2 types of revelation?
1.propositional = the literal word of god - god communicating his message to human beings
2. Non-propositional = the scripture becomes the Word of god when preached + when the person hears it in the right state of mind god is able to speak through it
What are mystical experiences?
Where the subject is transformed and report the loss of individuality
What are some common features of a mystical experience?
Feeling of bliss, sense of union with the divine, noetic experiences and a sense of joy
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