A Psychological Interpretation Of Religious Experience Flashcards
German philosopher, Ludwig Feuerbach, was greatly influential on later thinkers, especially those who prefer a ? ? of religious beliefs and feelings.
Naturalistic explanations.
In Feuerbach’s book, “The ? of Christianity”, he argued that when people think they are worshipping God or experiencing the presence of God, they’re in fact worshipping only their own ? ?
Essence.
Human nature.
Feuerbach thought that people created God in their own ?, in order to meet their needs. People want to feel cared bfor so they invent a God who loves and ? them.
Image.
Values.
Sigmund Freud was strongly influenced by the thinking of ? Freud argued that people who feel themselves to be in the presence of God are ? themselves.
Feuerbach.
Deluding.
Freud’s importance among ? is that he was first to recognise that the human “?” (mind) works on more than one level. He acknowledged that people have unconscious as well as conscious ? ?
Psychologists.
Psyche.
Mental processes.
Freud thought that the “psyche” is made up of three layers:
1) Ego - The layer of the mind which is obvious to us as the “? ?”.
2) ? - The unconscious self which isn’t immediately obvious, containing memories and repressed emotions.
3) Super-Ego - The equivalent of the conscience, an inner “? ?”. In Freud’s view, this is created as we grow up.
Conscious self.
Id.
Moral voice.
Freud thought that some people are unable to cope with the idea of adult life so they invent an imaginary ?-? They mistake the moral commands of their own ?-? as being the voice of God. For Freud, this is “? ?” which religious experience was a symptom of.
Parent-figure.
Super-ego’s.
Infantile neurosis.
Paediatrician and psychoanalyst, Donald ?, was very interested in the importance of the bond between a child and its mother in early life.
Winnicott.
Winnicott noticed that small children develop an attachment to a “? ?” such as a teddy bear. For the child, this transitional object belongs between imagination and ?
Transitional object.
Reality.
Winnicott argues that people can’t do without the illusion in their lives, even when they’re adults. Those who can’t make the distinction between the illusions and reality are considered to have what he calls the “? ? ?”.
Hallmarks of madness.
For Winnicott, religious experience is best understood as ? His argument is that illusion of religious experience only becomes “?” when the person tries to impose his or her illusions on others and expects them to give it credibility as “?”.
Illusion.
Madness.
Real.
