Religious Experience Flashcards
What are the TWO different types of R.E
Direct- Feeling of making contact with God
Indirect- Inherent experience of God
Name and describe 7 types of R.E according to CAROLINE FRANKS DAVIES in “The Evidential Force of Religion”
1- Awareness - seeing God’s work in creation
2- Quasi- sensory - Vision/ Audio experience from God
3- Numinous - Overwhelming
4- Regenerative - Compulsion to convert
5- Mystical - Sense of ultimate reality and unity with God
6- Revelatory - Receiving enlightenment from God
7- Interprative - Having prayers answered
What does ANDREW GREELY say about R.E
Creates feeling of inner peace, compassion for other & sense of joy
What does H.D LEWIS say about R.E (quote)
‘Not just a feeling.. but a conviction… that something must be”
Who coined the phrase numinous
RUDOLPH OTTO
What is OTTO’s saying about R.E (latin phrase)
Mysterium (evokes silence) tremendum (terror) et fascinas (merciful & gracious)
Define Propositional & Non- Propositional R.E
Propositional- God communicates divine message
Non- Propositional- Non verbal, visions, divine inspiation
What were events at Fatima
- 1917 in Portugal
- Mary appeared to 3 children, given visions of future
- 70,000 people say ‘sun dancing’
When was the Toronto Blessing
1994
What is suffism
Mystical experience within ISLAM
What does PAUL TILLICH say about R.E
Two Stages:
1) Event
2) Special understanding of event
What are the 4 characteristics of RE according to WILLIAM JAMES in “Varieties of Religious Experience”
1) Ineffability- defies description
2) Noetic Quality- Revelation of universal truths
3) Transiency- brief but important
4) Passivity- Feeling of being taken over
What does Jonathan Edwards refer to RE
- Religious AFFECTION
- Evoke radical change, over long period of time
Explain 3 reasons to support RE according to SWINBURNE in “Is there a God?”
1) Reasonable to support that God would interact with his creation.
2) PRINCIPLE OF CREDULITY- Should trust our senses
3) PRINCIPLE OF TESTIMONY- Should believe what others say is true
What is the HISTORICAL ARGUMENT
Experiences of KEY individuals must be true
What is the CUMULATIVE ARGUMENT
Volume of numbers
What is VARDY’S critique of RE (and ALL theistic arguments)
Dependent upon one’s presuppositions
What does JOHN HICK say about RE & who supports him
- May be easily interpreted another way
- Dawkins (Darwinian world is simpler)
Who says that events can be ‘see as’ different (Rabbit Duck)
WITTGENSTEIN
