Religious Experience

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What is a Religious Experience?
An experience that leaves the person with the feeling that something extraordinary has happened.
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What are the two main types of Religious Experience?
Direct (visions, voices etc) and Indirect (experiences that lead to a religious feeling; giving birth etc)
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What is a Numinous Experience?
Rudolph Otto's thinking - an experience that gives the person a feeling that they are in the presence of something greater than themselves - the Wholly Others
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What is an Ineffable Experience?
an experience that is impossible or difficult to describe
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What is a Corporate Experience?
many people experiencing a religious happening at once (for example the Toronto blessing
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Can prayer and worship be classed as religious experiences?
yes because they may have religious meaning to the person experiencing them
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What are the 3 types of Visual Experiences?
CORPOREAL - seeing and being able to describe what you've seen. INTELLECTUAL - an experience rather than something observed. IMAGINATIVE - occurs within a dream
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What does William James believe about religious experiences?
that religious experiences are the source of all religions, and that peoples experiences resulted in a loss of fear and anxiety and a gaining of new knowledge
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What are the 4 characteristics of a religious experience that William James identified?
(PINT) PASSIVE; not under control of the mystic, happens to the person without them willing it too. INEFFABLE; goes beyond human powers of expression. NOETIC; the receiving of wisdom directly from God. TRANSIENT; isn't permanent but effects are
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What did James suggest that religious experiences are?
he said they are part of a persons make up, such as self awareness and thinking. however he DENIES that this argues against the existence of God
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What are the responses to James' ideas?
he believed that religious experiences are the source of all religions, yet many people who have religious experiences are religious already. JL Mackie said that if experiences can be explained psychologically then they would have no authority.
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What did Richard Swinburne say about Religious Experiences?
he believed that there were 5 recognisable types of religious experiences that could be divided into two categories
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What was the First category?
PUBLIC EXPERIENCES - (1) Ordinary Experience; where a person interprets something natural as having religious significance (2) Extraordinary; experiences such as miracles which violate the laws of nature
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What was the Second Category?
PRIVATE EXPERIENCES - (1) Describable; something like a significant dream (2) Non-describable; direct experiences with God, The Wholly Other, e.g. Teresa of Avila (3) Non-specific; a non-specific event thats given religious significance
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What were the two principles that Swinburne created to asses religious claims?
THE PRINCIPLE OF CREDULITY and THE PRINCIPLE OF TESTIMONY
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What does the Principle of Credulity say?
3 reasons why we may disbelieve a religious experience. 1-may be reasons to believe the person was mistaken(drugs) 2-if you are a non-believer then you'll be less likely to believe claims 3-May be evidence that the experience wasn't caused by God
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What does the Principle of Testimony say?
we usually believe what someone we trust tells us, yet may not believe someone who is known for lying. Maybe non-believers have RE's yet don't recognise them as religious experiences
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What does Samuel 3:1-4 say/show?
Samuel thought Eli was calling him but it was God - Voice Experience
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What does Exodus 3:1-6 show?
vision and voice experience - the Lord appears as the burning bush and speaks to Moses
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What does Acts 9:1-9 show?
vision and voice - jesus appears as a flash of light and talks to saul - blinded for 3 days (SAUL TO PAUL)
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What is the story of Catherine of Sienna?
voice experience, vision of Christ and the Virgin Mary, invisible ring - regarded herself as being married to Jesus
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What does Matthew 1:23 show?
Angel visits Mary and tells her she is going to bear the son of God
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What is Stigmata?
Comes from the latin word 'Signs' - signs of Jesus' crucifixion which appear on individuals bodies.
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What are some explanations of Stigmata?
- a revelation from God, the marking of a Holy person. - psychological explanation would say the persons mind is causing it. - Fraud, may be deliberately caused for fame/money
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What is a near death experience?
point of death the person reports being separate from their body, visit Christ/loved ones and either go back or remain in heaven. Cross cultural occurrences.
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What are some explanations of near death experiences?
- it is a real phenomena. -its a result of the dying brain shutting down through lack of oxygen. - fraud, attention seeking
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What does Immanent mean?
God is active and involved in the world. is sometimes said to be experiences through people (jesus) or a miracle
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What does Transcendent mean?
God is completely separate from our world - cannot be understood and is totally different to us
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What does Necessary mean?
something is the way it is - logically impossible to be different
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What does Bias mean?
unfairly favouring one group over another
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What does Arbitrary mean?
a decision that is not based on reason nor as the result of rational decision making
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What does 'sign' mean in reference to the Bible?
in John's Gospel 'sign' is used 17 times in reference to Jesus' miracles
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What is a Petitionary prayer?
a prayer that makes a particular request of God
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What is a Diest?
someone who believes that God started the world with one creative act but then left it to run. popular belief in the 18th century after newton.
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What is a Cumulative argument?
philosophical argument thats built up with many different arguments and evidence.
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What is Providence?
God's goodness and continuing activity in the world
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What are Quantum Mechanics?
physical understanding of the universe - laws of nature are NOT fixed
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What are the two main types of Religious Experience?

Back

Direct (visions, voices etc) and Indirect (experiences that lead to a religious feeling; giving birth etc)

Card 3

Front

What is a Numinous Experience?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What is an Ineffable Experience?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What is a Corporate Experience?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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