De nining a Religious Experience
1. An experience with religious signi cance eg - the act of worship in a
religious setting
2. A persons experiences of something or a prescience beyond
themselves
Richard Swinburne
Public
1. A normal event interpreted in a religious way
2. Witnessing a very unusual event with others
Private
1. A private experience which may not be explained using normal
language
2. An ongoing impression of a presence based upon no speci c
experience - just a sense that God is guiding one s life
William James
William James de ned Mysticism as - feelings, acts and experiences of
individual men in their solitude of whatever they consider to be the divine
1. William James argued that religious experiences can range from
experiences that have little religious signi cance to those that are
completely life changing
2. He reasoned that most religious experiences happen when a person is
in a conscious state rather than in a dream state
fi fi fi fi ’
1. An experience with religious signi cance eg - the act of worship in a
religious setting
2. A persons experiences of something or a prescience beyond
themselves
Richard Swinburne
Public
1. A normal event interpreted in a religious way
2. Witnessing a very unusual event with others
Private
1. A private experience which may not be explained using normal
language
2. An ongoing impression of a presence based upon no speci c
experience - just a sense that God is guiding one s life
William James
William James de ned Mysticism as - feelings, acts and experiences of
individual men in their solitude of whatever they consider to be the divine
1. William James argued that religious experiences can range from
experiences that have little religious signi cance to those that are
completely life changing
2. He reasoned that most religious experiences happen when a person is
in a conscious state rather than in a dream state
fi fi fi fi ’
