A/2 Philosophy of Religion

Religious Experience

Revision Questions

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Two peanuts walk into a rather rough bar, not looking for any trouble. Unfortunately, one was a salted.          

1.  Define 'religious experience'

2. What makes an experience religious, compared to a 'normal' experience?

3. What is a spontaneous religious experience? Give an example, with biblical references.

4. What is an induced religious experience? Give an example.

5. What is a mystical experience?

6. Define numinosity.

7. What did William James offer as the four characteristics of a mystical experience? Describe each one.

8. What is prayer? Describe the different forms this may have.

9. What are the advantages of prayer? When does prayer become an issue or problem?

10. What is conversion?

11. What are the different types of conversion?

12. How permanent is conversion?

13. What is the value of Religious Experience as a basis for belief?

14. When could you say a religious experience was 'genuine'?

15. Can Religious Experience be used as an argument for the existence of God? Why/why not?

16. What is the Principle of Credulity?

17. What are the problems faced when trying to assess the authenticity of religious experiences?

18. How does the objective/subjective distinction apply when trying to use religious experiences as proof of God's existence?

19. Explain the following:

a) the correspondence theory

b) the coherence theory

c) the pragmatic theory.

20. In your opinion is it possible to a) say a person has had a genuine religious experience and b) that this experience proves there is a God? Give reasons for your answer, showing you have considered both points of view.