While sitting in church a few Sundays ago I asked myself why I go. I have a bad attitude at times while listening to shallow whiteness being born with a lack of authenticity or convincing power. And while pondering this bad attitude I asked myself, 'Why do I come here?' I found myself composing a lengthy explanation in my head that I wrote down...
I come for a religious experience
Religion: a body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices
Experience: an accumulation of skills and knowledge as a result of participation in applicable activities.
Religious experience: betterment of ones self as well as true knowledge gained through the participation in and observation of group activities among persons sharing particular beliefs and practice.
One can participate in a religious experience in schools, among peers, at a concert, watching a film, reading any book, and even among atheist colleagues. God as a topic of discussion is not a prerequisite in the endeavour to have a stimulating religions experience. The only prerequisite is that one be open enough to the topic at hand to enable that individual to find common beliefs or practices with the other individuals involved.
Individual religious experience: to resolve in ones own mind a conflicting principal or principals that have never before been resolved in the persons mind. The person is finding common ground within their own mind. They have found truth or at least truth that is true in their own personal perception of the reality we all exist in.
There may be a more universal term for the experience described here. But for the purpose of my use of the term "religious experience" the explanation given here most clearly defines the term.
5 comments:
An interesting idea and concept of thought. I will have to become a "follower" in your semi left wing ideas. I'll have to see what you blog about next or is it all going to be along the same lines?
It will all be this type of thing. If you read the intire blog you will see there is a pretty wide variety but religion will be the domanant subject I'm sure.
The authenticity idea is the crux of the matter, I think. One reason it's so easy to ridicule Christians--well, almost all religious people, actually--is that their professions of religious or spiritual experiences quite obviously boil down to regular old chemical-based emotions. Have a "spiritual experience" and feel the "Holy Ghost" while singing in the church choir? It's the same feeling you get participating in any decent musical ensemble. It's an emotion. What about breaking down in tears about some "miraculous" event--maybe you narrowly avoided an accident because you randomly decided to leave earlier this morning. Other people cry when you relate the story. Is it the spirit? Or is it the same chemical emotions you feel if you win $500 by being the 104th caller at the local radio station? For some reason I doubt God has any need to make us feel elation when things go good, relief when things fail to go bad, etc. Everybody has these emotions and they're just as common in totally secular settings.
So anybody who professes a spiritual or religious experience needs to be able to know that what they're feeling is not an internally generated biological response. I don't think people evaluate that at all, and that's why so many people think crying at the pulpit about their troubles is equivalent to receiving revelation from God.
So, the question, and maybe you can address this, Jack, is: How can you differentiate between a "legitimate" religious experience and a standard flow of endorphins and the machinations of neurotransmitters?
holy hell I write way too much. see what I mean, Jack?
I am not sure it is very easy to tell the difference. The scriptures teach that Satan can emulate the impressions of the spirit up to "the burning in the bosom." Is the warning really saying that Satan himself can cause a burning or is it trying to communicate to us that our emotions can't always be trusted.
I believe there are three types of conversions. And if all three are not received in relation to a principle the principle should not be believed or put into practice.
The three types of conversion are; spiritual, intellectual, and social. The principle should make logical since: intellectual conversion. It should evoke good feelings: spiritual. It should be something that will foster unity among a congregation, social conversion.
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