Religious Experience and Religious Lives: An Epistemology

Religious Experience and Religious Lives: An Epistemology argues that religious experiences can contribute to the justification of central religious beliefs, particularly belief in God, through the diversity and development of religious lives. It suggests that various epistemologies of religious experience implicitly emphasize different life stages or different prototypical religious believers and that a fully adequate epistemology must be expansive, pluralistic, and responsive to the diversity of religious believers and their development in a religious tradition.

Format: Hardback
Length: 166 pages
Publication date: 15 September 2023
Publisher: Lexington Books

Religious Experience and Religious Lives: An Epistemology presents a moderate perspective on religious experiences, recognizing their potential to contribute to the justification of fundamental religious beliefs, particularly the belief in God. Epistemologists studying religion have differing opinions regarding the evidential value of religious experiences. Some argue that religious experiences hold no evidential value, while others contend that they provide compelling evidence of God's existence. However, Walter Scott Stepanenko contends that religious experiences can play a multifaceted role in justifying religious beliefs in various ways, and that several justificatory cases are philosophically viable.

This book argues that the joint justificatory viability of these cases is best explained by the diversity and development of religious lives. As religious believers immerse themselves in a faith tradition, their access to an evidential base grows, and the contributions that religious experiences make to the defense of religious beliefs evolve. This suggests that different epistemologies of religious experience implicitly emphasize different stages of religious development or specific types of religious believers. A comprehensive epistemology of religious experience must be expansive, pluralistic, and responsive to the diverse experiences and growth of religious individuals within a religious tradition.

Religious experiences encompass a wide range of subjective sensations, emotions, and insights that individuals may have in connection with their religious beliefs or practices. These experiences can include feelings of awe, transcendence, closeness to God, or spiritual fulfillment. They can also involve experiences of doubt, skepticism, or conflict. The epistemology of religious experience seeks to understand how these experiences can be evaluated and justified in terms of their truthfulness and reliability.

Epistemologists of religion have different approaches to evaluating the evidential value of religious experiences. Some argue that religious experiences have no evidential value whatsoever, while others suggest that they can provide evidence of God's existence. Some epistemologists argue that religious experiences can be considered evidence of God's existence if they are perceived as reliable, trustworthy, and consistent with other evidence. Others argue that religious experiences can only be considered evidence of God's existence if they are experienced in a certain way or if they meet certain criteria.

One of the key challenges in the epistemology of religious experience is the issue of personal bias and confirmation bias. Religious believers may have a tendency to interpret their experiences in a way that confirms their existing beliefs, leading to a confirmation bias. This can make it difficult for them to evaluate the evidence objectively and to consider alternative explanations or perspectives. Epistemologists must strive to develop methods that help religious believers overcome these biases and to evaluate the evidence of religious experiences in a more impartial and objective manner.

Another challenge in the epistemology of religious experience is the issue of diversity and pluralism. Different religious traditions and belief systems have different perspectives on the nature of religious experiences and the role they play in justifying religious beliefs. Epistemologists must recognize and respect the diversity of religious beliefs and practices and must develop methods that are inclusive and respectful of these differences.

In conclusion, the epistemology of religious experience is a complex and multifaceted field that seeks to understand how religious experiences can be evaluated and justified in terms of their truthfulness and reliability. While there are differing opinions regarding the evidential value of religious experiences, there are also several justificatory cases that are philosophically viable. The diversity and development of religious lives play a crucial role in explaining the joint justificatory viability of these cases, and a comprehensive epistemology of religious experience must be expansive, pluralistic, and responsive to the diverse experiences and growth of religious individuals within a religious tradition.

Weight: 454g
Dimension: 237 x 158 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781666922011