Religious Experience as a Ground for Belief: An Investigation into its Verticality and Implications

Abstract

Religious experience has been considered central to belief in a divine entity and has influenced personal faith and religion in various cultures. This paper discusses the nature, epistemic standing, and consequences of the religious experience with regard to its verticality—whether such experiences actually refer to an external and transcendent reality. William James’ typology of mystic experiences, Alvin Plantinga’s idea of properly basic beliefs, and Richard Swinburne’s Principle of Credulity provide some support to claim religious experience as a source of belief. On the other hand, there are difficulties posed by psychological and neurological theories, cultural differences, and the problem of competing religions. The paper also focuses on the other aspects of religious experience including ethics, social activism, and relations between different faiths. Even though religious experience fails to most often give proof of the divine, its relevance is striking for it gives meaning to personal life on a level and societal discourse on the faith, reason, and spirituality of humanity.