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The Varieties of Religious Experience

A Study in Human Nature

Author William James
Introduction by Martin E. Marty
Edited by Martin E. Marty
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Paperback
$17.00 US
Penguin Adult HC/TR | Penguin Classics
5.1"W x 7.75"H x 1"D   | 13 oz | 36 per carton
On sale Dec 16, 1982 | 576 Pages | 9780140390346
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Standing at the crossroads of psychology and religion, this catalyzing work applied the scientific method to a field abounding in abstract theory. William James believed that individual religious experiences, rather than the precepts of organized religions, were the backbone of the world's religious life. His discussions of conversion, repentance, mysticism and saintliness, and his observations on actual, personal religious experiences - all support this thesis. In his introduction, Martin E. Marty discusses how James's pluralistic view of religion led to his remarkable tolerance of extreme forms of religious behaviour, his challenging, highly original theories, and his welcome lack of pretension in all of his observations on the individual and the divine.
Older brother of novelist Henry James, William James (1842–1910) was a philosopher, psychologist, physiologist, and professor at Harvard University. James has influenced such twentieth-century thinkers as Richard Rorty, Jürgen Habermas, Michel Foucault, and Julia Kristeva. View titles by William James
Introduction by Martin E. Marty
Suggestions for Further Reading
A Note on the Text The Varieties of Religious Experience

About

Standing at the crossroads of psychology and religion, this catalyzing work applied the scientific method to a field abounding in abstract theory. William James believed that individual religious experiences, rather than the precepts of organized religions, were the backbone of the world's religious life. His discussions of conversion, repentance, mysticism and saintliness, and his observations on actual, personal religious experiences - all support this thesis. In his introduction, Martin E. Marty discusses how James's pluralistic view of religion led to his remarkable tolerance of extreme forms of religious behaviour, his challenging, highly original theories, and his welcome lack of pretension in all of his observations on the individual and the divine.

Author

Older brother of novelist Henry James, William James (1842–1910) was a philosopher, psychologist, physiologist, and professor at Harvard University. James has influenced such twentieth-century thinkers as Richard Rorty, Jürgen Habermas, Michel Foucault, and Julia Kristeva. View titles by William James

Table of Contents

Introduction by Martin E. Marty
Suggestions for Further Reading
A Note on the Text The Varieties of Religious Experience

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