In reading "The Varieties of Religious Experience," by James, I found two themes to be particularly interesting to me. The first is that religious tolerance is absolutely essential to a civilized society. We see this when James writes about the “angle of observation.” The second is that we are called to see God in everything. He mentions this by saying, “It is the terror and beauty of the phenomena, the ‘promise’ of the dawn and the rainbow, the ‘voice’ of the thunder…with which the religious mind still continues to be most impressed.”
The first idea of religious tolerance is something that I find to be very valuable to everybody in today’s society. There is such a diversity of races, religions, and ideas in our society, let alone our class, that we must learn to be tolerant of other people and their beliefs. I feel as if this is one of the points James is trying to make. James made me think of an analogy I was taught in school: There are three different boats on the ocean, a cruise liner, a rowboat, and a submarine. They are all trying to get into the San Francisco Bay through the Golden Gate Bridge. They all have the same goal in mind, but they all have different ways of accomplishing that goal. What is useful for the people on one boat may not be useful for people on another. For example, oars from the rowboat would not benefit the cruise liner, and screen doors from the cruise liner would not benefit the submarine. The idea is that there are several ways to get to the same place -- to achieve the same ultimate goal. There is no right or wrong way. As James stated, "Parts are not interchangeable in the spiritual life." If people could be tolerant of other religions, then this world would be a better place.
The second idea about seeing God in all things reminded me of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, who founded the Society of Jesus, better known as the Jesuits, in 1540. He had an idea that God could be found everywhere, not just in church or places of religious significance. His belief was that everything is sacred, meaning that it was possible for us to find God in all things -- if we were open to that possibility. It is up to us to find God in the ordinary events of our lives. I have always found this to be an interesting “angle of observation,” and one with which I think James would concur.
Yes, I agree with Celtic, it seems obvious that religious tolerance is an essential element to successful, civilized living... As would be intellectual tolerance. Heck, just plain tolerance: In church, in traffic or in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteIs it possible to find acceptance of respective religions/spirituality, while also seeking to classify and understand the particulars? On the other hand, it would be a nice trick if we could tidy up the disharmonious relationships that arise from differences in belief by the use of mere analogy. Is it more complicated than that? Either way, it is a good starting point.
So here’s to all of our respective boats making it to safe harbor and to water under the bridge.
Both Celtic2004 and JTB make great points from the reading and how it crosses over into society. While tolerance is essential in understanding and respecting other religions it does not necessarily mean that people need to find acceptance of that religion. (correct me if I am wrong JTB but that is what I am understanding from your comment) If only it was as easy as an anology but I do agree it is definitely a good start.
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