What Is a Religious Experience

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“What is a religious experience?” Religious experience (R.E) is a subjective experience in which an individual reports to be in contact with a transcendent reality, and encounter or union with the divine. What makes R.E so unique is that people can meet the divine in various ways; one can feel God around him or even hear Him through prayers. The topic is very diverse and R.Es has been classified into 5 different areas. When someone states that they can hear or even see God, the R.E can be classified as ‘Visions and Voices’. Arguably the most frequent R.E people have. A famous woman who claimed to have visions of the Virgin Mary was St. Bernadette. The Virgin Mary had instructed St. Bernadette that the spring water in Lourdes had magical, healing powers. When someone has a near death experience, reports have claimed that they can ‘see the light’, hear the voices and even pop out of their body. Events like these have lead people to have Conversion experiences. This experience can affect people’s character, behaviour or their religious beliefs, generally for the better. St. Paul initially didn’t like Christians but, after hearing God’s voice, he changed. When you see a magnificent work of art like the Sistine chapel or a beautiful sunset, you are left with a feeling of awe and wonder. Numinous experiences leave you in the sense of awe and wonder in the presence of God. Moses himself was in the presence of God (who was in the form of the burning bush), he even spoke to God. Similarly, mystical experiences are a direct and intimate experience of God. The experience can leave you with knowledge that is normally hidden from the human intellect, a sense of freedom from time and space, a sense of unity with the Divine and feeling of bliss or serenity. Walking on the moon can gift you with all those points. Finally, we have Corporate experiences. Normally, R.Es

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