Individualism
Oxford University Press eBooks June 24, 2023 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780197609606.003.0015 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | The seven "dream journalists" |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Argues that religious individualism is a defining characteristic of the seven "dream journalists," who each resisted the systematic beliefs and practices of established faith traditions in favor of developing their own distinctive approaches to the divine. The author contends that this pattern illustrates William James's classic definition of religion and the extrinsic, intrinsic, and quest orientation categorization. |
Abstract
Abstract This is the first of three chapters that look at the religious and spiritual qualities of the seven dream journalists. Here the quality of religious individualism is considered as a defining characteristic of the dream journalists. In contrast to religious communalism, which emphasizes group togetherness and shared beliefs, each of the dream journalists displayed a strong reluctance to abide by the systematic beliefs or practices of an established faith tradition, preferring instead to develop their own distinctive approaches to the divine. In this way, they illustrate the classic definition of religion in William James’s The Varieties of Religious Experience. They also illustrate the more recent categorization of religion as having a typically extrinsic, intrinsic, or quest orientation.