Ways of being religious
Donald A. Crosby
May 16, 2018 DOI: 10.4324/9780429467011-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that religious life can be practiced through four ways—knowledge, devotion, works, and mystical experience—which are modes of emphasis rather than exclusionary options and which affect and interpenetrate one another, together accommodating differences of interest, need, personality, and gift among people of faith. |
Abstract
This pluralistic spirit is carried forward into Chapter 4 , in which the author discusses four ways of practicing the religious life, the ways of knowledge, devotion, works, and mystical experience. He provides instructive examples of each of these ways, showing how each of them ties into an essential aspect of religion and how each of them affects and interfuses the others. These are modes of emphasis in religious life, not exclusionary options, but they provide ways of being religious that do justice to the differences of interest, need, personality, and gift among people of religious faith. The chapter concludes with discussion of the religious outlook of pluralism in its relation to the four ways of being religious.