Acquaintance and the sublime: an alternative account of theistic sublime experience

Atkinson, Thomas ORCID: 0000-0002-9800-6173 (2017) Acquaintance and the sublime: an alternative account of theistic sublime experience. International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, 82 (2). pp. 175-193.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11153-016-9598-6

Abstract

In this paper I argue that when one has an epiphany of the form ‘God is F’ (e.g., ‘God is wise’) upon having a sublime experience one can be accurately described as being acquainted with the fact that God is F as opposed to inferring that God is F from the experience at hand. To argue for this, I will, first, outline what a sublime experience is, in general, before outlining what a theistic sublime experience is in particular. Second, I will outline two ways of understanding theistic sublime experiences. First, I will outline a model that I will call the ‘inference model’ which, put simply, says that when one has an epiphany of the form ‘God is F’, upon having a theistic sublime experience, one is drawing this conclusion via a process of ‘inference-to-the-best-explanation’ (Chignell and Halteman in: Costelloe (ed) The sublime: From antiquity to the present, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2012, p. 426). Second, I will outline an alternative model that I call the ‘acquaintance model’ which, put simply, says that no inferential process occurs when one has an epiphany of the form ‘God is F’ upon having a theistic sublime experience, but one is made directly aware of the fact that God is F. Third, and finally, I will respond to some objections to the acquaintance model.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	1 Underpinning research, 1.1 Normal biological development and functioning
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	13 Dec 2016 16:15
Last Modified:	16 Mar 2024 12:55
DOI:	10.1007/s11153-016-9598-6
Open Access URL:	http://link.springer.com.liverpool.idm.oclc.org/ar...
Related URLs:	Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3004861