Concise Observations

The contents of this subsection are drawn from and inspired by the publications that were consulted in preparation for the above-presented Literary Review. This subsection has a twofold aim: to set the present problem statement in its boarder milieu; and to support and strengthen the statement in the following subsection.

The concepts of religious experience are vague and their types so diversified33 _{that they cannot be}

easily categorized34 _{as one thing or another: It may be individual or collective, conscious or}

subconscious, and also natural or supernatural. A religious experience, sometimes known as a spiritual, sacred, or mystical experience,35 _{is doubtlessly as ancient as the genesis of the human}

race itself. It should be distinguished from religious feelings36 _{in the same way that experience in}

general is to be distinguished from feelings in general.

33. James ([1902] eBooks@Adelaide 2009) divides experiences into ‘healthy-minded’ and ‘sick-minded’

experiences, according to the personality of the subject, which colors the contents of the experience itself.

Yandell (1994:25-32) divides religious experiences into five categories: Monotheistic, nirvanic (enlightenment

experiences associated with Buddhism), kevalic (enlightenment experiences associated with Jainism), moksha (experiences of release from karma, associated with Hinduism), and nature experiences.

34. Johnson (1998:46-52) did a profound assessment of experience. At the outset of his analysis, he acknowledges

the difficulty of working on such topic.

Leder (1990:1-99) argues that the psychosomatic character of experience renders it both ineluctably individual and

incredibly complex to analyze.

35. Religious experience is to be distinguished from mystical experience. Although there is obviously a close connection between the two, mystical experiences can all be classified as religious experiences, but not all religious experiences qualify as mystical. cf. also James ([1902] 2009) for the ‘authoritative grounds’ of mystical experiences.

Tabor (1986) have focused on the ‘mystical experiences’ in the New Testament.

36. For discussions on religious experience in terms of feelings, cf. Schleiermacher (1998) feeling of the numinous;

Part of this concept’s vagueness comes from the term religion, which is difficult to define in any way that does not either rule out institutions that clearly are religions, or include terms that can only be understood in the light of a prior understanding of what religions are. Another contributing factor to this vagueness derives from the different ways in which differing religious traditions have described their religious experiences, such as nullification and absorption within the realm of God; complete detachment from the world; deep intrinsic connection to the world; innate knowledge; experience of one’s true blissful nature; experience of a certain divinity; awareness of God’s presence; a response to what is perceived as ultimate (Johnson 1998:61); and an encounter between the richness of God and His people (Howard 2008:78). One more contributor to the complexity of this topic is the broad spectrum within which the scholars are approaching and investigating religious experiences. This spectrum includes perspectives from both individual and communal levels. It also involves various disciplines such as psychology, medicine, theology, and education. This factor becomes more fundamental when one considers “the events and the human lives from which the religions have stemmed” (Smart 1969:10);37 _{or the dynamic between language and}

religious experiences,38 _{or the epistemological issues of religious experiences.}39 _{At this level, some}

scholars argue that religious experiences can epistemically necessitate belief, that is, anyone who has the experience and does not have the corresponding belief, is making an epistemic mistake, much like a person who, in normal conditions, refuses to believe his/her eyes (cf. Oakes 1976:311- 318). Accounts of religious experiences show that the majority of these experiences are visual (visions) or auditory (auditions) presentations not through the physical eyes or ears40 _{but through}

some spiritual analog of the eye or ear. Additionally, other kinds of religious experiences could be taken into considerations such as perceptions of certain supernatural providence, perceptions of

sacrum and numinosum, perceptions of love and trust in a believing community, participation in

faith-based healings, participation in religious culture, intuitions concerning afterlife, and the like.

37. See also Johnson (1998:53-60) for a more elaborated discussion.

38. Many scholars (i.e. Flew & McIntyre 1955; Braithwaite [1955] 1970; and Martin 1990) have thought that there is some problem with religious language, as it cannot be meaningful in the same way that ordinary language is.

39. Alston ([1991] 1993) has developed a general theory of doxastic practices. Hick ([1989] 1993) argues for a Kantian ‘two worlds’ epistemology.

D’Aquili & Newberg (1999) have studied the neurological basis of religious experience (cf. also Ellwood 1999).

40. Here, one should be very careful in identifying these experiences and wisely distinguishing them from hallucinations and imagination.

As such, religious experiences are in all relevant respects like sensory experiences. Sensory experiences are excellent grounds for beliefs about the physical world – likewise religious experiences are excellent grounds for religious beliefs.41_{In the case of John, its narrative is no}

stranger to these visual-auditory presentations or to these grounds for religious beliefs:

- The Prologue opens the Johannine narrative with an account of experiencing God by seeing His glory (visual presentation) within a family dynamic (Father and Son share this divine glory): “The Word became flesh, he lived among us, and we saw his glory, the glory that he has from the Father as only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn 1:14).

- The Epilogue concludes the Johannine narrative with a hint at these grounds for religious beliefs: “There are many other signs that Jesus worked in the sight of the disciples, but they are not recorded in this book.These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name” (Jn 20:30-31).

This account and hint are evoked and included in both establishing the platform of this thesis and the investigation of the experience of God in the Fourth Gospel.

Moreover, a (religious) experience is somewhat referred to as an essential element or as a constitutive component of spirituality42 _{in the vast majority of theories and definitions generated}

during the long history of spirituality.43 _{In the course of this history, spirituality remained bound}

up within the history of religion until the last few decades, when it became more and more detached from the religious traditions, specifically from its Christian roots, and has extended over Christianity and other religions to cover both the secular and the religious realms.

41. cf. Swinburne (1979), Alston ([1991] 1993), and Plantinga (2000).

42. A few examples are given here: Ganss (1991:61) maintains that “Spirituality is a lived experience”;

Conn (1993:237) argues that “Spirituality refers to the religious experience, which is rooted in particularity…This

particularity refers to the human interaction with the transcendent…in the case of Christians it is with God”.

Deville (1994:153-154) asserts that it is true to say that “the schools of spiritualities are rooted in an intense twofold

spiritual experience: the experience of the founder and the experience of spiritual formation of the first disciples”;

Collins (2000:12-13) argues that the lived experience is the second referent of spirituality.

43. Only a few very important scholars are given here as examples to support the observations presented in this subsection: Downey (1997) presents different views of spirituality and highlights its multidimensional character;

Heelas (1996) notes the development within New Age circles of what he calls ‘seminar spirituality’ or structured

offerings complementing consumer choice with spiritual options; Haynes (2009) examines the interrelationship of nature, art, and spiritual life; and Huguelet & Koenig (2009) address the relation of religious issues to mental health. About the topic of spirituality and health, cf. also Paloutzian & Park (2005) and Plante (2009).

This detachment was caused partly by a steady fading attractiveness of institutionalized forms of religion, an increasing contempt concerning the value of material possessions, a growing body of evidence suggesting that personal spirituality has a positive therapeutic outcome on people, and pointing to an escalating recognition of the importance of spirituality to human fulfillment and well-being, to name but a few. This, together with many other factors, have directed the attention to the spiritual dimensions of life and increased the popular interest in spirituality. Consequently, a broader view of the term spirituality has emerged, generating various meanings to it, which make it, at the same time, difficult to be defined precisely, and the topic of many publications.44 _These

bibliographic materials are evidence to both the richness of human’s knowledge and the diversity in the field of spirituality. Nevertheless, in the midst of this diversity, there is a twofold common element that first, describes the depths and dimensions of human existence, and second, presents spirituality as a constitutive component of human nature and experience.45

In the same sphere but at another level, the fervent search for personal meaning specifically for life-integrating spirituality has led many Christians towards the Bible to explore the potential of its texts and to strengthen their spirituality.46 _{Thus, in the last few decades, prominent scholars like}

Fredriksen (2000:18-64), Holmes (2002), Holt (1993), Hurtado (2003), Lapham (2003:20f), Perrin (2007), and Wiberg (1988:5-10) increasingly became interested in the disciplines of spirituality, Christian spirituality, and the New Testament, generating numerous publications.

44. Sheldrake (2007), as well as the entire issue of the Christian Spirituality Bulletin 1993 Vol 1 (Society for the

Study of Christian Spirituality 1993) supply insightful data on this topic.

45. Macquarie (1972:40, 47) states that spirituality is concerned with “becoming a person in the fullest sense”; Kinerk (1981:6) envisions spirituality as the expression of the dialectic by which one moves from the inauthentic to

the authentic; for Wakefield ([1983] 1996:v), spirituality concerns “the constituent of human nature, which seeks relations with the ground or purpose of existence”. Cousins (1985:xiii) asserts that spirituality refers to the inner dimension of the person where ultimate reality is experienced; Saliers (1992:460) argues that “spirituality refers to a lived experience and disciplined life of prayer and action”; Burghardt (1994:159) claims that spirituality is a living to the full of the Christian life.

46. Stringfellow (1984:22) points out that biblical spirituality encompasses the whole person -body, mind, soul, place,

and relationships- in connection with the whole of creation throughout the era of time.

Schneiders (2002:133-142) argues that Christian spirituality is biblical: It is rooted in and informed by the Bible; it is

a transformative process of personal and communal engagement with the biblical text; On the topic, cf. (Thurston 2000:2-6; Bowe 2003:10ff; Young 2007; Rohr 2008).

At this point it is important to state that spirituality47 _{and its ramifications are a significant theme}

ever-unfolding in the history of every human civilization. Nowadays, it is commonly recognized that spirituality goes beyond the limitations of culture and time. It can be either independent or a part of a particular religion. It can also be seen as the preferred way of referring to aspects of the interior individual experiences of believers or people who do not belong to a specific religion. Waaijman (2002a) has addressed the different forms of spirituality and charted its multiform phenomenon. In his 1993 article, he examines how spirituality was understood before theology was undertaken in a specific way. He argues that the human experience is the place where spirituality is to be found. According to Waaijman (1993), the Christian experience is a specific form of the experience of one’s own being and the Absolute, who as such is common to all human beings. Although he presents a good argument about experience within the realm of spirituality by including important motifs in his argumentation, such as ‘ongoing transformation’ and ‘relationality with the unconditional’, he does not elaborate on this experience or examines it as an experience of God.

For the Christian believers, spirituality is a progressive realization of an ineffable but undeniable presence or awareness of being in the depths of experiencing God (McBrien 1994:1058) as a compassionate Father, source of His children’s life (Jn 1:1-4) through His only Son, as a dependable companion guiding them through His Spirit (Jn 14:26; 16:13) in their journey towards His home as their final destination and eternal dwelling (Jn 14:1-4). This realization and experience are at the heart of Christian spirituality. This spirituality designates a pattern of life48 _encompassing

a relationship with God,49 _{and a mystic yearning for union with Him in Jesus Christ through the}

Holy Spirit (Wiberg 1988:5-10).

47. Sheldrake (2007:2) affirmed that “spirituality is a useful term to describe how, individually and collectively, we

personally appropriate the traditional Christian beliefs about God, humanity and the world, and express them in terms of our basic attitudes, life-style arid activity” (cf. also Fredriksen 2000:18-64; Hurtado 2003:283-400; Lapham 2003:20-42).

48. Saliers (1992:460) asserts that spirituality refers to a lived experience and disciplined life of prayer and action;

while Hurtado (2003:xiii) refers to the pattern of early Christian life as “devotion to Jesus”.

49. Moltmann (1992:83) argues that spirituality is a living relationship with the Spirit of God; Holt (1993) asserts that spirituality integrates relationships to God and creation with those to the self;

Sheldrake (2000:40) maintains that Christian spirituality is “a conscious relationship with God, in Jesus Christ,

Thus, the basic framework of Christian spirituality brings the realities of a human experience with God.50 _{In other words, when Christian spirituality is discussed or examined, the attention should}

be directed to the lived experience of the Christian believers, and how this experience is articulated.51 _{Jantzen (1987:277-291) has the opinion that if one believes in (a personal) God, then}

their religious experience would be understood in terms of an encounter with God. Therefore, one’s assessment of religious experience is determined by one’s antecedent theological beliefs and disbeliefs. Yet on the other hand, many have held that religious experience is itself a reason to believe in a personal God. To this could be added that the resurrection was a very powerful event, giving the full meaning of encountering God and believing in Him through the risen Christ. In other words, the experience of God lived by His disciples and their contemporary Christians found its true meaning and reached its fullness in the merits of the Resurrection (Mt 28:16-20; Mk 16:14- 20; Lk 24:50-53; Jn 20:19-23; 21:1-14), which was achieved by the Holy Spirit during the Pentecost (Ac 2:1-13). These merits worked throughout the ages and they will be in place until the end of times in the essence of experiencing God; in other words, everything a believer says and does should be inspired and guided by the Holy Spirit to glorify the Father and accomplish His will as revealed and taught by His only Son: “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Co

10:31). Knowing the Father, doing His will, cherishing His love, and sharing it with others, are the

meaning and essence of Christian spirituality. Wainwright ([1982] 1987:452-460) maintains that Christian spirituality is an existence before God and amid the created world.52 _{It is a praying}

and living in Jesus Christ; it is the human spirit being grasped, sustained, and transformed by the Holy Spirit; it is the search of believers for a communion that arrives as a gift; it is a present anticipation of the divine kingdom and human salvation awaited in an age to come. Wainwright believes that one may draw on letters and prayers, in which Christians express their religious experience.

50. Schneiders (2002:133-142) discusses the three meanings of biblical spirituality. She notes that Christian

spirituality is a self-transcending faith in which a union with God expresses itself in service of the neighbor and participation in the realization of the reign of God in this world.

51. McGinn (1985:xv-xvi) highlights the transformation for consciousness and the life of the believers as outcomes

of that experience, while Johnson (1998:28) refers to “experiencing God as savior through Jesus”.

52. Sheldrake (2007:2) affirmed that Christian Spirituality is a useful expression to describe how, individually and

Yarnold (1986:9-17) takes the definition of Wainwright ([1982] 1987) on spirituality as the combination of praying and living, to discuss the theology of Christian spirituality. He centers his discussion around the following topics: God the creator; human nature; sin; the grace of Christ; mystical prayer; and the dark night. According to him, the history of spirituality depicts two principal forms of the spiritual life: First, it can be understood as a path to a union with God, and second, as the imitation or following of Jesus Christ.

Moreover, in Christian spirituality, the initiator and the object of religious experiences is God Himself, understood and worshiped as Father, eternal, omniscient, omnipotent, holy, and as a Person. Out of love for His believers/children (Jn 1:12), He revealed Himself, expressed His will and communicated His love to them through His only Son. He has sent His Holy Spirit to be with them. Some scholars maintain that revelatory experiences were the most powerful religious experiences of the earliest Christians.53 _{In the Fourth Gospel, Jesus plays the major role in these}

revelatory experiences. He is represented as the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who made Him known (Jn 1:18). He was sent by the Father (Jn 7:16) to say to the world what the Father taught Him (Jn 8:16). In this thesis, these revelatory experiences are considered as components of the Johannine experience of God, and they are discussed adequately.

Christian spirituality, and the “lived experience”54 _{of an individual or a group of people with God}

through Jesus Christ has therefore to do with experiencing God and with the transformation of consciousness55 _{and the life of His believers as outcomes of that experience. It says something}

about God the Father revealing Himself in Jesus Christ. The revelation of the Father and His life- giving power are two main features of the narrative of the Fourth Gospel.

53. Hurtado (2000:183) states that the earliest Christianity was characterized by an assortment of religious

experiences; while Johnson (1998:67) claims that the religious experiences of earliest Christianity exited in a continuum with other experiences in complex combinations.

54. Johnson (1998:28) states that Christian spirituality is centered on the experience of God as Savior through Jesus

Christ, and that the entire form of spirituality is His imitation. Ganss (1991:61) asserts that spirituality is a lived experience, an effort to apply elements in the Christian faith to the guidance of believers towards their spiritual growth and the development of their persons.

McGinn (1985) maintains that Christian spirituality is the lived experience of the Christian belief.

55. According to Sheldrake (2000:40), Christian spirituality is “a conscious relationship with God, in Jesus Christ, through the indwelling of the Spirit and in the context of the community of believers”;

Burghardt (1994:159) claims that spirituality is a living out of the Christian life inspired by the Holy Spirit. Waaijman (1993:5-57) argues that the human experience is the place where spirituality is to be found.

The Fourth Gospel was fundamental to the emergence of Christian spirituality and theology, and still is important for its development. Eusebius depicted it as “The Spiritual Gospel”56 _{and many}

scholars have praised it as the most profound of the four Gospels. Since the time of its composition and throughout the history of Christianity, it never stopped to be an object opened to both casual reading and academic scrutiny, and it has never ceased to command wide interest and to fascinate the minds and the hearts of scholars and non-specialist readers alike. Part of this fascination emanates from the intricacy of its socio-historical milieu, the complexity of its epistemological matters, and the richness of its narrative. The enormous number of publications on this Gospel testifies to the openness of its text to multivalent readings and understandings.

The last few decades of critical research are evidence to a myriad of opinions, suggestions, and