A biographical note on why my new framework of understanding God is so important
(Coming in 4 parts)
Part 1
I have lived my entire life as a religious and spiritual person. At the heart of this is a rich inner life, which I experience as a personal relationship with God, which brings me immense psychological benefits. So, my worry is that, if I had to give up belief in God, I would also have to abandon my inner life.
I am aware of the possibility that there is a secular equivalent of my inner spiritual life. I find it hard to believe that it could be as good as the inner life that I have developed through a religious route, but we must note the possibility. (Note: I am not here drawing any distinction between “psychological benefits” and “inner spiritual life”. As we are trying to justify a life of faith entirely from within categories that atheists would accept, I am happy to use the term “psychological benefits”, and imply no hierarchy between spiritual matters and psychological matters)
However, in the unfolding of my life, it is important for me to be able to show that the religious and spiritual life that I have committed to is “a good thing”. It would be distressing to think that I had made a mistake! I am also concerned that my life should not just be valid for me, but that it should be a valid way of life to recommend to everyone else.
If the ideas expressed in my new framework are valid then I think we have:-
- An unimpeachably valid basis for religion, even within a secular understanding of reality
- The vast majority of the good things about a religious life are still intact – notably the personal relationship with God
- All (that I can think of) of the puzzling stumbling blocks to religion – notably: why is there evil and suffering – have been removed
- All of the sources of conflict and opposition between religious and atheist points of view in terms of, “Is it true?” have been removed
- I will also have justified my own stance in life
Spiritual Devotion 