Religion and Science: Contemporary Psychological and Spiritual Relations

Abstract

Observation of the ongoing trends in religious practices indicates that there is a noticeable tendency to move from interest in traditional participation in religious life, which is related to the perception of religion as a phenomenon encompassing three basic elements, that is, doctrine, worship, and institution (church, religious association), towards religiosity which is individualized, or even—to follow the nomenclature proposed by P. Vitz—selfist. Such religiosity will not only avoid the traditional reference to the transcendent sacred, but also seek its source and sense of reference directly in the person himself or herself, becoming an emanation of his or her spiritual life. Such spiritual life, even at the descriptive stage, is characterized by a high degree of relativity and subjectivity, hence it is justified to ask the question about the shape of the contemporary relationship between religion and science, especially psychology, which, by definition, approaches religious issues in a non-confessional and objectified way. This article will be devoted to this very issue.