Making Light: All Religions are UPG

[MellowDem]

10. You have the question wrong...

it's not whether or not I believe a person has had an experience, but whether their explanation of that experience is true. And under that question, how I measure "truth" is quite relevant. If I will just accept any claim from experience as true, then I am very gullible indeed.

Their "mistaken belief" comes in their belief of the explanation of the experience, not the experience itself. There's really no reason for me to question the statment "I felt lighter, I felt a great weight lift off me, I felt a wonderful, rapturous feeling of warmth and comfort". But the explanation that that experience was the result of a supernatural force can and should be questioned on the basis that there is no evidence for it. And the much more rational answer would be that that person doesn't know why they felt that way, or that it is likely (as has been the case in other experiences, and for which there IS some evidence) a result of the very complex nature of the brain and the interaction of chemicals.

There is nothing "offensive" about stating facts. Certain religions have (and many still do) indeed interpreted various experiences as supernatural, only to later find out with the advance of knowledge that these expereiences were the product of the brain. It's no different really than religions back in the day having gods that threw lightning bolts down to Earth. The lightning was real enough, but the explanation of it was not. I never said that religious people were more likely to have mental disorders...

I understand not everyone shares my views, not exactly sure where I said that everyone shares my views (or must).