Religion Without Doctrine

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Original Air Date: 
November 24, 2018

What's the essence of religion? God? Scripture? Moral codes? Or is it really about something more mysterious and unexplainable?

In this hour, we explore the roots of religion — religion before it's even called "religion." Because if you strip away all the doctrine, the dogma, the rules for how to live — what’s left are primal spiritual experiences. But what do they tell us about ourselves and our world?

A Woman Is Struck By Lightning. Did She Meet God?

Articles

Elizabeth Krohn says she left her body, went somewhere else, met and talked to God. And then came back to dream the future. What does her experience tell us about where religion comes from?

Length: 
8:26

At The Edge Of Belief With Maverick Historian Jeffrey Kripal

Articles

Religious historian Jeffrey Kripal believes that anomalous experiences — near-death experiences, telepathic dreams and other primal spiritual encounters — are the deep roots of religion. You might call it "religion before it becomes religion."

Length: 
13:11

Personal Loss and the Religious Imagination of Scholar Elaine Pagels

Crossing the plains of the Gnostic Gospels
Audio

The religion scholar Elaine Pagels introduced the world to the ancient Gnostic Gospels. 25 years later, she's finally ready to talk about how her own grief — after the deaths of her young son and husband — shaped her religious imagination.

Length: 
16:15

Can A Poem Be A Prayer?

"The Tradition" book cover design by Phil Kovacevich
Articles

Jericho Brown is an award-winning poet who has been working with religious language for a long time. His poems have titles like "1 Corinthians 13:11" and "Hebrews 13." His book "The Tradition" continues to mine Brown's childhood in the church.

Length: 
13:33
Extras

Show Details 📻
Airdates
November 24, 2018
July 06, 2019
July 18, 2020
March 20, 2021
June 11, 2022
July 01, 2023
August 31, 2024
Guests: 
Krohn

Elizabeth Krohn

Writer

Jeff Kripal

Professor of Philosophy and Religious Thought
kripal.rice.edu

Elaine Pagels

Professor of Religion
religion.princeton.edu
Jericho Brown

Jericho Brown

Poet
jerichobrown.com
creativewriting.emory.edu
twitter.com
Categories: 
Religion and Philosophy
Last modified: 
August 30, 2024