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SUMMARY:Experimental religion and experimental natural philosophy in early
  modern England - Peter Harrison (University of Oxford)
DTSTART:20090514T153000Z
DTEND:20090514T170000Z
UID:TALK17777@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Lauren Kassell
DESCRIPTION:One of the curious features of the theological literature of t
 he late sixteenth and early seventeenth century is the frequency with the 
 term 'experimental' is used in relation to a variety of religious beliefs 
 and practices – experimental knowledge of God\, experimental prayer\, ex
 perimental reading of scripture\, experimental witnesses\, experimental di
 vines\, and so on. If we pay close attention to the contexts in which thes
 e expressions appear\, we see the beginnings of a technical vocabulary in 
 which 'experimental' becomes more than simply a synonym for 'experiential'
  and in which the virtues of experimental knowledge are variously contrast
 ed with mere speculative knowledge\, with book learning\, with second-hand
  reports of particular religious experiences\, and with the doctrinal pron
 ouncements of religious authorities. In the early modern English vocabular
 y of experimental religion\, I suggest\, there developed sets of oppositio
 ns that were subsequently taken up by promoters of experimental natural ph
 ilosophy.
LOCATION:Seminar Room 2\, History and Philosophy of Science\, Department o
 f
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