Abstract
James’ religious reflexions are articulated in his two works: The Varieties of Religious Experience and Pragmatism. Both works, seemingly different, share the same basic framework of his religious thought. This paper will clarify the framework and reconsider the meaning of James’ pragmatism.
First, in The Varieties of Religious Experience, James maintains that the religious experience is realized through the subconscious in the depths of our self, moreover that its positive content makes us access to the unseen or mystical region. Since James considers that the reality of this region can only be verified by the effects which the region produces in this world, he emphasizes on a “pragmatic way of taking religion.”
In Pragmatism, on the other hand, James considers truth(s) as evolving within the context of “human conduct.” This idea is intimately connected with his reflexions on “the salvation of the world” which he develops in the final chapter. Based on his conviction that the world, not being ready-made, is ever full of possibilities which our every conduct realizes, James seeks to determine the conditions for this salvation. This is why James insists that the world, in spite of all its evils, can be saved.
Thus, James’ view of religion is based on his belief in the possibilities of both the world and human beings. It is from this belief that Jamesian pragmatism is built up and reconsidered.
