Stace's Key Ideas

Stace's Key Ideas

1. CONTEXT

   • 'Either God is a mystery or He is nothing at all'
   • Said that asking for proof of the existence of God is like asking for the existence of beauty
   • Wanted to show that mysticism made sense
   • Saw little point in trying to prove the existence of God through reason
     • Similar view to James on this point
   • Stace defines a mystic as someone who has actually had a mystical experience, rather than someone who talks about mysticism or sympathises towards it
     • It has nothing to do with 'mystery', the 'occult' or the parapsychological phenomena' (i.e. telepathy, telekinesis, clairvoyance etc.

2. NON-SENSUOUS AND NON-INTELLECTUAL

   • Defines mysticism as a non-sensuous and non-intellectual union with the divine
   • In the highest form, the senses cease to work
   • The rational intellect - the consciousness 'I' - also ceases to work in the highest mystical experiences. It is replaced by 'pure consciousness'

3. VISIONS AND VOICES

   • Visions and voices are not mystical experiences
   • Mystics are the sort of people who might be likely to have visions/voices, but a genuine mystical experience is non-sensuous, having no form, shape, colour, smell, sound etc.
     • By definition, visions/voices include visual experiences so they are not non-sensuous. Therefore, they can't be classed a mystical experiences