Religion in Dewey's "Experience and Nature"

This article undertakes to show some of the implications of the conception of meaningless experience. This type of experience is first defined. The place of meanings in experience is then discussed. It is shown that meanings normally point to definite events. If, however, a system of meanings be developed without reference to the concrete events to which they should point, we may have a closed system of concepts pointing to nothing outside itself; and hence practically meaningless. Finally, the significance of mysticism is discussed, particularly with reference to the situation in which old meanings have been abandoned, while new meanings have not yet been discerned. Mysticism provides a way of feeling meanings which have not yet been formulated. It is thus an important factor in the development of new meanings. Religion fosters this creative mysticism, and hence is a source of originality in interpretations of reality. Worship brings us into direct relations with the whole of reality in such a way as to break up our shallow conventionalities and to suggest new and more profound interpretations.