The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature by William James is an edited collection of the Gifford Lectures on natural theology delivered at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland in 1901 and 1902. James examined religion from the perspectives of his training in medicine, chemistry, psychology, and philosophy to try to give some scientific grounding to the abstractions that underpin the descriptions of much spiritual experience. In reviewing many case histories of religious inspiration he concluded that the existence of an unseen reality was highly likely, that human consciousness contained “great energies” that could be called forth in times of need as “the religious experience”, and that the need for spiritual nourishment is natural and healthy for both individuals and society.

James’ lectures brought him international acclaim as one of the first American philosophers to achieve acceptance and respect in Europe. The Varieties of Religious Experience was well received when published and soon became a core work in the disciplines of both psychology and philosophy.  It is still considered one of the best books on religion ever written. The book has remained in print for over a century and is now in its 36th printing. The Modern Library division of Random House ranks it as the penultimate book of non-fiction of the twentieth century.

The August 1902 New York Times review of the first edition ends with the following:

Everywhere there is a frolic welcome to the eccentricities and extravagances of the religious life. Many will question whether its more sober exhibitions would not have been more fruitful of results, but the interest and fascination of the treatment are beyond dispute, and so, too, is the sympathy to which nothing human is indifferent.

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