Sample Essay Introduction: Donovan, paragraphs 3-4
In his essay ‘Can we know God by experience?’ Peter Donovan questions whether it
is possible to have direct, intuitive knowledge of God. After setting out this question,
he considers the views of 20th century theologians and philosophers (like H.P. Owen)
who have argued that religious experiences may provide knowledge of God, through
intuition. Donovan points out how this idea of intuitive knowledge of God fits with
established Christian ways of thinking: God is a personal being who acts in history.
He then distinguishes psychological feelings of certainty from actually being right on
logical grounds, and associates intuitive awareness of God with the former. Donovan
points out that our sense of certainty is often mistaken, an observation he takes
from Bertrand Russell. Although he considers the possibility that experience of God
might be a type of personal encounter (I-You), Donovan rejects the idea that this is
itself a form of knowledge. He does not accept that intuition can provide knowledge
of God, but claims that this point does not undermine the value of religious
experiences altogether.
In this specific passage, however, Donovan’s focus is upon what intuition is and how
it might connect with the topic of religion. He points out how ordinary and common
feelings of intuition are – these sensations are part of everyday life. Donovan gives
examples of intuition in practice, where people claim that they ‘just know’ moral or
mathematical propositions are true. Donovan questions whether intuition should
apply to religion too; can religious experience be a source of conviction without any
further argument?
That deals with part (a) ‘context’ in the essay plan you have. For the
argument/interpretation main section, I would aim to develop just a few key points
from this passage:
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“Don’t confuse me with arguments” – some people would prefer not to
argue about theism but make a personal (intuitive?) judgement. Compare
with rational approaches to theism / atheism.
“The experience of being confident … intuition” – what intuition is in this
essay, who says what about it, and what Donovan thinks of it. Could compare
this with moral intuitionism.
Does “religious experience also give us the right to say we know?” What is
religious experience? How is it used as a source of knowledge? Arguments
from religious experience.
The secondary points are already clear. I would just re-emphasise key themes like
theism/atheism, intuitions/intuitionism, and religious experience.