Spiritual Experience: A Scientific, Philosophical and Theological Retreat  
2025 Summer Conference of the Institute on Religion in an Age of Science, to be held at Star Island, NH, USA, Sunday June 22 to June 29, 2025.
In recent decades we have seen an increase in scientific, philosophical and theological research focused on the processes involved in “spiritual” transformation. This has generated  a more comprehensive science-based understanding, including physical, psychological and substance-induced approaches that promote intentional opening to spiritual experience. There is evidence that we have a spiritual core (central and innermost) biologically wired into us that is normally “outside of awareness,” that there are ways to open and engage that core and that when people open to that awareness, they often describe the experience as mystical or numinous.
​We invite everyone — educators, ministers, civic leaders – in addition to scientists, philosophers, theologians and people who are simply interested — to discuss and explore those experiences, which appear to be linked to creativity, vitality, a feeling of wholeness, a sense of meaning and purpose, awe and wonder, unity and communion with others, including connection to the earth and its diverse inhabitants. Aspects of spiritual consciousness may also foster healing from trauma. Spiritual transformation might even be defined as a falling in love, as it encourages a comprehensive agape for the world, ourselves, others and life itself.

This conference will provide participants with opportunities to:

1. Develop an understanding of the scientific research on spiritual experiences
2. Investigate theological/philosophical implications of this research
3. Explore personal life experiences that they might consider “spiritual”
4. Share stories of these experiences with others, and explore why this sharing can make a difference in deepening personal relationships, our purpose and our work to create a better world
5. Engage in modes of accessing spiritual experience
6. Identify practices for sustaining these experiences
7. Brainstorm ways to engage our spiritual core and create expanded possibilities for human and planetary well-being.

We encourage professionals across disciplines to submit proposals for papers that address the theme in general. Additionally, Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science, before the end of 2024, will have a paper describing a specific approach to spiritual experience by one of the Co-Chairs and Commentary by a philosopher, scientist and theologian that will outline some of the questions that may arise in this Retreat. Topics and questions in these articles may guide your interest. Limited papers will be accepted with the top two awarded our Shapley-Booth Scholarship covering expenses for attending. Papers will have an option of being published later in Zygon after full peer-review.

Additionally, this Retreat is to be experiential as well as academic with an intention of promoting personal spiritual experience/awakenings (not substance-related). Proposals will be reviewed for activities that may be in the form of a workshop (30-60 minutes), offering a daily activity such as Tai Chi, offering healing sessions such as shamanistas, body or breathwork, massage, sound healing, transformational poetry, dance, meditation, and others.
Possible questions to be considered for the papers might include:

1. How does the reality of immanent spiritual experience impact specific areas of science, philosophy and/or theology?
2. What might a new field of “ontology of Being” look like in the overlapping worldview of science, philosophy and/or theology?
3. What additional practices can be added to promote personal spiritual experience/ awakenings?
4. What unexplored areas or blind spots in our discussion should be taken into consideration?

Submissions

• Proposals for short papers and activities on the topic or other facets of interaction between religion and science are invited. Please submit a 500 word abstract along with author details by February 15, 2025. Proposals will be considered on a blind basis, so please submit your abstract without identifying information, which you should include instead in your cover email/letter.
• Send your proposal to: [email protected] with “IRAS 2025 Proposal” in the subject line.
• Email Questions to Calvin Chatlos, [email protected]