經驗與關係性: 宗教經驗的人文意涵

靈性修練的目的就在追求生命中的根本轉化，所以追求轉化正是許多宗教哲學傳統的核心議題；從宗教哲學看，靈修常涉及超越者的經驗，所以有關修練的論述，往往又常被視為涉及宗教經驗；在比較宗教經驗方面，尼厄圖教授的論點值得注意，他運用位格對話及時空框架兩個標準，以分別宗教經驗與密契經驗，並運用這分別來區分開基督宗教以及包含中國宗教在內的其他主要宗教，本文目的一方面在於探索中國宗教的實況，以指陳這一區分未能充分解釋中國宗教經驗，另一方面，由於靈修經驗必涉及在不同關係方面的深刻變化，是以本文也嘗試從關係性彰顯基督宗教及中土三教在修練方面的異同，並述其人文意涵。

The purpose of spiritual cultivation is to attain a fundamental transformation of life. As a consequence, the quest for spiritual
cultivation is the core issue of many religious and philosophical traditions. In terms of religious philosophy, spiritual practice often
involves transcendent experience, so that the statements on such practice are often seen to be related to religious worldviews. In this regard, Professor Jose Nieto's special perspectives are worthy of our attention. He takes both the emphases on person-to-person dialogue and the historical spacial-temporal framework as two basic criteria to distinguish between religious experience and mystical experience, as well as to highlight differences between Christianity and other major religions, including Chinese religions. On the one hand, through an examination of relevant accounts of religious experience in Chinese religions, this paper seeks to argue that such a distinction is inadequate in accounting for the richness of Chinese religious experiences. On the other hand, due to the conviction that spiritual practices always suggest profound changes will occur in various relationships, this paper also tries to highlight the similarities and differences in spiritual practices between Christianity and Chinese religions in light of relationality. Consequently, this paper will also seek to bring out the humanistic significance of such differences.