The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781472453983, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivative 4.0 license. Experiences of hearing the voice of God (or angels, demons, or other spiritual beings) have generally been understood either as religious experiences or else as a feature of mental illness. Some critics of traditional religious faith have dismissed the visions and voices attributed to biblical characters and saints as evidence of mental disorder. However, it is now known that many ordinary people, with no other evidence of mental disorder, also hear voices and that these voices not infrequently include spiritual or religious content. Psychological and interdisciplinary research has shed a revealing light on these experiences in recent years, so that we now know much more about the phenomenon of "hearing voices" than ever before. The present work considers biblical, historical, and scientific accounts of spiritual and mystical experiences of voice hearing in the Christian tradition in order to explore how some voices may be understood theologically as revelatory. It is proposed that in the incarnation, Christian faith finds both an understanding of what it is to be fully human (a theological anthropology), and God’s perfect self-disclosure (revelation). Within such an understanding, revelatory voices represent a key point of interpersonal encounter between human beings and God.

This book considers biblical, historical and scientific accounts of spiritual and mystical experiences of voice hearing in the Christian tradition in order to explore how some voices may be understood theologically as revelatory.

In this insightful book, accounts of voice hearers are presented, evaluated and interpreted by a Christian theologian and psychiatrist. By listening to the first-hand experiences of voice hearers and evaluating them in the light of Christian theology, the book enables the reader to understand the experiences of voice hearers as a part of Christian experience and to engage with the theological issues raised by them, including the nature of revelation. This engaging and thought-provoking collection looks at a range of stories - ranging from comforting to complex to simply conversational - to encourage debate and search for meaning and also show how the reader can adapt clinical and pastoral practice to better aid people in this situation.

The experience of 'hearing voices', once associated with lofty prophetic communications, has fallen low. Today, the experience is typically portrayed as an unambiguous harbinger of madness caused by a broken brain, an unbalanced mind, biology gone wild. Yet an alternative account, forged predominantly by people who hear voices themselves, argues that hearing voices is an understandable response to traumatic life-events. There is an urgent need to overcome the tensions between these two ways of understanding 'voice hearing'. Simon McCarthy-Jones considers neuroscience, genetics, religion, history, politics and not least the experiences of many voice hearers themselves. This enables him to challenge established and seemingly contradictory understandings and to create a joined-up explanation of voice hearing that is based on evidence rather than ideology.

Hallucinations, for most people, imply madness. But there are many different types of non-psychotic hallucination caused by various illnesses or injuries, by intoxication--even, for many people, by falling sleep. From the elementary geometrical shapes that we see when we rub our eyes to the complex swirls and blind spots and zigzags of a visual migraine, hallucination takes many forms. At a higher level, hallucinations associated with the altered states of consciousness that may come with sensory deprivation or certain brain disorders can lead to religious epiphanies or conversions. Drawing on a wealth of clinical examples from his own patients as well as historical and literary descriptions, Oliver Sacks investigates the fundamental differences and similarities of these many sorts of hallucinations, what they say about the organization and structure of our brains, how they have influenced every culture's folklore and art, and why the potential for hallucination is present in us all.

In this gripping novel of small-town scandal and sizzling passion, New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts tells the story of a renowned artist who confronts a mystery from her past—and finds that her family secrets have not been laid to rest. Famed sculptor Clare Kimball has commanded the attention of the New York art world, but troubling memories from childhood have drawn her home to Maryland, to the town where she grew up and where her father died so long ago in circumstances never really explained. Nothing much has changed in Emmitsboro—except Cameron Rafferty, the onetime high-school bad boy turned town sheriff. The only hint of Cam’s wild nature is the light in his eyes when he looks at Clare. In Cam’s strong arms Clare is seduced into falling in love—and into believing that her small-town world is safe. But within the dark woods of Emmitsboro, something evil is spreading its poisonous power. Now Clare must pay the price for digging up the secrets of the past . . . and confront an evil that may be unstoppable—because those who practice it believe it is divine.

Imagine a life in which you clearly hear God’s voice and follow His will daily. Do you long for God to speak to you, bringing guidance, strength, and comfort? Perhaps you have been praying for a word from God, but the heavens seem silent. Nothing is more important than knowing how to hear from God because our spiritual life depends on it. Without it, we can’t know and obey His will for us, and we may go down the wrong path or miss His plans for us. The Bible teaches and guides us in essential matters, but instruction for God’s specific, daily purposes for our lives comes from His Holy Spirit, who lives within us. Being able to hear from God is a growing, deepening process that leads us into His perfect plans. Through his extensive study of the Scriptures and personal life experiences, internationally renowned Bible teacher Derek Prince explains the practical steps you can take to hear from God, develop a close relationship with Him, remove obstacles to recognizing His voice, and understand the ways in which He communicates. Hearing God enables us to follow Him more confidently, love Him more deeply, and serve Him more completely. As you cultivate the practice of hearing God’s voice, you will receive the fresh, daily bread that nourishes you spiritually and find divine direction and strength for your ongoing walk with Him. This is the lifestyle you have been waiting for: hearing God’s voice and following Him each day, each step of the way. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).