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HAY David: Something There: The Biology of the Human Spirit
London: Darton, Longman & Todd 2006
HAY David: Why Spirituality us Difficult for Westerners, London: Societas 2007
Two of David Hays recent publications share a theme and a common purpose, as the more recent book has the same title as one of the chapters in the book “Something There”, and in many ways is more accessible presentation of the thesis. The subtitle of “Something There” indicates that this is Hay’s version of Alister Hardy’s seminal work on Religious Experience[1]. Both these eminent scholars have been the directors of the Religious Experience Research Centre[2], and approach the subject from their background in the discipline of Biology. The basis of the work is the research that Hay and others have conducted over a number of decades culminating in the material collected in conjunction with the BBC’s Soul of Britain survey at the turn of the millennium, whose initial findings were published in a report entitled “Understanding the Spirituality of People who don’t go to Church” [3]
Recent surveys have shown that while the number of people attending church has decreased rapidly, the number of people willing to admit to having had spiritual experiences has increased dramatically. Research in this phenomenon has led Hay and others, to conclude that spirituality is not socially constructed but inherently part of being human. While some scholars have investigated the physiology of the brain to understand transcendent experiences, others have analysed the reports of experiences to find a commonality across cultures and religions, concluding that the awareness of the “Other”, the Divine or God, is built in to our genetic makeup. Hay then, asks the question, why is it that spirituality and religion is so difficult for people in Western cultures? His conclusion, is formed from an analysis of the history of Europe and America from the 16th century, that developed a culture and ideology of individualism, that is coexistent with contemporary scientific, political and economic theory. This is in marked contrast to the religious concept of “Relational Consciousness” which emphasises the human need to be part of the human, ecological and divine community. Spirituality and spiritual experience are an expression of this, which in the absence of a religious community, is explored and sought in diverse ways. The West finds itself in this ideological milieu, where religion is despised, and Hay’s advice to the church is that it needs to rediscover the holistic approach to life, to dialogue with alternative spiritualities, and to take the issues of society seriously.
While the conclusion is a little weak, the books do give a good presentation of the thesis, and “Something There” gives a good introduction to the history of the research into religious and spiritual experiences. They are an important contribution to the contemporary discussion of the place of spirituality and religion in contemporary society.
[1] Hardy A. The Spiritual Nature of Man: a study of contemporary religious experience, Oxford, 1979.
[2]The Religious Experience Research Centre, originally called the Religious Experience Research Unit was founded by Alister Hardy, at Manchester College, Oxford, and is now located at Lampeter University.
[3]Hay D., and Hunt K., Understanding the Spirituality of People who don’t go to Church, University of Nottingham, August 2000.
 
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