Read more
The topic of intelligence involves questions that cut deep into ultimate concerns and human identity, and the study of intelligence is an ideal ground for dialogue between science and religion. This volume investigates the notion of spiritual intelligence from a variety of perspectives, bringing together contributions from theology, computer science, linguistics, psychology, biology, and cognitive science. It defines spiritual intelligence as "processing things
differently, not processing different things" and aims to describe it in naturalistic terms. Spiritual intelligence is not regarded as a separate mental module or a magical ability to interact with the supernatural but rather as a specific, more spiritual way of engagement with reality, which has observable cognitive, phenomenal, and linguistic characteristics. The book is valuable reading for those working at the interface between science and spirituality.
List of contents
Part I: The concept of "spiritual intelligence"1 Spiritual intelligence: Editorial introduction
Marius Dorobantu and Fraser Watts2 Cognitive processing in spiritual intelligence
Fraser Watts3 Participatory spiritual intelligence: A theological perspective
Jordan Joseph WalesPart II: Computational approaches4 Cognitive modelling of spiritual practices
Vanessa Mathews and Fraser Watts5 A social and computational perspective on spiritual intelligence
William F. Clocksin6 Spiritual and artificial intelligence
Marius DorobantuPart III: Diverse intelligences7 A biological perspective on spiritual intelligence
Michael J. Reiss8 Spiritual intelligence in persons with intellectual disabilities
Michiel Bouman9 Practical spiritual intelligence: Integrative complexity
Sara SavagePart IV: Linguistic aspects10 Metaphorical semantics in spiritual intelligence
Nicholas Ostler11 Language use in spiritual practice
Harris Wiseman12 Cultural Practice as Spiritual Practice: Margaret Masterman and the return to the Metaphysical
Catherine PickstockPart V: Transpersonal aspects13 Participation in spiritual aspects of reality
Fraser Watts14 "Spiritual intelligence" and the theology of the spirit
Rowan Williams15 Spiritual intelligence across religions
Mark Vernon
About the author
Marius Dorobantu is an Assistant Professor of Theology & Artificial Intelligence at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Fraser Watts was formerly Reader in Theology and Science at the University of Cambridge. He is now Executive Secretary of the International Society for Science and Religion and Visiting Professor at the University of Lincoln. He is co-editor of the forthcoming Cambridge Companion to Religion and AI.
