Abstract
In declaring 1836 the “Annus Mirabilis” of Transcendentalism, Perry Miller captured the emerging vitality of a new religious movement, described by Convers Francis as “the spiritual philosophy”. Francis first listed George Ripley’s Discourses on the Philosophy of Religion (1836) as a sign of the new movement. Ripley’s book, strongly influenced by William Ellery Channing’s sermon “Likeness to God” (1828), captured the metamorphosis of Transcendentalism from its Unitarian theological roots, and sheds light on the Transcendentalists’ theory of religious experience. Ripley presented Transcendentalism as the purist form of Christian theology. This new religious awareness enabled a realization of the divine “inner nature”, and described a religious life dedicated to the practice of spiritual self-cultivation. This new awareness brought with it “universal love”, and a vision of what it meant to partake of divinity.
Highlights
In declaring 1836 the “Annus Mirabilis” of Transcendentalism, Perry Miller captured the emerging vitality of a new religious movement, described by Convers Francis as “the spiritual philosophy.” Francis first listed George Ripley’s Discourses on the Philosophy of Religion (1836) as a sign of the new movement
“the original and essential capacities of the mind,” Channing suggested an epistemological dimension in religious experience, in which is the mind is drawn innately to those things that reflect its character and wishes
“As soon as we become acquainted with our own souls, we perceive that they are dependent, limited, finite, but at the same time endowed with powers, that command with complete authority, with capacities for boundless improvement, and aspirations after an approach towards Infinite Perfection.”7
Summary
In declaring 1836 the “Annus Mirabilis” of Transcendentalism, Perry Miller captured the emerging vitality of a new religious movement, yet to be named, but described by Convers Francis as “the spiritual philosophy” (Miller 1950, p. 106). These lesser-known texts by writers often referred to as “minor Transcendentalists” do support Miller’s religious view of Transcendentalism. Transcendentalism as a form of cultural resistance to a conformist and spiritually deadened society, but as his anthology shows, he could not endorse the Transcendentalists as social visionaries or political leaders He emphasized Ripley’s courageous frankness in confronting the miracles question directly during the religious controversy among the Unitarians, but could only shake his head at the politicized. Spiritual potential in the Discourses, Miller seemed indifferent, overlooking a more ambitious and expressive work than he realized
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