neurotheology

Etymology

From neuro- + theology.

neurotheology means The study of correlations of neural phenomena with the subjective experience of spirituality, attained through means such as the consumption of hallucinogenic drugs. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.

Why this word is great

NEUROTHEOLOGY — [Noun] The interdisciplinary study of the neural correlates of religious or spiritual experience and belief. From the combining form neuro- (from Greek neuron, meaning "nerve") + theology (from Greek theos, meaning "god," and -logia, meaning "study of"). Unlike theology (which contemplates the heavens from the library) or neuroscience (which maps the forest of synapses without asking what ghosts might dwell there), neurotheology interrogates the junction where they converge. It is the fMRI scan igniting during deep prayer like a stained-glass window, the measured neural quiet of the meditative state, and the specific neurochemical warmth that floods the body during a ritual chant—a discipline that meticulously charts the vessel, but must forever guess at the nature of the wine it hopes to carry.

noun

The study of correlations of neural phenomena with the subjective experience of spirituality, attained through means such as the consumption of hallucinogenic drugs.