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Spiritualise
Foreword by
Matthew Taylor
Our commitment to a 21st century enlightenment led naturally to an interest in the insights of behavioral science. From the start we wanted to go beyond micro-intervention ideas like nudging and priming and explore the deeper implications of the relationship between human nature, social reality and meaningful change. Any proper inquiry into what motivates and inspires human beings will soon confront the spiritual dimension of life, seeing it not as merely an illogical handover from pre-enlightenment times, but rather speaking to an enduring human need. While it may seem perverse for an enlightenment organisation to commit itself to research on spirituality, in Jonathan Rowson’s profound and highly engaging paper the decision received a powerful endorsement. The first reading of Jonathan’s draft for Spiritualise was an exciting moment. Rereading it in this new updated version rekindled that enthusiasm. My sadness that Jonathan has moved on from the RSA is easily outweighed by my pride in this paper and pleasure in seeing his new initiative – Perspectiva - with whom we co-publish this book – go from strength to strength. It is a rare claim to suggest that reading a think tank output might change the way you think about yourself and reality, but in this case it just might.
Matthew Taylor is Chief Executive Officer of The RSA, a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Social Sciences and former advisor to the UK Prime Minister.