ABSTRACT
‘The Invaders’ unfolds in an intriguing way. The whole earth is shaken by a sinister whisper from outer space that threatens destruction. These are the words that are heard: ‘I am taking over the earth. In this chapter, the author would like to suggest that the language they use to describe our inner states, and particularly the knowledge that such words seem to promise, can act as a tool that backfires as often as it helps. In the decades since The Psychology of Religious Knowing was written, there has been increasing interest in (and empirical testing of ideas that address) different ‘ways of knowing’. Since 1988, there is converging evidence that critical to personal change is that a person is able to take a wider perspective on their own thoughts, feelings and impulses.
