Converting: Toward a cognitive theory of religious change

Abstract

The term conversion may be used to refer to a range of phenomena that encompasses an individual’s internal experience, the growth in spiritual maturity of the individual, and outward public affiliation. While there would seem to be a distinction between the unique inward experience and the outward change of affiliation, these processes often work together and are mutually reinforcing.A more illuminating distinction is between the use of the word “conversion�? to signify a discrete event or an ongoing process.