William James' 20 Edinburgh "Gifford Lectures on Natural Religion" from 1901/02 have had a lasting impact on the development of the psychology of religion. James, who claimed to have no vivid sense of communion with God himself, was interested in the religious experience of the individual. When stripped of the worthless inventions of dogmatic scholasticism, one can observe certain regularities in religious life. On the other hand, there is also a diversity that can be understood as a source of opportunities for the individual. In an introductory essay, Peter Sloterdijk outlines William James as a natural ally for those who have reasons to emancipate themselves from religion through an interest in religion itself.