In principle, the tenets are reasonably attractive - the idea of a non-interventionist creator by no means conflicts with either evolution or the Big Bang, and the reduction of Christianity to basic, rational principles retains the original morality without the consequent ritualistic and/or hierarchical accretions. Of course, the loss of prayer would appear to undermine the very basis of organised religion, but reversion to mere life guidelines retains the core faith essence. And the list of followers was illustrious - Voltaire, Locke, Paine, Jefferson and Franklin among others.
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Deism
I kind of agree with the concept myself, although I have no idea what the purpose of this thread is. I'm also unsure that backing your argument up with five names, two of which I've not heard of, is wise (unless we're talking Terry Paine, the Southampton legend, and Gary Locke, who I had a Top Trump card of once).
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Deism
Belief that there might be something we don't understand - an intelligence, if you will - underpinning creation, life, etc, and that the "rules" so far as we understand them now are merely scratches on the surface of an ultimate understanding; all perfectly rational. I don't think we've got close to understanding what drives evolutionary change, for example.
Belief that there might be an actual being - a sentient God, rather than just a set of rules we don't quite get yet - behind it all? Well, I'm less than convinced, but why not, if it floats your boat.
Belief that you - you - can actually talk to such an entity, understand or even interpret its intentions, or that it listens to you? Loony bin time.
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Deism
pebblethefish wrote: I kind of agree with the concept myself, although I have no idea what the purpose of this thread is. I'm also unsure that backing your argument up with five names, two of which I've not heard of, is wise (unless we're talking Terry Paine, the Southampton legend, and Gary Locke, who I had a Top Trump card of once).
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Deism
The other thread about Stephen King adaptations puts me in mind of the Dome, which became a rather overblown TV adaptation of a short but interesting novel, in which inexplicable natural events that befall an entire New England town and lead to all sorts of human-based tragedy and horror, are all revealed in the end to have been caused by the alien equivalent of two children playing with an ant colony in their back garden. The alien children, of course, having no more understanding of humans, or appreciation of our intelligence, society or needs, than we do of ants; just that it's fun to watch us run around and burn.
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Deism
I'm incredibly comfortable with accepting the existence of such a deity. It means I can file away all questions that science either can't answer or doesn't answer convincingly enough, while still enjoying the fruits of its work.
I'm also incredibly comfortable with people talking to - and believing they get a response from - their deities. As long as they don't do anything negative with that.
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