Thomas Paine who was a dynamic philosophical presence in the American Revolution of 1776 wrote his last book in 1795 on an investigation and commentary of organized religion with a focus on Christianity. Paine said that his "religious duties" included doing justice, loving benevolence, and attempting to make others happy. He called himself a deist which is a person who believes in the existence of a God based on the evidence of reason and nature but not on supernatural revelation. In this book he outlines deism as a ...
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Thomas Paine who was a dynamic philosophical presence in the American Revolution of 1776 wrote his last book in 1795 on an investigation and commentary of organized religion with a focus on Christianity. Paine said that his "religious duties" included doing justice, loving benevolence, and attempting to make others happy. He called himself a deist which is a person who believes in the existence of a God based on the evidence of reason and nature but not on supernatural revelation. In this book he outlines deism as a rational religious belief and offers an analysis of the Bible based on textual content. He makes comparisons of the internal arguments of the Old and New Testaments by explaining, for example, inconsistencies of the biographic accounts in the four gospels. Paine suggests that since they were written separate of each other their basis is no better than hearsay. Because the United States convicted Paine of seditious libel in 1792, he escaped to France where he was selected to be a member of its National Convention. But there he conflicted with Robespierre, and while awaiting his arrest he wrote the first part of "The Age of Reason." Afterwards he was confined in Luxembourg and wrote the second half of the book. The work was published in 1795 and serves as a criticism of established religion from the point of view of the 18th century deists. Paine's clear and concise understanding of the development of the Christian religion from its pagan origins is especially significant when the reader examines the interconnecting references and implications of superstition and fallacy that are still involved in any ceremonial aspect. And, finally, Thomas Paine explains the answer to any confrontation best of all: "The most formidable weapon against errors of every kind is Reason."
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In this book, his religious manifesto, Paine laid out his beliefs in a God of an infinite universe who does not dabble in the affairs of mankind and does not reward or punish but rather one who has given us an entire universe from which to draw our lessons using the intellect and reason we were given. He shows how the Judeo-Christian-Islamic god-concept only makes sense in terms of the flat-earth at the center of a small universe. He points out that revelation can be only directly between god and man, thus the infinite universe as the only real revelation and anything written in a book hundreds or thousands of years later and carefully edited and expurgated by a group of men cannot, by definition, be "The Word of God" but is vague hearsay at best and political manipulation at worst.
A very advanced thinker for the 1700s,
he concluded that it would be unreasonable for the creator of an infinite universe to not have created intelligent life elsewhere in that universe, that prayer being an attempt to sway the infinite mind is useless, being a placebo for those that cannot accept the laws of nature and random chance.
He goes through the Bible book by book showing the inconsistencies and absurdities therein, and points out that a god who delights in and aids one group of people in slaughtering another cannot be a god worth admiring.
Gibsonian
Dec 24, 2008
Intellectual Freedom
This is my second fav. book. My first is Walden, by H.D. Thoreau.
This is an important empowering book. Paine tells you that his mind is his own church, as every man has the power to think for himself and does not need to be led by myths and corrupt priests who cannibalize the true astrotheological ancient traditions.
Read this book, period. It is a miracle.
Redisnoc
Oct 4, 2007
Last of the logical thinkers
Thomas Paine is a true representation of what the human personage is supposed to be. This book would be considered heresy by Religious fanatics and/or bible thumpers. His analysis by logic simply places religion is the realm that it should be...a man made construct. Yet, he is a very spiritual man and recognizes the creator and the need for man to work together and assist each other in the time we have on earth. Very astute passages for quotations are in here. Excellent book.
