Why Deism?
by Robert L. Johnson
Regarding society, anything useful is worth preserving, anything useless
should be purged. What usefulness does revealed religion (in this
article, Christianity) serve? What usefulness does the natural
religion/philosophy, Deism, serve?
Christianity has long outlived its usefulness in today's society. Its
dogmas have been proven false, its teachings without foundation. The
perverted and distorted image of God it offers can only repulse a
thinking person.
A good example of the absurdity of Christianity still being a major
religion in the modern era is found in Ephesians 6:5, which deals with
the way slaves should treat their masters and masters should treat their
slaves. As most people are aware, slavery has not existed for well over
100 years. And the fact that the Bible doesn't speak out against it, but
instead openly encourages slaves to "obey your earthly masters with
respect and fear, . . . " is nauseating to people with a soul and
who employ God's gift of reason.
Christianity is not only useless, but is also very dangerous. Christian
organizations are successfully fighting to gain political power in the
United States as is evident from observing groups like Pat Robertson's
Christian Coalition and Jerry Falwell's Liberty University.
If their
current political victories continue, such as their two governorships,
two Senate seats, two House seats, and the mayoral position for both Los
Angeles and New York, it is just a matter of time until we find ourselves
living in a fundamentalist controlled, superstition centered America.
Because all the people at the grass roots level in the religious right
are firm believers in revealed religion, we will be at the complete mercy
of Pat Robertson and the others. The Christian leadership will be able to
turn the most primitive, regressive, and oppressive Judeo-Christian dogma
into the law of the
land.
With a majority of both Houses of Congress and their man in
the White House (which they are in the process of attaining right NOW),
the inquisitors will be back on their circuits rounding up the heretics
for their Lord Jesus Christ, who the religious right considers "the
ruler of the Nations." Just as they now remove books from schools,
so they will then remove freedom from the land and people from their
homes as in the Inquisition.
Not only will we lose our individual liberties, we, and the entire world,
will be pushed closer to nuclear war due to the fundamentalists'
ingrained image of the apocalypse. The overwhelming potential for
self-fulfilling prophecy in this situation would have irreversible
consequences for the entire planet.
The magnitude of the above probable dire possibilities, should the
Judeo-Christian fundamentalists continue to meet with success in the
field of politics, is obvious to every thinking person. The trouble is,
not enough people think. This lack of thought is due in large part to
revealed religion.
It teaches us, usually at a very early age, to neglect
God's gift of reason and substitute in its place what the priests created
and call faith. What they are actually saying is, "Trust me."
The credulous mind-set this breeds in mankind is exploited not only by
religious leaders, but also by political charlatans.
It is what makes
possible nightmares such as the Viet Nam war, the slaughter in Iraq, and
many other deadly games of revealed religion, government, and big
business. The natural religion/philosophy, Deism, teaches us to utilize
Gods gift of reason by thinking. When enough of us do this the nightmares
will end.
A large part of the usefulness of Deism to society is found in its role
as the only answer to the threat from the religious right. Because Deism
firmly embraces a belief in God, even though it doesn't recognize
revelation except through the Creation itself, a large number of the rank
and file, the people doing the actual work for the right, will be
attracted to it.
The sincere activists, the ones who want to serve God,
will see one preacher after another loose debates against Deists. The
ones that truly believe in God will still feel in their hearts that God
is real, but will realize, that by following a religion that has been
honestly proven wrong and which continues to preach obvious falsehoods,
they are not on the correct path.
After all, if God is real you won't
learn anymore about Him by following a religion that isn't. Deism is much
closer to the true nature of
God than Christianity is.
This realization will win over many soldiers of
the Falwells, Robertsons, Norths, and others, thus knocking the wind out
of the charlatans, and removing them as a real threat to our basic
freedoms, to progress, and to life itself.
Thomas Paine
- Biblical Blasphemy by Thomas Paine
- My Private thoughts on a future state by Thomas Paine
- Examination Of The Prophecies, by Thomas Paine
- Thomas Paine: Essay On Dream
- About Thomas Paine
- Thomas Paine on Deism
- Thomas Paine Age Of Reason
- Age of Reason Part I
- Age of Reason Part II
- Letters Concerning the Age of Reason