You mean op? Had to compare themselves to the founders. For some reason. |
There is a happiness in Deism, when rightly understood, that is not to be found in any other system of religion. All other systems have something in them that either shock our reason, or are repugnant to it, And man, if he thinks at all, must stifle his reason in order to force himself to believe them. Thomas Pain What do you say one more deist founding father. |
Hey buddy: Why not learn to spell "Paine" before quoting him? |
Paine was describing Deism, not saying he was a deist. Paine was an atheist. |
About his own religious beliefs, Paine wrote in The Age of Reason: I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness beyond this life. I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church. All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit. Whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and tortuous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness with which more than half the Bible is filled, it would be more consistent that we call it the word of a demon than the word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize mankind; and, for my part, I sincerely detest it, as I detest everything that is cruel. Thomas Paine; et al. (1824). The Theological Works of Thomas Paine. R. Carlile. p. 31. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015. While never describing himself as a Deist, he openly advocated Deism in his writings,[8] and called Deism "the only true religion": The opinions I have advanced ... are the effect of the most clear and long-established conviction that the Bible and the Testament are impositions upon the world, that the fall of man, the account of Jesus Christ being the Son of God, and of his dying to appease the wrath of God, and of salvation, by that strange means, are all fabulous inventions, dishonorable to the wisdom and power of the Almighty; that the only true religion is Deism, by which I then meant, and mean now, the belief of one God, and an imitation of his moral character, or the practice of what are called moral virtues – and that it was upon this only (so far as religion is concerned) that I rested all my hopes of happiness hereafter. So say I now – and so help me God. Thomas Paine (1824), The Theological Works of Thomas Paine, R. Carlile, p. 138, archived from the original on October 16, 2015, retrieved July 1, 2015 |
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Paine |
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“Whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and tortuous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness, with which more than half the Bible is filled it would be more consistent that we call it the word of a demon than the word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize.”
—Paine, "The Age of Reason" (1792) https://ffrf.org/ftod-cr/item/14173-thomas-paine also, from the same source: "A freethinker in the 18th-century mode of deism, although he never described himself as a deist, Paine wrote the classic criticism of the bible, The Age of Reason (1792), completing the second volume under arduous conditions of imprisonment in France. "I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow creatures happy. I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church." |
That’s not atheism and I find no source that states Paine ever declared he was an atheist. Like op, you are assigning long dead historical people with designations that historians, scholars, and academics don’t even agree on. You are welcome to your own opinion, but not your own facts. I don’t think the atheists and anti-theists posting here are scholars, academics, or historians. They are random online people without credentials, looking to “prove” something. At least the “we all agree!” poster hasn’t reared their delusional head-yet. |
| it is absolutely atheism - i.e., not theism. |
What about the religious people who post here? |
Oh my gosh. I don't have a lot of interest in this thread and haven't posted yet, just skipped to the last page here. But "we all agree religion sucks/Jesus never existed/" poster is a delusional and controlling nutcase for sure. |
No reason to take pp any more seriously than the "controlling nutcase" poster |
They know how to copy and paste from dubious sources. Clearly, they are way more credible. |
I believe the atheists tell them that they don't know what they are talking about because they don't have a true facts. |
Dubious? Can you point out which sources are dubious? |