Deism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Deism - Essay Example Moreover, belief in a miraculous and/or mysterious representation of the divine cannot and should not be viewed as something unique to monotheism. As can readily be understood from a cursory examination of the Hindu or Greek pantheon, a direct level of interference on the part of the gods is evidenced throughout the traditions and scriptures that these individual religious interpretations have developed. From such a long and historical/traditional understanding of what defines God/gods, it comes as something of a surprise that the belief system of deism ever came to any prominence whatsoever. As a means of understanding, explaining, defining, and drawing a level of inference with regards to how deism affected, and continues to affect the world in which we live, this brief analysis will seek to engage the reader with a more well-rounded and complete understanding of this belief system; as well as the key factors that contributed to it and the impacts that this particular belief system continues to engender. As with many historical theories and definitions of the world, deism was born out of a particular historical movement and time. In such a manner, within 17th and 18th century Europe, as well as the United States, the Age of Enlightenment was taking place. Within this particular time, the means by which the Catholic and Protestant churches of Europe could control and manage the means by which individuals thought and integrated with new and developing knowledge was severely and indefinitely curtailed. Nearly each and every movement of human history up until this point in time had moved humanity closer and closer to technological development, scientific discovery, industrial change, and a litany of other factors. Within such an understanding, the reader can come to the clear and definitive understanding of the fact that deism was ultimately borne out of the zeitgeist that was experienced during this unique era in human history. From a definitive standpoint, deis m is ultimately the belief that reason and observation alone are in and of themselves sufficient to determine whether or not God/gods exist (s). Furthermore, deism sought to reject prior norms that have long been accepted within Europe and the remainder of the world; namely the belief that revelation in and of itself could be utilized as a type of authority for knowledge, the belief and understanding that the divine regularly integrated with the human, the belief that Scripture was ultimately flawless, the belief in miracles, and many other standbys that had traditionally been understood by Christianity of various denominations to define the way in which God interacted with his creation. As is so prone to occur with religious interpretations and ideologies, deism soon came to be a way in which sociological factors of interpersonal and governmental relationships were determined. What is meant by this is that the Age of Enlightenment was a tumultuous period in world history in which t he constraints of both government and church were shocked in favor of reason and the human accrual of knowledge. It should not be understood by any means that this level of scientific and exploratory knowledge seeking is in and of itself bad. Ultimately, the spirit that gave rise to deism is the same one that helps to develop modern