The Archives include information about Deism from all
eras, listed topically.
Classical Deism. The works listed below are important for understanding the
foundations of Deism:
Matthew Tindal - Christianity as
Old as the Creation. Tindal saw Christianity as natural
religion containing much truth, but he rejects Trinitarian beliefs,
and claims of special revelation must be tested by reason. Two
versions are available here.
Steve Dowell's transcription is the best way to read the first
12 chapters. Turn to
the original to read the last two chapters.
Henry Dodwell -
Christianity Not Founded on Argument. Dodwell is
not an easy read. A reasoned criticism of Christianity.
A .pdf
is provided.
Ethan Allen - Reason,
the Only Oracle of Man,
also called Oracles of Reason by Allen. This
book is a key work in American Deism. Note that the
foundation of the book was probably written by Dr.
Thomas Young. Most of the basic principles of Classical
Deism are laid out in this book. The
1854 publication is available here, as well as my
modernization. You will find the modernization
much easier to read.
Elihu Palmer -
Principles of Nature was an attempt to take Deism
away from its roots in Christianity. Palmer lectured
widely and tried to found a Deist church (without much
success). The
transcription here is by Steve Dowell and Jay
Boswell. Also available through Google Books is
Prospect, or View of the Moral World by Palmer. It
is a free download.
The works listed here are just a beginning. This section will grow a
great deal over time as I find the best versions of important works and
archive them here.