Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Toto · 12-17-2010, 03:43 PM

Yes, "Deism" at the time of the American Revolution was sometimes used interchangably with theism, and sometimes referred to a sort of universal religiosity based on "divine providence," without a belief in the Bible. It was only later that deism came to refer to a god who started the universe and then stepped away from it completely. (I'd have to look up references, but I'm pretty sure about this.)

No Robots · 12-17-2010, 07:57 PM

Jefferson develops his views in a letter to John Adams.

mountainman · 12-19-2010, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by show_no_mercy

What do these comments have to do with mythicism?

From here, its a wonder the article makes no reference to that quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson ....

"We must get rid of that Christ!
We must get rid of that Christ!

The title is about presidents, then it deals with "Founding Fathers" and then it changes to "most famous early Americans", such as the heading "Some of the most famous early Americans may have considered Jesus Christ to have been a myth."

Then it deals with Taylor ...

Quote:

One of Dupuis and Volney's later devotees was Rev. Dr. Robert Taylor (1784-1844), whose mistreatment under England's "blasphemy" laws badly frightened the budding evolutionist and Conway friend Dr. Charles Darwin as to his own potential fate. Taylor was notoriously arrested, tried and convicted for publicly calling into question the veracity of the Bible and Christian tradition, preaching from the pulpit that Christ was a mythical figure.

He served two prison sentences in the late 1820s and early 1830s for a total of three years, during which time he defiantly wrote two mythicist works, The Syntagma and The Diegesis. If Darwin was aware of Taylor's fate, he was likely also knowledgeable about what the minister had been preaching: To wit, Jesus Christ was a mythical not historical figure, based on pre-Christian solar mythology.

"Such ill treatment may indicate why so little mythicism has made it into the public view, with questioners of the 'historical Jesus' treated as pariahs in both the public at large and the hallowed halls of academia."

Toto · 12-19-2010, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mountainman

Quote:

Originally Posted by show_no_mercy

What do these comments have to do with mythicism?

From here, it's a wonder the article makes no reference to that quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson ....

"We must get rid of that Christ!
We must get rid of that Christ!

Probably because Emerson was not a founding father.

Please STOP recycling your old arguments years after they are refuted. That Emerson quote was discussed in 2006 here. It has nothing to do with mythicism.

Quote:

The title is about presidents, then it deals with "Founding Fathers" and then it changes to "most famous early Americans", such as the heading "Some of the most famous early Americans may have considered Jesus Christ to have been a myth." ....

The title mentions two founding fathers who happened to also be presidents.

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12-17-2010, 03:43 PM	#21
Toto Contributor Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Los Angeles area Posts: 40,549	Yes, "Deism" at the time of the American Revolution was sometimes used interchangably with theism, and sometimes referred to a sort of universal religiosity based on "divine providence," without a belief in the Bible. It was only later that deism came to refer to a god who started the universe and then stepped away from it completely. (I'd have to look up references, but I'm pretty sure about this.)

12-17-2010, 07:57 PM	#22
No Robots Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Edmonton Posts: 5,679	Jefferson develops his views in a letter to John Adams.

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