Deism is the recognition of a universal creative force greater than that demonstrated by mankind, supported by personal observation of laws and designs in nature and the universe, perpetuated and validated by the innate ability of human reason coupled with the rejection of claims made by individuals and organized religions of having received special divine revelation."
I have been identifying as a deist for some months now. At first, it started with being drawn to the idea of God not intervening in the world, and I really connected with that perspective, so I began calling myself a deist.
Now, though, I am more agnostic on the claim of whether God intervenes in the world through natural methods or not. I am still pretty closed off to the idea of God performing miracles or intervening in ways that break natural laws. I also do not know much about the nature of God or who God exactly is right now. At the moment, I believe in a God that is separate from the universe and all-knowing, and that is about it. I honestly need to look more into the idea of God in general and see what makes the most sense to me. I am also open to the idea of God wanting us to live moral lives on Earth.
I still think I would be considered a deist because I believe the best practical way to understand what God is comes through human reasoning and logic. I am not necessarily against revelation through books on paper; rather, I question it because I see how claims of revelation fail in the practical world. I am skeptical and against prophets being true.If God truly wanted to guide all of humanity, it seems to me that such guidance would be accessible to everyone in a universal way, something people could discover through looking, or God would communicate it directly to all people rather than through a select few individuals.
Here is a definition of deism that I really like:
“Deism is the recognition of a universal creative force greater than that demonstrated by mankind, supported by personal observation of laws and designs in nature and the universe, perpetuated and validated by the innate ability of human reason, coupled with the rejection of claims made by individuals and organized religions of having received special divine revelation.”
I like this definition because I think it includes all forms of deism and does not automatically exclude versions where God may intervene.
I also wonder whether deism has any central theology beyond rejecting revealed religion and prophets while seeking knowledge of God through reason and nature. Is that essentially the core of deism, with everything else being more open-ended and left to personal reasoning about what makes the most sense?
Question 1: Is it accurate to call myself a deist based on my current beliefs?
Question 2: Is that an accurate definition of deism?
Question 3: Is that the unified theology behind deism?
I am making this post because I have been questioning whether I would still be considered a deist, and I have been thinking about this for a while. So please, if anyone can answer any one of these questions, or all of them, I would really appreciate it. 🙏