Deism: A Revolution in Religion, A Revolution in You

by Bob Johnson

Deism is a natural and rational bridge that unites our reason to our belief in God. It propels us from the false and destructive ancient myths to a space-age belief system that is in line with our God-given reason. This book, written in a concise and cogent style, introduces the reader to Deism, a way of life that is free of the old conflicts between reason and religion. The removal of these conflicts allows us to enjoy and appreciate a much more profound and satisfying belief in Nature's God while helping us to live a more productive and meaningful life.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction

108 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 16, 2009

Reviews

[Kevin Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've been a Deist for 44 years but was thoroughly disappointed in this booklet. The author, Bob Johnson, promotes a semi-atheistic version of Deism which is far removed from the authentic Deism of such major American Founding Fathers as Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Thomas Paine.

However, the book is certain to appeal to Left-wingers and those with a contemptuous attitude toward people who pray. Johnson believes that prayers are a waste of time, that there probably is no afterlife and that all religions are nonsense - with the exception, of course, of his semi-atheistic form of Deism that he calls the 'religion of reason'.

Johnson conveniently ignores the fact that the first man to use the term "Deism" to refer to rational religion, distinct from revealed religion, Lord Herbert of Cherbury (1583-1648), not only believed in a personal God, he also believed in an afterlife in which each person (soul) is dealt with according to his conduct here on earth. Indeed most of the 17th and 18th century Deists believed in a God with whom one could communicate through prayer. Even Thomas Paine wrote of his firm belief in an afterlife.

Entirely ignored by Johnson is the irrefutable fact that while John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin clearly did not believe in Christian theology, they most certainly did believe in a personal God and did practice prayer in their daily lives. They were Spiritual-Deists, not semi-atheists like Bob Johnson.

Any free-thinking person with an interest in Deism would do well to read Thomas Paine's classic work, The Age of Reason, but this semi-atheistic screed by Bob Johnson is not worth the paper it's printed on. Don't waste your money.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

AN EXCELLENT MODERN INTRODUCTION TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF DEISM

Author Bob Johnson is the founder and director of the World Union of Deists, and he also runs its website. He wrote in the Introduction to this 2009 book, “Deism is the belief in God based on the application of our reason on Nature. Deists see the laws/designs found throughout the known universe, the study of which is science, and we believe those designs presuppose a Designer of Nature, or as referenced in the Declaration of Independence, Nature’s God. This simple, yet powerful, reason based belief and thought process offers us unlimited problems in solving monumental problems in our individual lives as well as throughout society… This is truly revolutionary, a belief in God that puts the emphasis on REASON, and no on FAITH.” (Pg. 11)

He explains, “Deism openly and completely rejects all these claims to special divine revelation from all of the Abrahamic ‘revealed’ religions. Deism also rejects all claims to divine revelation made by any alleged religion… Contrary to all of the alleged revealed religions, instead of pretending to have divine origins, Deism teaches that God is the OBJECT of Deism, not the FOUNDER of Deism.” (Pg. 15)

Johnson reveals, “As a former Christian I know how important it is for Christians to believe that the Bible is THE Word of God. I was born into a Catholic family and was an altar boy for several years… When I went from being a Roman Catholic to a fundamentalist/charismatic Christian when I was 18, I was required to believe that the Bible was ‘the Word of God’ and not simply a collection of manmade books with some good ideas in them. When I was 25 or 26 I read the first few pages of Thomas Paine’s ‘The Age of Reason’ for school… I physically threw the book on the floor! Thankfully, a couple of years later when I was beginning to realize that Bible promises are not valid, I read ‘The Age of Reason’ cover to cover and became a Deist… I soon began to thank God for the fact that the Bible is NOT the Word of God!” (Pg. 27-28)

He argues, “One key ASSUMPTION of Christianity is that Jesus existed. The Bible provides many solid reasons to strongly doubt even the existence of Jesus. One is the conflicting Bible account of the genealogy of Jesus. Matthew 1:6-16 lists 28 generations between Jesus and David while Luke 3:23-38 lists 43 generations! At least one of these genealogies has to be wrong. This doesn’t sound too convincing for believing that Jesus was even a real person, let alone the Son of God! To believe so goes directly against our God-given reason!” (Pg. 38)

He observes, “Knowing that we’re not Deists because we were promised a ticket to Heaven or Paradise allows another practical benefit for Deists; the realization that we love God unconditionally. This unconditional love on our part allows us to trust even more in God. No longer do we fear God, but instead, we look at God as our Creator and best friend ever. This is something to be very thankful for!” (Pg. 42-43)

He points out, “Since there is no manmade dogma in Deism, Deists are free to believe whatever makes the most sense to them about issues like death and an afterlife. I know Deists who believe death is final and that there is no afterlife of any kind and I know Deists who believe there is a continuation of our consciousness of existence after our body dies.” (Pg. 47)

He notes, “I frequently hear from people who tell me they thought were Atheists or Agnostics until they learned of Deism. Because of the absurdities that ‘revealed’ religions attach to the idea of God, it’s not surprising that millions of people are turned off to belief in God and therefore associate their beliefs with Atheism or Agnosticism. This is a result of confusing religion with God. Deism … [makes] it as clear as possible that God had nothing to do with the scriptures of the ‘revealed’ religions or with the ‘revealed’ religions themselves. They are all without exception manmade and unreasonable and none of them has God as their author or founder even though they pretend otherwise. Deism rejects all the beliefs of the ‘revealed’ religions with the exception of … belief in God. This … puts Deism at odds with Atheism and Agnosticism… One thing that Deists, Atheists and Agnostics all have in common is that their sincere beliefs are all based on reason.” (Pg. 71)

He argues, “We all KNOW that a code requires intelligence… The code in DNA … uses the letters A, G, C, and T which represent chemicals. This very complex code exists and works in DNA. IT is therefore logical and reasonable to believe that since code cannot exist without intelligence. The existence and workings of cods in DNA, like all the laws of Nature, points us to the Supreme Intelligence. This is not a logical fallacy, it is common sense.” (Pg. 76)

He suggests, “At the same time we are boldly promoting Deism, we need to do it in a nonintrusive way. For example, we should bring it up whenever the opportunity arises but stop talking about it once the person or persons we are talking to make it clear they are not interested. However, we should not stop talking about it just because someone disagrees with us… And just because we are pointing out absurdities in the Bible or Koran doesn’t mean we can’t do it in a very polite way… Always remember that Deists don’t hate the superstitious, we just hate the superstition!” (Pg. 96-97)

This book will be “must reading” for anyone seeking a contemporary expression of Deism.

[Harry Klinkhamer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reminded once again that the quality of a book is inversely proportionate to the number of exclamation points used by the author.

[Michael Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read Age of Reason first. This is a pretty good book and the author is pretty good answering questions via email.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Deism is a great belief system with well-reasoned principles. However, you would not learn​ much of that from reading this book. The author spends a majority of the book attacking other religions with petty jabs. (Who would have known Abraham was a pimp?)

I wish the book would have focused more on the positives of Deism, not the negatives of Judaism, Islam and predominantly Christianity.

Additionally, the authors over use of exclamation points and multiple question marks at the ends of sentences establishes groundwork that this work should not be taken seriously.

[Audi Martel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was a great introduction to Deism and was a gateway to Thomas Paine’s The Age of Reason. I do agree with some of the previous reviews that the writing was riddled with inappropriate usage of exclamation points which was distracting. I wonder if it would have been better received if there had been an editor involved. Overall it was still very informative and eye opening about the founding fathers TRUE religious beliefs.

[TJ Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm still unsure what to say about this book or if I could even recommend it to friends who are wondering where I stand now. Parts of the book I really enjoyed and liked, other parts had me pulling my hair out.

Overall there seems to be a lack of focus, but seeing as how a book on Deism could be summed up by saying, "We believe in God and reject any and all organized revealed religion's absolutisms," I'm not sure exactly what I expected. The book seems to focus more on what Deism is NOT rather than what it is, but then again, see the previous sentence.

I enjoyed it but worry as Deism tries to move more mainstream and become organized that the very same concerns against other "organized religions" may begin to creep in. All in all, informative book. Quick easy read. Very basic introduction to Deism.

[Wayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very shallow and inadequate discussion of an important philosophical movement. Filled with more "cheap shots" at the "revealed religions" than substantive material to present Deism to the public as a viable belief-option. If this is the best that the World Union of Deists has to share with us - I'm afraid the World Union is doomed from it's start. I think that if Thomas Paine was to read this book, he would be a bit embarrassed by this presentation of the Deism he embraced.

[Eddie Ruminski · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was excited to get into this book, especially with the authors history in the area of Deism. However while it was an easy & quick read that covered the basics of Deism any such positive aspects were quickly overshadowed by the horrible quality of writing, which at the worst of times came off as nothing more than a mediocre rant.

[Marti · Rating 4 out of 5]

basic introduction to deism. fascinating.

[Torak · Rating 1 out of 5]

Less a book about Deism, more an anti-religion rant.

[Victor De meireles]

Decent introduction to deism but a little underwhelming in content.