Ceremonial deism

The connection between religion and everyday life in the early United States has, at times, been a contentious field of study. Questions about how various churches and faiths developed in conjunction with the revolution, governmental authority, and enlightenment ideology have been examined from multiple angles. Of particular interest has been the spread of evangelical denominations during the first great awakening, during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth Centuries. This essay will…

Introduction The historians also refer the enlightenment period as the "age of reasoning." This was philosophical movement between the 17th century and 18th century that took place primarily in Europe and North America. Through this period the participants were participating in an illuminating human culture and intellect after the “dark” middle ages. The main characteristics associated with enlightenment include the rise of concepts such as liberty, scientific methods, and reasoning (Edelstein…

Calvinism perspectives of religion were still prevalent, but the rise of Deism emphasized God as a powerful clockmaker who left the world after its creation. Many new ideas were introduced such as how leadership should be gained by meritocracy instead of birthrights. Other ideas from Enlightenment thinkers emphasized scientific…

The debate of the creation of the Universe, has been going on since the first humans walked the Earth. We as humans are curious creatures, and always want to know all of the answers. In the Frank Turek vs. David Silverman debate they both believe they have the more realistic view of how the Universe came to be. These types of debates can get heated quickly not only between speakers, but between the audience members, too. That is why I really appreciated what the opening speaker asked the people…

America is often considered the land of dreams and possibilities. Along with this optimism, visceral existential concerns have also surfaced in the spiritual topography of America. Even though this philosophy of existentialism emerged in Europe, “America already had heirs to a rich tradition of thinkers- who had wrestled with the problems of existence and the contingency of the world long before Satre and his colleagues.”(Cotkin). This philosophy has impacted not only the American literary scene…

Colonial America saw many different ideals come with people of all kinds of backgrounds. In a time of great change, these ideals showed great importance in connecting people in America. Some, such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine, wrote about their own values to persuade others to follow them. One value that they wrote about is virtue. Though both define virtue as having both moral standards and being reasonable and logical with oneself, they differ on how these virtues should help one’s…

Wollstonecraft asks what can save us from atheism when she questions how the God we worship is not a devil if “one being was created with vicious inclinations, that [was] positively bad” (Wollstonecraft 160). This brings up enlightenment value of Deism, which accepts that a God exists but not intertwining that belief with a specific religion. Similarly, “The Lamb” highlighted religion by connecting it with the human and natural worlds using the lamb as an analogy to the world God…

When one hears the name “Ethan Allen”, several images may come to mind. Perhaps the most common, although a little disappointing, is of course the furniture company. Ask a Vermonter, or a scholar of American history, and they might respond with “forts, patriots, green mountain boys” - all allusions to this man’s illustrious past. A past wrought with gunpowder and bloodshed, and a lifetime spent questioning just about every semblance of authority that Allen encountered. Perhaps what is most…

Tartuffe is a comedic play written by Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, and he was most commonly known by his stage name, Moliere. In Tartuffe, the power of false teaching and habit of trusting the wrong sort of people is illuminated throughout the play. Moliere was greatly influenced by the historical conflicts that the Enlightenment era brought, specifically pertaining to the church’s response to the new age of thinking and reasoning. Even though Moliere seems to be mocking the Catholic faith, he is…

Thomas Paine’s Influenced Paradigm shift of American colonist People have trouble grasping the real reason behind the Americans claiming their freedom from the British. Little known to popular contrary belief a majority of the people that came to America actually wanted to remain British citizens, even when the British refused to let them be represented in Parliament, which is where the term loyalist comes from in the first place. Arguably one of the most interesting men from this time period…