Thomas Paine’nin Deizm Anlayışı ve Kelâm Açısından Değerlendirilmesi
Thomas Paine's Understanding of Deism and Its Evaluation from a Kalam Perspective

Summary/Abstract: Deism, which emerged in the seventeenth century as a critique of Christianity and a search for a natural religion, has become one of the leading areas of interest in contemporary studies of belief systems. However, there are several fundamental questions and issues in deism research, such as who the deists were, whether a Christian could simultaneously be a deist, and whether we can speak of a single, unified form of deism throughout history. In recent years, one of the often-discussed yet under-researched aspects of deism in Turkey is the changes it has undergone in terms of belief over time and who represents it today. Deism, emerging in its period, was a philosophical attempt to purify Christianity from what was seen as irrational beliefs and to show its compatibility with a natural religion. However, particularly English deist thinkers often did not completely abandon their Christian identities. The deists rejected concepts such as revelation, prophecy, and miracles, which are central to all religions, based on their incompatibility with reason. Yet, the distancing of deists from Christian cultural discourse began with figures such as Thomas Paine, one of the first names associated with deism today. One of the leading institutional bodies representing deism today is the World Union of Deists. The purpose of this study is to understand Thomas Paine's views on religion, God, sacred texts, and life after death. The research is divided into four main sections: religion, God, prophecy, and life after death, in order to evaluate Paine’s views from the perspective of kalām and to understand the changes in deism accurately. In this context, the ideas of deists are presented in accordance with the historical development of the movement. The study reveals how, with Paine, deism shifted away from its Christian emphasis and gradually became a form of religious opposition. Early deists’ use of religious terms such as worship, prayer, and repentance was gradually forgotten and no longer emphasized. Moreover, the study shows that, from the early deists to the present, there has been a consistent negative stance toward revelation. In addition, it is demonstrated that deists' views on Islam, particularly in the case of Paine, are often based on assumptions and preconceived notions, with a weak intellectual foundation.

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