[Hac-announce] October 2016 Book Discussion: "The Age of Reason" by Thomas Paine & 2017 Call for Suggestions

[Kevin Gough or Paula Jones]

Our book for October is The Age of Reason: Being an Investigation of True and Fabulous Theology by Thomas Paine. The discussion will take place Saturday, October 15, 2016 at 2 pm in the library of the Unitarian Society of New Haven at 700 Hartford Turnpike, Hamden.








 

>From Wikipedia:








[English and American political activist Thomas Paine’s book] is an influential work...[which] follows in the tradition of eighteenth-century British deism, and challenges institutionalized religion and the legitimacy of the Bible. Originally distributed as unbound pamphlets, it was published in three parts in 1794, 1795, and 1807. It was a best-seller in the United States, where it caused a short-lived deistic revival. British audiences, however, fearing increased political radicalism as a result of the French Revolution, received it with more hostility. The Age of Reason presents common deistic arguments; for example, it highlights what Paine saw as corruption of the Christian Church and criticizes its efforts to acquire political power. Paine advocates reason in the place of revelation, leading him to reject miracles and to view the Bible as "an ordinary piece of literature rather than as a divinely inspired text". It promotes natural religion and argues for the existence of a creator-God.

 Most of Paine's arguments had long been available to the educated elite, but by presenting them in an engaging and irreverent style, he made deism appealing and accessible to a mass audience. The book was also inexpensive, putting it within the reach of a large number of buyers. Fearing the spread of what they viewed as potentially revolutionary ideas, the British government prosecuted printers and book-sellers who tried to publish and distribute it. Nevertheless, Paine's work inspired and guided many free thinkers. 

 Supplementary reading for the discussion is Thomas Paine’s Rights of Man by Christopher Hitchens.

This much-referenced but seldom-read book is readily available in numerous libraries around the state.


 
Refreshments will be served.


Also, we want to start thinking about the reading list for 2017. Some titles have already been suggested and I'll be taking suggestions through the November discussion, so let me know (in person or via e-mail at kvngough at aol.com) if you have a title you think the group would enjoy. Thanks!






























































































































































































































































The book is readily available in numerous libraries around the state.










 
Refreshments will be served.

 






 



 

 
 

 





















































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