Was Thomas Hobbes an Atheist?
One reading of 'The Leviathan' certainly suggests it, and the church at the time was certainly wary of him. In reality he was probably an early agostic....what do you think?
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Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.JMO, but he would be better described as a Deist, as a lot of Enlightenment philosphers/thinkers were. The modern idea of an atheist didn't really exist at the time and I think it's fair to say there were no or very, very few, atheists back then. At least none who would admit it. This is, after all, a time before Darwin and modern geology and the like.
eric788
Level 5
Aug 13, 2018
0
The "modern idea of an Atheist" has existed at least since the ancient Greeks, in all likelihood much longer.
@jeshuey I'm not sure I fully agree. The term 'atheist' has evolved over time, and was used as an epithet for those who rejected the church in the period of Thomas Hobbes, as well as my avatar, a century later. Criticism of the altar, no matter how well justified, was all it took to earn this label. Today's atheist not only rejects religion, in general, but the exitence of a deity, specifically.
I haven't finished Leviathan but every reference I recall (and there are lots) suggests that he takes the Bible at its word. He certainly comes off as a secularist and if he had lived in the 19th or even 18th century I would be more surprised if he were a believer than if he were an atheist or agnostic. Given that he favored civil rule over religious -- he questioned the role of religious revelation to individuals with regard to social order, questioning how/why others would accept the individual's (who experienced direct revelation) -- I can see why the church would be wary of him. Care to suggest passages that suggest he was an atheist or agnostic?
shayne69
Level 6
Aug 12, 2018
1
He didn’t want to be called an atheist, yet he believed that reality consists only of “matter in motion”. What that means IMO is that he believed in a God made of matter, and that heaven is a physical place.
It’s not a very astute philosophy IMO.
WilliamFleming
Level 8
Aug 12, 2018
1
I don't know about heaven but I remember (I think) he said God is made of matter. I've always supposed this was just his attempt to stay consistent without infuriating the church. That is, I doubted that he really believed it.
Yes I think you've hit the nail on the head there! My view entirely
what is clear is that he was anti-clerical, anti-Puritan and anti-Catholic!
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