The Spread of Deism in the Reformed Church in the South Eastern Region of the Kingdom of Hungary at the Turn of the 18th-19th Century

Hegyi, Ádám Alex (2015) The Spread of Deism in the Reformed Church in the South Eastern Region of the Kingdom of Hungary at the Turn of the 18th-19th Century. PHILOSOPHY STUDY, 5 (4). pp. 213-222. ISSN 2159-5313

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Abstract

Deism is one of the branches of radical Enlightenment which states that God creates the World, but he does not intervene into its operation. Theological dogmas are completely useless because these rules are not necessary for the prosperity of people. These ideas were very dangerous to Christianity; however, they were widespread in many parts of Europe in the 18th century. The Reformed Diocese of Békés was located in the south eastern area of the Kingdom of Hungary, whose followers practised an essentially rural way of life; therefore, they hardly read any scientific and philosophical works. In spite of this fact, the spread of the ideas characteristic of deism can be observed in numerous dioceses. The reception of deism in southeast Hungary can be witnessed not in the traditional intellectual documents (school curriculum, translations, and philosophical treatises), but in the documents of the ecclesiastical government: Church attendance records, documents of the proceedings of the ecclesiastical courts. With the detailed analysis of the ecclesiastical administration documents of the Reformed Church, this study investigates how folk religion relates to deism and the criticism of religion by the radical Enlightenment.

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