Being ashamed of his own language, and preferring the French, he encouraged the current and popular French literature, which in his day, under the guidance of Voltaire, was materialistic and deistical.

Early in life, his zeal for religion had shewn itself in some remarks on an impious book termed the History of the Man after God's own Heart; and in 1767, the same feelings induced him to publish A Vindication of the Divinity of Jesus Christ, in a Letter to Dr. Harwood; and, in the year following, Voltaire in the Shades, or Dialogues on the Deistical Controversy.

skeptical, freethinking; unbelieving, unconverted; incredulous, faithless, lacking faith; deistical; unchristian, antichristian^. worldly, mundane, earthly, carnal; worldly minded &c Adv. irreligiously &c adj.. 4. ACTS OF RELIGION 990.

And just at such a crisis, expressly to justify their burning her to a cinder, up gallops Joanna with a brigade of guns, unlimbers, and serves them out with heretical grape and deistical round-shot enough to lay a kingdom under interdict.

In the mean time, all this deistical confession of Joanna's, besides being suicidal for the interest of her cause, is opposed to the depositions upon both trials.

Pray Mr. Dechaine, are you able, upon the Deistical scheme to rid yourself of this difficulty? 'Dech.'

Among those who defended revealed Christianity against the deistical attacks we may mention the names of Conybeare (1732) and Joseph Butler (1736).

The real flaw in the deistical theory, which was scarcely felt as such, even by its opponents, was its lack of religious feeling and all historical sense, a lack which rendered the idea acceptable that religions could be "made," and priestly falsehoods become world-moving forces.

In the other course, on Christian Evidences, he did not include any discussion on Theism whichprobably because of his special familiarity with the Deistical and kindred controversies, and also because the modern assaults on supernatural Christianity from the Evolutionary and Agnostic standpoint had not yet become pressinghe postulated.

The "Age of Reason" is a shallow deistical essay, in which the author's opinions are set forth, it is true, in a most offensive and irreverent style.

It is remarkable that his friends do not seem to have considered the "Religio Laici" as expressive of his decided sentiments; for Charles Blount, a noted free-thinker, in consequence of that very work, wrote a deistical treatise in prose, bearing the same title, and ascribed it with great testimony of respect to "his much-honoured friend, John Dryden, Esquire."

Their studies are chiefly confined to Rollin and Plutarch, the deistical works of Voltaire, and the visionary politics of Jean Jaques.

Their studies are chiefly confined to Rollin and Plutarch, the deistical works of Voltaire, and the visionary politics of Jean Jaques.

His Christianity not Mysterious (1696) marks an epoch in religious disputes, for it started the deistical controversy which was so distinctive a feature of the first half of the eighteenth century.

Asgill, Toland, Tindal, Collins, and Coward are classed as the Deistical writers of the eighteenth century.

[Footnote 6: This passage refers to the deistical publications of Asgill, Toland, Tindal, and Collins, already noted.

Ostensibly the book was an attack on the Roman Catholic Church, but the attack was so cleverly veiled that it included in its criticisms the Church of England also; and must take its place among the works of the deistical writers of the time who aimed at subverting the foundations of the relationships between the Church and the State.

Tindal died in 1733, three years after publication of his grand deistical work, "Christianity as Old as the Creation."

Of the deistical writers of the early eighteenth century, Anthony Collins (1676-1729) is, perhaps, the most celebrated.

It must not, however, be forgotten, that Swift's attachment to his Church, as it influenced him against the Whigs, would naturally influence him against the deistical writers also, and that he must be credited, to that extent, with honesty of purpose.

HERBERT, EDWARD, LORD, of Cherbury, diplomatist, soldier, and scholar, born at Montgomery Castle, in Wales; served as a soldier under Maurice of Orange; was twice ambassador in France, but chiefly devoted to philosophical speculation; was the first of the deistical writers of England, though his deism was dogmatic not critical, positive not sceptical, as that of the subsequent English deists is (1581-1648).

TOLAND, JOHN, political and deistical writer, born in Derry, of Catholic parents; abandoned the Catholic faith; studied at Leyden and Oxford; his first work, "Christianity not Mysterious," which created a great stir, and was burned in Ireland by the common hangman; it was succeeded, along with others, by "Nazarenus," which traced Christianity to conflicting elements in the early Church; he was a disciple of Locke (1669-1722).

WOOLSTON, THOMAS, an eccentric semi-deistical writer, born at Northampton, who maintained a lifelong polemic against the literal truth of the Bible, and insisted that the miraculous element in it must be allegorically interpreted, with such obstinacy that he was in the end subjected to imprisonment as a blasphemer, from which he was never released, because he refused to recant (1669-1731).