By Eric Paine
Soon after becoming Honorary Secretary of the Thomas Paine Society our eminent President warned me to try to keep off the subject of religion regarding Thomas Paine. However, I would like to make a few points which sometimes are overlooked. For many it is indeed a hornets nest but we always have to be conscious of the fact that it is extremely difficult to sweep away many centuries of indoctrination and surveys show that about 70% of people still believe in god, though less than 5% go regularly to church.
It is a bit of a paradox that some atheists are the most ardent admirers of Thomas Paine and his many faceted life, yet he made it abundantly clear that he believed in one god and that Quakerism left an indelible mark on him in many ways, apart from being willing to fight in a just cause.
We know Paine had no time for religious dogmas however wrapped up and independence of thought and action was his happiness and many of us are thankful for his wisdom and courage shown in The Age of Reason, bringing out the cruelties, follies, exploitation and general misuse of power by the church and the inaccuracies and inconsistency of it. But many atheists tend to overlook all the good that has been done, with or without ulterior motives in education, medical and charitable work generally throughout the world.
I hold Thomas Paine’s values of deism but will not mock those who find comfort and solace in church membership including Catholics and Muslims. In my experience some militant atheists (like some believers) are not particularly likeable people, often cold, cynical about everything with little or no idealism in them. Not many foundations or institutions for the betterment of the less fortunate have been promoted by atheists and they tend to be lacking in tolerance for other people’s foibles and weaknesses which we all have. Even Voltaire, who perhaps much influenced Paine, said that if god had not been invented it would have been necessary to do so in order to suppress our basest instincts and selfishness.
It must be said, whether we like it or not, that more altruistic work has been done in the world by those who believe in god than by those who sincerely believe that the “god thing” is a complete myth. Also, however we view religion, churches are a tremendous link with our ancestors worldwide. Regarding an afterlife, if any, those who fervently believe in spiritualism, psychic powers, continuation of life through atomic particles or whatever, need to remember that Thomas Paine only said that he hoped for happiness hereafter and that the almighty can change a caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly, then it is possible there is an afterlife. Sincere believers in Jesus who want absolutes and are sure he was the son of god (unlike Paine) unless they suffer too much from hypocrisy and cant on their doorstep, are very hard to move.
There is no denying that in many countries today christians, muslims, jews or whatever stand aside from fundamental abuses of human rights by oppressive regimes and in other countries religious believers are still persecuted. Thomas Paine said it is the scheme of invented systems of religion to hold man in ignorance of his creator, likewise of governments to hold man in ignorance of his rights. Thereby they are calculated for mutual support, and we still have not got separation of church and state.
Thomas Paine preached tolerance, deciding that Adam, if there ever was such a man, was created a deist, stating, “let every man follow, as he has the right to do, the religion and worship he prefers”, presumably that covers rejection of any type of religion or faith.
None of us knows for sure about the mysteries of life but we do need moral imperatives to guide us and if we try to live by the simple maxim of do unto others as we would be done by, we are less likely to land ourselves in trouble and confusion. Some may argue, perhaps with some justification, that religion, even though misused. as opium for the people, may in some cases be better than no religion at all or one based only on consumerism and to hell with the consequences for society and the planet.