Questions on deism

[sleepyhead]

Hello,

I went to the deism website http://www.deism.com/. Just a few questions.

1. One of the usergroups is non theist yet you say you believe in God. Don't being a theist mean that you believe in God or Gods.

2. On the site it says they don't believe in any revealed beliefs. The writers of Pilgrims Progress, Johnathan Livingston Seagull, and most recently Avatar claimed that they obtained there stories in dreams. Does being a deist mean that one must reject these claims?

[JayDeist]

Hello Sleepyhead. I appreciate your questions. As for the first question, this one differs with a lot of people. In the original intent of the words, theism and deism both mean the belief in God. But more recently, the two words have taken on slightly different meanings. Since the enlightened period, Deism has emerged as a different meaning than theism. Deism is a natural belief in God, while theism is a revealed belief in God. I differentiate the two the way I do after hearing many videos of Richard Dawkins. For more, please check out his "from deism to theism" videos. So for me, non-theist means disbelief in revealed religions, not specifically God.

As for the second question, i would hold a similar stance an a naturalist, or atheist. I wouldn't reject it necessarily because it was from a dream, but how it relates to reason, and if it seems plausible. Since it would be considered opinion, I could only consider it that, but I would weigh it's credibility to see how I stood on the subject.

[Logomachist]

I differentiate the two the way I do after hearing many videos of Richard Dawkins. For more, please check out his "from deism to theism" videos. So for me, non-theist means disbelief in revealed religions, not specifically God.

Where can I find this "From Deism to Theism" video? I consider myself a Deist but believe in divine inspiration.