Thomas Paine's Example of Dedication to Deism

All causes, including the cause of Deism, require dedicated people to DO all they can to bring about the success of their cause. Without active dedicated people, the cause will fail.

Thomas Paine was an exceptional man who was dedicated to promoting freedom and liberty in political as well as religious and spiritual aspects of life. Today, January 10, 2026, is the 250th anniversary of the publication of his pamphlet Common Sense. Common Sense was followed with The American Crisis. Common Sense won over a large enough number of people to support starting the American Revolution, and The American Crisis inspired and motivated them to continue through the ceaseless horrific hardships they had to overcome in order the bring the American Revolution to a successful end. The successful end of the American Revolution brought about freedom and liberty beyond expectations in the political realm of life.

In order to bring about freedom and liberty in the religious and spiritual realm of life, Thomas Paine promoted Deism, the naturally simple and beautiful belief in The Supreme Intelligence/God based solely on our innate reason and the laws and principles we discover in nature. As Thomas Paine wrote in The Age of Reason, The Complete Edition,

"...all the principles of science are of divine origin. Man cannot make, or invent, or contrive principles: he can only discover them; and he ought to look through the discovery to the author."

Thomas Paine's profound dedication to Deism is wonderfully and inspiringly evident in his heroic decision to remain in France after learning that he would soon be arrested and imprisoned and in all probability would face the guillotine. By the time of his arrest on December 28, 1793, it is estimated that over 1,000 people had had their heads cut off by the guillotine. Thomas Paine faced this reality with pure courage and dedication, in order to complete the first part of The Age of Reason. He mentions this in the preface to the second part of The Age of Reason:

"Conceiving, after this, that I had but a few days of liberty, I sat down and brought the work to a close as speedily as possible; and I had not finished it more than six hours, in the state it has since appeared, before a guard came there, about three in the morning, with an order signed by the two Committees of public Safety and Surety General for putting me in arrestation as a foreigner, and conveyed me to the prison of the Luxembourg."

While in prison, Thomas Paine became very ill. When he was close to death due to his illness, he reflected on having written the first part of The Age of Reason. He wrote:

"About two months before this event I was seized with a fever, that in its progress had every symptom of becoming mortal, and from the effects of which I am not recovered. It was then that I remembered with renewed satisfaction, and congratulated myself most sincerely, on having written the former part of 'The Age of Reason.' I had then but little expectation of surviving, and those about me had less. I know, therefore, by experience, the conscientious trial of my own principles."

True dedication to Deism and the action it creates will not only bring about a Deism Revolution in Religion that will empower people to break free of the fear-based superstitions and dogma of the "revealed" religions, once we reach a large enough number of people with Deism, the world will be free of the religious violence and harmful nonsense of the ancient and man-made "revealed" religions.