Hume: An Open Door to Atheism?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5944/endoxa.54.2024.27591Keywords:
skepticism, agnosticism, deism, atheism, monotheism, immortality of the soulAbstract
Hume does not share atheism’s indispensable premise (God does not exist) but he argues that we only can assure what exists by proof and verification. Causality, substance, and the self are only beliefs. This overwhelming skepticism will influence inevitably his idea of God. Hume’s philosophy shares with atheism three crucial points: 1. Criticism of the design argument; 2. Mortality of the soul; 3. Criticism of the monotheistic religions. With this paper I intend to show that Hume’s philosophy, even though being skeptical, opens a door to atheism.
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