Deism
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Deism (/ˈdiːɪzəm/ DEE-iz-əm or /ˈdeɪ.ɪzəm/ DAY-iz-əm; derived from the Latin term deus, meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that rejects prophecies, revelations, and religious texts as legitimate or reliable sources of divine knowledge, and instead asserts that empirical reason and observation of the natural world are exclusively logical, reliable, and sufficient to determine the existence of a Supreme Being as the creator of the universe.
Unlike classical theism, Deism is the belief in the existence of a creator God who simply does not intervene anymore after creating the universe, solely based on rational thought and without any reliance on revealed religions or religious authorities. Therefore, Deism emphasizes the concept of natural theology—that is, God's existence is revealed through nature itself. Deistical thinking has existed since ancient times, and the roots of Deism are often traced back to the several ancient eastern and Greek philosophical ideals, while also being influenced by other rational theologies.
Since the 17th century and during the Age of Enlightenment, especially in 18th-century England, France, and North America, various Western philosophers and theologians formulated a critical rejection of the several religious texts belonging to the many organized religions, and began to appeal only to truths that they felt could be established by reason as the exclusive source of divine knowledge. Such philosophers and theologians were called "Deists", and the philosophical/theological position they advocated is called "Deism". Many of the U.S. founding fathers were influenced by Deism, including Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison.
Deism, as a distinct philosophical and intellectual movement, saw a revival in the early 19th century. Several tenets of Deism continued as part of other intellectual and spiritual movements, like Unitarianism, which considers one universal God as the creator of the universe and emerged though a critique of the traditional Christian theology of the Trinity and rejection of non-rational Biblical miracles. Deism continues to have advocates today , including with its variants such as Unitarianism, Universalism, Christian deism and pandeism.