I can understand your attraction to Deism. To start with it rejects all the miracle stories, the concept of books rewritten by humans as being synonomous with the opinion of God, etc.

I would say most of us today to reconcile the bullshit parts of our religions rely on it without knowing its deistic tendencies.

For me born a Jew, I would be closer in religous beliefs to a deist then a practicing Jew because I reject all the miracle stories and all the references deists questioned and rejected for the same reasons.

To me being a Jew is a collective ethnic identity not necessarily a religious belief because my concept of "God" is very abstract and far removed and non intrusive and totally removed from our free choice process.

However I do have one bone to pick with you. Jews don't go to churches. They go to synagogues. Its like saying they put mayonaisse on bagels.

That said, I also reject all organized religions. I do not wish to share my inner beliefs with anyone. I have no need to. If someone asks I will answer but I do not believe in proseltyzing or preaching.

I do believe in chasing people off my lawn who come to try convert whatever the reason.

Big Bang and Evolution do not replace the need for a God. They are not our new dogmas. They are one of thousands of tools produced by science. They are in contrast to some specific religions, but not all religions in general, deism included. One can be many religions and still use the tools of science.
You are right, however, when you say there is no reason to assert the existence of God. Reason in the sense that your belief will not get you any more clarity. The problem with the "God" story is that it, like all creation stories, begs many more questions than it even sought to answer.

Well, your belief than humanity is the most powerful of intelligence is something many of the main religions tried to assert as well. Judeo-christian religions all establish a hierarchy of intelligence, putting God and his angels above humanity, and then humanity above all else. I think, if scientific tools of evolution have me anything it is that humans are not more intelligent in any conventional sense. Animals do much the same things as we do. The only two differences are firstly, we can control matter, that is to say, make tools. Secondly, our neo-cortex is more complex. This doesn't mean our language is actually more special than the chirping of a bird, nor more intelligent (in that intelligence is a measure of knowledge which in term is an understanding of the ultimate realities of existence). The human animal merely can relate more sounds to objects. We, as language using organisms, can interpret a wider variety of audio stimuli, but there is nothing to suggest that human language is getting at something more real, more intrinsic than say, a lion's roar... which is communicating information to other animals in a less specific detailed way.
One of the processes, for me, involved in being an atheist is de-divinizing as much as possible, religion first, but science, humanity, language, and culture too.

Is it not possible that human beings think in terms of creation because we are organism that can create things from other things? I'd say, the reason we look for a creator is because we are creators and it is our way of coping with our environment/existence. When they say God was made in man's likeness... well more over God's properties resemble the ideals of the properties of man. We are powerful, God is all powerful, we have knowledge, God knows everything, we create computers, God creates existence. Its a series of projections, us projecting ourselves unto a canvas called God. God, in the judeo-christian sense and in the deist sense, is truly inessential to understanding the clockwork universe. While surely the clockwork universe begs some questions.... like who got the gears in motions... but it is not ever the case that by answering that question does one begin to better understand the mechanisms of the clock.
So, in terms of your computer example. An alien finds a computer made by humanity. His goal is to understand how that computer works. Him knowing where it came from is inessential to that quest.

Well many human beings believe in companionship that only comes from God, but suppose whoever and and whatever that is does not require humanity to be companions? I'll put it to you another way though , suppose life is merely a bizarre accident of nature ,that only the vast network of stars ,black holes
rocky & gassy planets and all the other strange stuff we have seen when accessing what modern stargazers see all the time,what if that is the normal state of things, and we are but accidental by- products? It wouldn't matter much then if we had a god or morality in civilization ,right? I mean consider what the Chariots of the Gods' author tried to tell us in his theory. that we did go through some evolutionary process ,that what made us possible was some strange bombardment of the earth by life-seeding material,ice comets, plants and primitive bacteria, all of which has unknown points of origin. Making sense of it is not the same as replicating it. I don't want to consider my true insignificance on the grand universal scene, but I ponder that maybe we mean nothing to any but each other, and once the sun dies taking every thing on this little rock out, nobody will mourn the demise ,and no spirit world exists to collect us in an afterlife. Even I doubt the Deist Benjamin Franklin ,who supposes his creator will return his body back to him in some improved form.
I say even if that happens LOL nobody least of all BEN will know it was ever Benjamin Franklin. But this is precisely why atheism sucks so bad , it screams at me ,this is all you are ,don't get too used to it ,it will vanish.

__________________
America has no distinct criminal class excepting maybe Congress
MARK TWAIN

James Otis of Massachusetts on Parliament
1768 :A parcel of button-makers ,pin-makers, horse jockeys,gamesters, pensioners,pimps, and whoremasters.

sic semper tyrannis

The truth isn't about feelings. I would like to think that unicorns would exist, too.

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"The world is my country, to do good is my religion."
-Thomas Paine

I was trying to convey that either through Thomas Paine being ignorant or not having the words like synagogue and mosque to describe the non Christian houses of worship he simply described it as church. I on the other hand joked to the effect he could have used words like whorehouse, tavern,and opium den ,and still the message would get through, I am amazed that this was not your point of contention .LOL But my life has been crazy for me lately so in both instances I apologize. And so I do not have to rewrite this to others I offer apology to all and will try to restrain myself more on this thread. I don't wish to be so hostile on this thread that I scare away the deists and atheists who joined in. I already alienated the Christians too much all over AWE. I should cut em some slack too.

__________________
America has no distinct criminal class excepting maybe Congress
MARK TWAIN

James Otis of Massachusetts on Parliament
1768 :A parcel of button-makers ,pin-makers, horse jockeys,gamesters, pensioners,pimps, and whoremasters.

sic semper tyrannis

About my Avatar, it is a picture of my antihero,from HBO's Rome ,the actor is the guy who plays Marcus Junius Brutus (Antihero) Brutus is my Antihero because he destroyed Julius Caesar March 15 44?BC He was allegedly a tyrant
But to whom ? Historians said the Senate to whom Brutus had recently been elected, feared that Caesar would disrupt the patrician-politician system of that Era and thus tyrannize thus profitable status quo. But this already was possible because he as a military general entered Rome in full battle gear with troops ,a known tradition violation,to all Romans. He then assumed a role before the Senate as an Emperor ,but used language nearer to chief tribune in describing it.
This was intolerable to the Senate as Rome at the time had no concept as we do of a President. Just Emperors and Tyrants. Caesar was loved by the common citizenry but all opinions at the time was that they would despise him as time wore on. This too may be an uncertain conclusion. In any case I view Brutus' action as an error but admire him for the raw courage to act. A rather primitive form of government. Rome was due to experience all sorts of leadership anyhow. It was in their savage nature and of the city they built.
Anyway that's the story on my avatar.

__________________
America has no distinct criminal class excepting maybe Congress
MARK TWAIN

James Otis of Massachusetts on Parliament
1768 :A parcel of button-makers ,pin-makers, horse jockeys,gamesters, pensioners,pimps, and whoremasters.

sic semper tyrannis

"meaning" is an atribute of language. Cat means the particular animal it is referencing. Likewise, meaning, it not so special, so divine, as to operate in a fashion where meaning takes on SIGNIFICANCE. Being alone, or insignificant in the grand scale is not something Deism is going to prevent, only encourage. It is a theistic perspective to see something sad and lonely about a godless world, a sadness that prevents people like yourself from calling themselves atheist. Its comfort food. The thing about a godless world, is that its what you deal with on a daily basis anyways. God isn't ever doing anything to make you feel more special, that for sure, in fact, aren't we constantly reminded of our insignificance? If you REALLY want to get over that fear caused by this line of questioning, you have to readjust your idea of meaning, change your vocabulary, and stop thinking contextually like a theist. We all go to sleep at night and enter the unknown world of dreams, but religion is equivalent to a child bringing a stuffed animal with them to bed. Though, once in dream land, that stuffed animal wont even be around.

Well, so what if it helps me to have more inner strength to have a god in tow?
What do atheists have?? Until some of you posted in this thread ,I could not say
I ever met a Happy atheist ,and really I still don't see it.

__________________
America has no distinct criminal class excepting maybe Congress
MARK TWAIN

James Otis of Massachusetts on Parliament
1768 :A parcel of button-makers ,pin-makers, horse jockeys,gamesters, pensioners,pimps, and whoremasters.

sic semper tyrannis