Introduction

Hume’s claims about theism and religion in general, as well as his apparent approval of true religion, involve various complications and ambiguities which have provoked contrasting interpretations. Alternatively to the negative reading (ironic, insincere interpretation) of Hume, the book studies and highlights the positive and constructive elements in Hume’s views on religion and theism. The book analyses Hume’s complex, sometimes underdeveloped ideas on true religion, and the relations between philosophy, religion, morality and society in his thought. For Hume, true religion is linked to philosophy, allied with minimal theism or indeterminate agnosticism—the former being the more reasonable interpretation. The book also reconstructs Hume’s views on moderated positive effects of religion in society and his proposal of how and why a state-church should be established and controlled by the government. Hume’s position is different from both liberals, who defend the separation between state and church, and the radical secularists, who wanted to abolish religion altogether. The title of this book refers to such a two-fold account by Hume: minimal theism for philosophers and a supervised church for the rest of society. The book sheds a new light on the important role of the notions of true religion in Hume and how this relates to various early modern positions on the role of religion in religion, society and philosophy.