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'''David Hume''' (1711-1776) was a Scottish philosopher and historian who promoted empiricism and [[naturalism]] over [[spiritual]]ity.  However, the ''Stanford Encylopedia of Philosophy'' states the following regarding Hume: "Hume's own contemporaries were happy to label Hume an “[[atheism|atheist]]”, our own contemporaries are more divided on this issue."<ref>http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/hume-religion/#10</ref>  He was [[skeptic]]al towards [[religion]], and his major philosophical works include ''A Treatise on Human Nature'', ''An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals'', and ''Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion''.  He also wrote an attack against the occurrence [http://www1.bartleby.com/37/3/14.html of miracles], though it is now believed to be somewhat [[tautology| tautological]] and also published the wide-ranging ''History of England'', which covered the history of [[Great Britain]] from the time of [[Julius Caesar]] to 1688. Many of his quotes have survived to this day, including "You can tell what is inside a person's soul by what comes out if it."

'''David Hume''' (1711-1776) was a [[Scottish]] [[philosopher]] and [[historian]] who promoted empiricism and [[naturalism]] over [[spiritual]]ity.  However, the ''Stanford Encylopedia of Philosophy'' states the following regarding Hume: "Hume's own contemporaries were happy to label Hume an “[[atheism|atheist]]”, our own contemporaries are more divided on this issue."<ref>http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/hume-religion/#10</ref>  He was [[skeptic]]al towards [[religion]], and his major philosophical works include ''A Treatise on Human Nature'', ''An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals'', and ''Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion''.  He also wrote an attack against the occurrence [http://www1.bartleby.com/37/3/14.html of miracles], though it is now believed to be somewhat [[tautology| tautological]] and also published the wide-ranging ''History of England'', which covered the history of [[Great Britain]] from the time of [[Julius Caesar]] to 1688. Many of his quotes have survived to this day, including "You can tell what is inside a person's soul by what comes out if it."

Hume has been criticized by many theists for his atheistic approach, and [[Charles Darwin]] declared Hume to have been his central influence, as did "Darwin's bulldog," [[Thomas Henry Huxley]]. {{fact}} Furthermore, Hume was denied several academic positions - such as the coveted chair of moral philosophy at the University of Edinburg - likely because he was so commonly assumed to be irreligious. This did not in the least, however, diminish his character in the opinion of [[Adam Smith]] (author of <i>The Wealth of Nations</i> and the father of both classical economics and market capitalism). Smith held Hume in such high esteem that, upon his death in 1776, he wrote the following to his friend William Strahan:

Hume has been criticized by many theists for his atheistic approach, and [[Charles Darwin]] declared Hume to have been his central influence, as did "Darwin's bulldog," [[Thomas Henry Huxley]]. {{fact}} Furthermore, Hume was denied several academic positions - such as the coveted chair of moral philosophy at the University of Edinburg - possibly because he was so commonly assumed to be irreligious and much of morality was considered to come from God. One admirer of Hume was [[Adam Smith]] (author of <i>The Wealth of Nations</i> and the father of both classical [[economics]] and [[market capitalism]]). Upon Hume's death in 1776, Smith wrote the following to his friend William Strahan:

"Upon the whole, I have always considered him [Hume] both in his lifetime and since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, as perhaps the nature of human frailty will permit."

"Upon the whole, I have always considered him [Hume] both in his lifetime and since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, as perhaps the nature of human frailty will permit."

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[[category:philosophers]]

[[category:Philosophers]]

[[Category:Scottish People]]

[[Category:Scottish People]]