natural religion

American  

noun

1. religion based on principles derived solely from reason and the study of nature.

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Etymology

Origin of natural religion

First recorded in 1665–75

Example Sentences

Blake loathed the deistic, natural religion associated with Newton and Bacon.

From The Guardian • Aug. 17, 2010

"Islam is a sort of natural religion for underdogs," says Ziauddin Sardar, a British scholar of Islam, "and that's one reason why Afro-Caribbean people have found its message very attractive."

From Time Magazine Archive

In the profound works of Dr. Harris, entitled “The Pre-Adamite Earth,” and “Man Primeval,” the connections of geology and revelation are briefly but ably treated, and also its connection with natural religion.

From The Religion of Geology and Its Connected Sciences by Hitchcock, Edward

In Virgil we are apparently intended to see the symbol of what Dante calls philosophy, what we should rather call natural religion; Beatrice standing for theology, or rather revealed religion.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 9 "Dagupan" to "David" by Various

A natural religion, on the other hand, was not, he thought, the one universal religion of every clime and age, but rather the spontaneous development of the national conscience varying in varying circumstances.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 2 "Hearing" to "Helmond" by Various