There are several "flavors" of Deism, broad
categories with which Deists can identify. Since Deism is non-creedal,
the sub-categories are somewhat loose and subjectively named and
group. As we have said elsewhere, each Deist believes what he or she
chooses individually, but we can categorize and self-identify as one
of these types. The
Wikipedia Deism page lists several sub-categories of Deism.
Neo-classical Deism. Known by some as simply
Classical Deism. This is the contemporary form of Deism that is closest
to the English and early American Deists. The Neo-classical Deists I
know tend to think of God and His design as perfect. This form of Deism
is closer to the Deism of Thomas Paine. Some Neo-classical Deists are
more vocally critical of other religions than others. Again, definitions
of Deism are not carved in stone. Some sources I would consider
Neo-classical would be: Deism.com, the
Sullivan County Deism
site, God vs. the Bible
and Deist Reality.
Others might disagree with my categorizations.
Panendeism, Pandeism, and Process Deism. The
Panendeism.org site has
the best explanation of Pandeism, Panendeism, Integral Panendeism and
Process Deism, as well as how they relate to Deism and Pantheism. It
would be silly to just repeat that information here. You should
definitely give this site a visit. Panendeism.org is another member site
of the Deist Alliance.
Spiritual-Deism. There is a very active
Spiritual Deism
group on Yahoo! that I subscribe to and read from time to time. The
Spiritual Deists there are an interesting group. Spiritual-Deism is more
conservative than some other flavors of Deism. They do not believe in
Hell or punishment, and they have a number of folks interested in Norse
pagan traditions. Check them out!
Modern Deism. I don't think Modern Deism is
recognized as a formal sub-category of Deism, but I think that it could
qualify as one. The Modern Deism
site is a good expression of Modern Deism as a sub-category. Modern
Deism is less critical than Neo-classical Deism. Modern Deists tend to
believe in more of a transpersonal God. I cannot explain it here briefly
better than Joe does at Moderndeism.com. All the member sites of the
Deist Alliance could probably be considered forms of Modern Deism.
Other sub-categories? Wikipedia lists several more, but it is hard to
find out much about those sub-categories. There is a fledgling Pagan
Deism movement, and perhaps there are other branches growing, Deists
tend to be individualists. There are a number of Deist blogs, and I hope
to add more sub-categories here as I learn about them.