Most of the I find on the Internet about Deism is nonsense.  How do you separate the nonsense from reality?  Here a few clues.

When an Internet site says that the Deist God is “Nature’s God” of the Declaration of Independence, that is nonsense.   If you dig into the history and meaning of that “Nature’s God” you will find that that is really the theist God.

When an Internet site says that Deism has to do with environmentalism, that is nonsense.  Deism is deeply tied to Naturalism as natural truth, as opposed to divinely revealed truth.  Deism is not about environment worship.

When an Internet site says that Deism is a religion or philosophy, that is nonsense.  Deism is a general category of beliefs, not a religion or philosophy.  Taosim is a form of Deism.  Classic Deism is Deism of course.  Rational theism is considered to be a form of Deism.  When someone says that Deism is a religion or philosophy, they are trying to promote their personal beliefs onto the world.  What they should be saying is that their own belief in God is a religion of philosophy.

When an Internet site says that Deism is about belief in God through reason, that is nonsense.  A lot, maybe most, Deists come to Deism through culture, or perhaps through their natural human tendency to be religious.  Again, the people who say these kinds of things are trying to impose their own beliefs onto the world.  Our understanding of natural rights and natural law comes through reason, and Deism is associated with natural rights and natural law.  I think that reasonists confuse Naturalism with Deism.  What they should be saying is that their own belief in God is based on their own reasoning.

When a site tries to draw on classic Deism as authoritative in the contemporary world, that is nonsense.  Classic Deism was always a category of similar beliefs, not a single belief.  Some sites pick and choose different statements from classic Deists and try to form a coherent ideology from those statements.  They seem to be trying to do the same thing the council of Nice did when they created the Bible.  Current culture determines what current Deism is, not the authors of web sites.  A credible web site looks to current culture first when trying to determine what Deism is, and is not.

Most of the authors of the nonsense sites, it seems to me, are people who are desperately seeking a religious path.  They don’t have that path and don’t know how to find it.  So they grasp at straws.  A few writers are just kooks.

The worst sites are full of misinformation, and don’t contribute to the betterment of society.  Among the worst sites for information on Deism, I would include  in no particular order (without links):

• World Union of Deists
• The Wikipedia entry on Deism
• Modern Deism
• All About Philosophy > Deism
• The Deist Alliance
• ReligiousTolerance.org > Deism
• E-text Virginia .edu > Dictionary of the History of Ideas > Deism
• Most online dictionaries and general encyclopedias.

Among the best sites for good information on Deism, I would include:

American Creation – One of the best.  It is well researched.  It contributes socially by addressing the philosophies and theologies of the American founders.

God’s Online Home – Draws on a lot of good resources.  Doesn’t try to define Deism for everyone.

Catholic Encyclopedia > Deism – Has a Catholic slant (surprise, surprise), but otherwise generally accurate info. 

Sullivan-County.com – A little radical, but at least the author did some homework.  Well researched.

The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy > English Deism – Some historical overview of Deism.

Temple of Reason – Some historical info.  Pretty good in general, but missing some points.

Deism and Its Relentless Attack on the Holy Trinity – A Lutheran apology by Allen K. Schroeder.  This article is meant as an attack on Deism, but it has some surprisingly good history on Deism and some good discussion on Deism and US politics.

The Ruins: Or Meditation on the Revolutions of Empires: and the Law of Nature – By Volney.  Sort of a Deist Book of Revelation.  Include an 18th century FAQ on Natural Law.

Common Ground on Ning – This doesn’t describe itself as a Deist site, but it is really is one.  This is as close to a contemporary Deism group as I’ve found on the Internet.

And, of course, Amorian.org

Other sites:

Positive Deism – Some of the info is questionable, but the forum is decent but kind of pointless. 

Deist.info – Sometimes tries to speak for all Deists.  Has some views from a few people that aren’t too radical.  It seems to be getting better as I check in on it from time to time.  Was recently in the list of worst sites.

Church of Nature’s God – Also improving over time.  Was recently in the list of worst sites.

Facebook Deism groups – Like most Internet forums, generally pointless, heavy on opinion and light on facts, but fun to participate in.

Stumble it!