The Religion of Nature Delineated

London: Printed for James and John Knapton at the Crown in St. Paul's Church Yard, 1731. The Fifth Edition. Hardcover. fair. Lg. octavo. 219,[6]pp. Bound in 19th century three-quarter calf over marbled boards. Modern endpapers. Title-page engraving. Decorative initial, head- and tailpieces. In 1722, William Wollaston (1659-1724) published "The Religion of Nature Delineated," which falls between Clarke's "Discourse of the Unchangeable Obligations of Natural Religion" and Joseph Butler's "Sermon." It was a work of constructive deism rather than critical deism. Wollaston starts with the assumption that religion and morality are identical, and labors to show that religion is "the pursuit of happiness by the practice of truth and reason." By 1746, the popular work was issued in a seventh edition. Heavy age wear and abrasions on binding. Front board almost detached. Part of backstrip missing. Title-page chipped around edges. Outer margins and bottom edge on verso of title-page and page 4 repaired with modern paper, water staining to front of same leaves. Page 5 expertly repaired at outer margin. Otherwise interior in good+ condition, binding fair. (Inventory #: 26199)