The Age of Reason

In the 1800s, both religion and science evoked wonder, but at times their interactions gave rise to conflict. 

Thomas Paine developed new ideas that complicated religious teachings. 

Revolutionary-era political activist Thomas Paine was fascinated with orreries, moving mechanical models of the solar system. In them he perceived a natural order that seemed a more perfect reflection of divine design than was suggested by the Bible. Even as he envisioned “every house of devotion a school of science,” critics accused him of attacking religion. 

Thomas Paine, 1793

Thomas Paine, 1793

Courtesy of Library of Congress

Willard Orrery
View object record

Orrery, around 1820

View object record
The Age of Reason; Being an Investigation of True and of  Fabulous Theology by Thomas Paine, first published in 1794

The Age of Reason; Being an Investigation of True and of  Fabulous Theology by Thomas Paine, first published in 1794

Courtesy of Smithsonian Libraries