David Hume 
Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion 

Originally published in 1779, ‘Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion’ is a philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. 



In ‘Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion’ David Hume explores whether religious belief can be rational. Because Hume is an
empiricist (i.e. someone who thinks that all knowledge comes through experience), he thinks that a belief is rational only if it is sufficiently supported by experiential evidence. So the question is really, is there enough evidence in the world to allow us to infer an infinitely good, wise, powerful, perfect God? Hume does not ask whether we can rationally prove that God exists, but rather whether we can rationally come to any conclusions about God’s nature. He asserts that the first question is beyond doubt; the latter is initially undecided.



Hume presents three characters, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes, each of whom represent a different position debating the nature of God’s existence.