John Leland (1691–1766) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...

minister and author of

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

works. Leland was born in

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

, on 18 October 1691. He was educated in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

and went into the ministry there. He was ordained co-pastor to Nathanael Weld (1660–1730) at New Row Presbyterian Church, Dublin, on 16 December 1716. The church moved to

Eustace Street Eustace Street is a street in the Temple Bar area of Dublin, Ireland. Location Eustace Street runs from Wellington Quay (near Millennium Bridge) to Dame Street, with junctions with Essex Street East and Curved Street. At the halfway poin ...

, Dublin in 1728. Nathanael Weld's son Isaac (1710-1778), who was named after Nathanael's friend

Sir Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the g ...

, was ordained in Eustace Street in 1732 as Leland's colleague. Isaac Weld and

Charles Richard Weld Charles Richard Weld (1813–1869) was an English writer, known as a historian of the Royal Society. Life Born at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in August 1813, he was the son of Isaac Weld (d. 1824) of Dublin, by his second marriage of 1812, to Luc ...

, the writers, were the grandsons of the minister Isaac and thus the great-grandsons of Nathanael. Leland received his

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

degree from the

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

in 1739. His main interest was in opposing

deism Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin ''deus'', meaning " god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge, and asserts that empirical reason and observation o ...

. He critiqued proponents of deist ideas, such as

Matthew Tindal Matthew Tindal (1657 – 16 August 1733) was an eminent English deist author. His works, highly influential at the dawn of the Enlightenment, caused great controversy and challenged the Christian consensus of his time. Life Tindal was baptised ...

. He is remembered as the author of ''A view of the principal deistical writers that have appeared in England in the last and present century: with observations upon them, and some account of the answers that have been published against them: in several letters to a friend.'' (1754–1755) 2 vols. (London: Printed for B. Dod) which went through many editions well into the 19th century. ''A View of the Principal Deistical Writers'' was first published in 1754 and subsequently expanded twice. It is the fullest contemporary treatment of the literature of the deist controversy. Leland gives very detailed reviews of the works of the leading deists, and of the responses that these works provoked. At least one chapter is devoted to each of the following:

Peter Annet Peter Annet (169318 January 1769) was an English deist and early freethinker. Early life and work Annet is said to have been born at Liverpool. A schoolmaster by profession, he became prominent owing to his attacks on orthodox theologians, as well ...

, Charles Blount,

Thomas Chubb Thomas Chubb (29 September 16798 February 1747) was a lay English Deist writer born near Salisbury. He saw Christ as a divine teacher, but held reason to be sovereign over religion. He questioned the morality of religions, while defending Chris ...

, Anthony Collins, Lord Herbert of Cherbury, Thomas Morgan,

Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...

John Toland John Toland (30 November 167011 March 1722) was an Irish rationalist philosopher and freethinker, and occasional satirist, who wrote numerous books and pamphlets on political philosophy and philosophy of religion, which are early expressions o ...

and Thomas Woolston. Six chapters are about

David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" '' Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment ph ...

's views on religion, and approximately half of the work deals with Bolingbroke. It was said of him that, "whatever his early opinions may have been, ebecame an

Arian Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...

before his death".The Bible Christian, Volume VI, 3rd Series, P136
/ref> The Eustace Street Meeting House where he ministered for 50 years, was a Presbyterian/Unitarian Congtregation, eventually merging with other Unitarian groups in Dublin.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leland, John 1691 births 1766 deaths English Christian theologians People from Wigan English Presbyterian ministers Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Irish non-subscribing Presbyterian ministers