Anthony Collins (21 June 1676 O.S.13 December 1729 O.S.) was an English

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and

essayist An essay ( ) is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a Letter (message), letter, a term paper, paper, an article (publishing), article, a pamphlet, and a s ...

, notable for being one of the early proponents of

Deism Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin term '' 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 ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Life and writings

Collins was born in Heston, near

Hounslow Hounslow ( ) is a large suburban district of West London, England, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 14 metropolitan cen ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, the son of lawyer Henry Collins (1646/7–1705) and Mary (née Dineley). He had two sisters: Anne Collins (born 1678), who married Henry Lovibond (born 1675), and Mary Collins (born 1680), who married Edward Lovibond (1675–1737), a merchant and Director of the East India Company. Mary and Edward's son was the poet Edward Lovibond. Collins was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, and studied law at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

. The most interesting episode of his life was his intimacy with

John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) – 28 October 1704 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.)) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of the Enlightenment thi ...

, who in his letters speaks of him with affection and admiration. In 1715 he settled in

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, where he held the offices of justice of the peace and deputy-lieutenant, which he had previously held in Middlesex. He died at his house in

Harley Street Harley Street is a street in Marylebone, Central London, named after Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.freethinkers. The imperturbable courtesy of his style is in striking contrast to the violence of his opponents; and, in spite of his unorthodoxy, he was neither an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

nor an agnostic. In his own words, "Ignorance is the foundation of atheism, and freethinking the cure of it" (''Discourse of Freethinking'', 105).

''Essay concerning the Use of Reason''

His first notable work was his ''Essay concerning the Use of Reason in Propositions the Evidence whereof depends on Human Testimony'' (1707), in which he rejected the distinction between "above reason" and "contrary to reason", and demanded that revelation should conform to man's natural ideas of God. Like all his works, it was published anonymously, although the identity of the author was never long concealed.

''A Discourse of Freethinking''

Six years later appeared his chief work, ''A Discourse of Freethinking, occasioned by the Rise and Growth of a Sect called Freethinkers'' (1713). Notwithstanding the ambiguity of its title, and the fact that it attacks the priests of all churches without moderation, it contends for the most part, at least explicitly, for no more than must be admitted by every Protestant. Freethinking is a right which cannot and must not be limited, for it is the only means of attaining a knowledge of truth, it essentially contributes to the well-being of society, and is not only permitted but enjoined by the Bible. In fact the first introduction of Christianity and the success of all missionary enterprise involve freethinking (in its etymological sense) on the part of those converted. In England this essay, which was regarded and treated as a plea for

, caused a great sensation, eliciting several replies, from among others William Whiston, Bishop Hare, Bishop Benjamin Hoadly, and Richard Bentley, who, under the signature of "Phileleutherus Lipsiensis", roughly handles certain arguments carelessly expressed by Collins, but triumphs chiefly by an attack on the trivial points of scholarship, his own pamphlet being by no means faultless in this very respect.

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

also, being satirically referred to in the book, made it the subject of a caricature.

''Discourse of the Grounds and Reasons of the Christian Religion''

In 1724, Collins published the treatise ''Discourse of the Grounds and Reasons of the Christian Religion'', with ''An Apology for Free Debate and Liberty of Writing'' prefixed. Ostensibly it is written in opposition to Whiston's attempt to show that the books of the

Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...

did originally contain prophecies of events in the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

story, but that these had been eliminated or corrupted by the Jews, and to prove that the fulfilment of prophecy by the events of Christ's life is all "secondary, secret, allegorical, and mystical," since the original and literal reference is always to some other fact. Since, further, according to him the fulfilment of prophecy is the only valid proof of Christianity, he thus secretly aims a blow at Christianity as a revelation. The canonicity of the New Testament he ventures openly to deny, on the ground that the canon could be fixed only by men who were inspired. No less than thirty-five answers were directed against this book; the most noteworthy of which were those of Bishop Edward Chandler, Arthur Sykes and

Samuel Clarke Samuel Clarke (11 October 1675 – 17 May 1729) was an English philosopher and Anglican cleric. He is considered the major British figure in philosophy between John Locke and George Berkeley. Clarke's altered, Nontrinitarian revision of the 1 ...

. To these, but with special reference to the work of Chandler, which maintained that a number of prophecies were literally fulfilled by Christ, Collins replied with his ''Scheme of Literal Prophecy Considered'' (1727). An appendix contends against Whiston that the book of Daniel was forged in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes.

Necessitarianism

In philosophy, Collins takes a foremost place as a defender of necessitarianism. His brief ''Inquiry Concerning Human Liberty'' (1717) has not been excelled, at all events in its main outlines, as a statement of the determinist standpoint. He was attacked in an elaborate treatise by

, in whose system the freedom of will is made essential to religion and morality. During Clarke's lifetime, fearing perhaps being branded as an enemy of religion and morality, Collins made no reply, but in 1729 he published an answer, entitled ''Liberty and Necessity''.

Other works

Besides these works he wrote * ''A Letter to Mr Dodwell'', arguing that the soul may be material, and, secondly, that if the soul be immaterial it does not follow, as Clarke had contended, that it is immortal. * ''Vindication of the Divine Attributes'' (1710) * ''Priestcraft in Perfection'' (1709), in which he asserts that the clause "the Church ... Faith" in the twentieth of the Thirty-nine Articles was inserted by fraud. Collins became renowned as one of the best read men in England. He was a

bibliophile A bookworm or bibliophile is an individual who loves and frequently reads or collects books. Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. Bibliophiles may have large, specialized book collections. They may highly value old editions, aut ...

and book collector who amassed one of the largest private libraries of the time, consisting of some 6,906 books on all subjects, but particularly favoring works on history, theology, and philosophy. It has been argued (see Jacobson, "The England Libertarian Heritage") that Collins was the unknown author of ten of "The Independent Whig" essays.

Marriages and children

Collins married first Martha Child (1677–1703) a daughter of Sir Francis Child MP (1642–1713) and Elizabeth, (1652–1720). They had two sons both of whom died young, the eldest in infancy, the second was Anthony Collins (1723); and two daughters: Elizabeth Collins (born ) who, in 1738, married Walter Cary; and Martha Collins (1744) who, in 1741, married Robert Fairfax, 7th Lord Fairfax of Cameron (1706–1793). His second marriage was to Elizabeth Wrottesley (born ), a daughter of Walter Wrottesley, 3rd Baronet Wrottesley (1659–1712) and Eleanora, (1661–1692).

Notes

References

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External links

* * *
A discourse of free-thinking
1713
Priestcraft in Perfection
1710
A philosophical inquiry concerning human liberty
1717
The scheme of literal prophecy considered
1727
A discourse of the grounds and reasons of the Christian religion
1737 {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Anthony 1676 births 1729 deaths Alumni of King's College, Cambridge British deists Deist philosophers English bibliophiles English book and manuscript collectors English essayists 18th-century English philosophers Freethought writers People educated at Eton College People from Heston Place of death missing