Natural Theology

Alexander Crombie (1762-1840) was born in Aberdeen and originally trained for the ministry, before running a private school and writing on such diverse topics as philosophy, education and Latin grammar. In his first published work, "An Essay on Philosophical Necessity" (1793), he defends the determinism of Priestley and Hume and attacks the libertarian views of Price, Reid and James Gregory. He returns to this theme in "Letters from Dr. James Gregory...with Replies" (1819), also published by Thoemmes Press. This final major philosophical work is equally rare and important. In it Crombie launches a major attack on philosophical atheism and defends traditional proofs for God's existence. Throughout, David Hume is his principal adversary, although he argues that Hume was an athiest of convenience, not conviction. This work's parameters match up closely with what we today call "philosophy of religion", and this sole edition of Crombie's work is among the first to stay within those bounds. As such it is a important work for the better reading of key subjects and thinkers within the Scottish Enlightenment.