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Deism teaches the watchmaker analogy, and Catholicism teaches about the gift of free will and the natural order of things. Those seem to have a lot in common.

For instance:

According to Catholic Tradition - Might God apologize for some things after we die? Or will He simply remind us of things like:

  • "I gave people free will, and free will meant that I could not intervene. Some people chose evil, and that evil hurt some good people. It is what it is."
  • "I set the world in motion. That is all. Natural disasters are a scientific phenonemon; they aren't something that I specifically or intentionally created."
  • "Some good people died young because they fell victim to viruses, bacteria, plagues, and/or bad genes. Again, it's all science, and the natural order. I had nothing to do with it."

So does Catholicism share some beliefs with Deism?

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    Deism just means the adherent believes there is a God. Catholicism believes there is a god. But that's true of Protestantism, Orthodoxy, and even Mormonism. For that matter, even Muslims and Hindus are Deists. And each of them believe that God allows man to choose within limits. Even a Calvinist would say that. Sadly, this question shows a painful ignorance about Deism, and therefore is just flawed from the outset. I don't mean to be unkind, but you need a better understanding of your terms. – Affable Geek Jan 27 '15 at 1:55
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    @AffableGeek: Deism just means the adherent believes there is a God. No, it doesn't "just" mean that. It means more than that. Please click on my Wikipedia Deism link for more information. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism – Jim G. Jan 27 '15 at 1:58
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    It historically is a belief in a God without special revelation. All Christians believe in special revelation, but that is a difference. I was pointing out the commonality. I'm aware of both the historic and contemporary nuance. – Affable Geek Jan 27 '15 at 1:59
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    Both believe in a god obviously. – Flimzy Jan 27 '15 at 3:29
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One of the core distinctives of deism is that its adherents do not believe that the deity either gives special revelations or performs miracles. As both of these are major parts of Catholicism, I don't think it makes any real sense to say that deism is embedded inside Catholicism. Instead they just share some beliefs, such as human rationality and that the world normal functions without miracles.

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There is no theological relationship between Catholicism and Deism. The only possible metaphysical relationship that Catholicism shares with Deism-(or that Deism shares with Catholicism), is the fact that both believe in a singular Deity.

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