Why not deism?

[mordant]

I can't figure out how one would tell the difference between an absent god, an indifferent god, and a non-existent god.

Deism is the belief in a non-interventionist god -- just another way, really, of saying "absent" or "not present". If god does not intervene or interact, then what is its relevance to the one who believes in such a being? It's like "marrying" a spouse who you can't see, who no one has ever seen, who never speaks to you or interacts with you in any way. It is just a non-starter.

If the universe runs according to natural laws, does it matter if those laws are sustained by an ineffable being, or just ARE? They will work exactly the same either way.

Deism is the opposite of Fideism in that Deism tries to figure out the existence and nature of god from reason and personal experience rather than from some imagined revelation. How is this different from what any atheist does, other than that atheists conclude from the deafening silence that god cannot be inferred to exist?

In my view, all deism does is allow a person to cling to some tenuous hold on the notion of a supreme being because it avoids some sort of perceived discomfort in letting go of the notion. Since I'm already past that, and it wasn't so bad at all -- in fact, it was a net positive -- I have no use for deism as a concept.

I agree that deism is based entirely on rational efforts. When you say "deafening silence" is that the lack of a good argument?

I had more immediately in mind the lack of evidence, interaction, data, feedback, OR valid argument.

What would the discomfort be, or is that simply the vague hope that this isn't all there is to be for us as individuals? There is a kind of sedative comfort in the idea of annihilation, too. I think that's why Nietzsche's eternal return is so disturbing. That's my idea of hell!

It would be different for different people, I'm sure, but I would image that for most it is some form of that "vague hope" that "this isn't all there is". But be careful what you wish for: "something more" might be that dreaded "eternal return"!

I have personally found the prospect of annihilation FAR more comforting than the concept of eternal life. To the extent I suffer or am simply disappointed with aspects of life, that it has an endpoint and is finite helps me to endure it with patience. To the extent I find value and therefore subjective meaning and purpose, my lack of total ability to chose the time and manner of my death isn't a fantastic aspect of life, but the awareness that even positive life events gradually lose their luster leads me to understand that here in my seventh decade, maybe I'm starting to approach that situation and it's best not to linger past my "best used by" date.

Thinking of it somewhat differently, we wonder why things are the way they are. What does it all mean? Deism allows for some meaning or reason, even if we'll never know.

I'm not sure how it provides meaning or reason. Maybe you can help me to understand how it would do that. The only thing I can think of is the notion that there was at least an original creative purpose and intent to existence, even if it's all running on automatic since. But that doesn't change what it is like to be human, just because some being decided to set it in motion doesn't change what it is to experience it, or provide externally bestowed meaning or purpose to experiencing it.

Far as I can tell, life means whatever we want it to mean. A lot of elusive concepts we chase aren't really things-in-themselves. Meaning and purpose are just a subjective emotional state, a response to having enough value. If you consistently seek and embrace things that you find valuable and let go of things you don't find valuable, eventually you have enough value that it feel subjectively like "meaning" and "purpose" -- simply because you look forward to enjoy said value each day. I don't see how an ineffable, unrelatable, indifferent deity as a starting-point for all that makes any difference. How is that different, practically speaking, from existence being eternal or cyclic or a simulation or whatever else you want to speculate that it is?