 |
Infidels,
Freethinkers, Humanists, and Unbelievers |
Aikenhead,
Thomas (1678-1697) |
|
|
 |
| Thomas
Aikenhead was a Scottish student from Edinburgh, who was prosecuted
and executed on a charge of blasphemy. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aikenhead
was indicted in December 1696. The indictment read: "That ...
the prisoner had repeatedly maintained, in conversation, that theology
was a rhapsody of ill-invented nonsense, patched up partly of the
moral doctrines of philosophers, and partly of poetical fictions
and extravagant chimeras: That he ridiculed the holy scriptures,
calling the Old Testament Ezra's fables, in profane allusion to
Esop's Fables; That he railed on Christ, saying, he had learned
magick in Egypt, which enabled him to perform those pranks which
were called miracles: That he called the New Testament the history
of the imposter Christ; That he said Moses was the better artist
and the better politician; and he preferred Mahomet to Christ: That
the Holy Scriptures were stuffed with such madness, nonsense, and
contradictions, that he admired the stupidity of the world in being
so long deluded by them: That he rejected the mystery of the Trinity
as unworthy of resutation; and scoffed at the incarnation of Christ."
He
further predicted that Christianity would be "utterly extirpated"
by 1800.
The
case was prosecuted by the Lord Advocate, Sir James Stewart (grandfather
of the future Jacobite economist Steuart) who demanded the death
penalty to set an example to others who might otherwise express
such opinions in the future.
Aikenhead
pleaded for mercy during the hearing and attempted to recant his
views but was sentenced to death by hanging. On the gallows, he
stated his belief that moral laws were devised by humans rather
than divine. |
|
| |
|
|
|
The information on which this page
is based has been drawn from research on the Internet. For example, much use has been made of Wikipedia.org,
to whom we are greatly indebted. Since the information recording process at Wikipedia
is prone to changes in the data, please check at Wikipedia for current information. If you find
something on this page to be in error, please contact
us. |
|
