..Philo expresseth, in very strong terms, his belief of a
Deity, such as he represents him. He even thanks this Being,
or Mind, or Thought, that atheists are very rare. And,
notwithstanding his love of singular argument, he professeth
to pay to him profound adoration. P. 232. But, as Philo's
declarations upon this subject are contradictory, I
construct his notions most favourably, when I consider him
as excluding a Deity from the universe.
For Ogilvie, Hume is involved in double concealment. First, he
conceals his views behind the veil of the character of Philo.
Second, Philo himself is concealing his true views by making
empty concessions toward God's existence. Ogilvie's discussion of
Philo's concealment is particularly relevant in view of the 20th
century commentators, noted above, who take Philo's concessions
as sincere.
Ogilvie continues that, for Philo, the options for believing
in the creation of the universe are between "a blind nature" or
"an Omnipotent Tyrant, having neither wisdom, justice, goodness,
nor any perfection." Ogilvie argues that it would please us "much
better to think that this world was formed by a fortuitous
concourse of atoms... rather than to view it as framed by an
intelligent Mind to be an immense Lazar-house, crowded with the
victims of disease...." Given Philo's view of the intelligent
mind, Ogilvie asks that we
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