Thomas Reid's Newtonianism
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Introduction
Isaac Newton's influence on Thomas Reid was considerable and unique. Except for a small number of disagreements (some made explicit by Reid and some not) Reid's loyalty to Newton never failed. Reid took Newton's physics to be a true account of the physical world, and he took Newton's philosophy of science to give a correct notion of the nature of empirical research, and he took the former to be a natural and unique outcome of the latter. This makes three useful notions of being a 'Newtonian'. Add to that, that Reid agreed generally with the Theism Newton expressed in the General Scholium which concludes his
Principia
, and that he most probably agreed with Boyle lecturers Richard Bentley, Clarke, and William Whiston, that Newton's physics supports Theism, and we have another two aspects of Reid's Newtonianism.