Francis Wollaston (philosopher)

Francis Wollaston (1694 – 1774) was an English clergyman and philosopher known primarily for his work The Religion of Nature Delineated (1722). He served as a prebendary of Llandaff Cathedral.

Wollaston's philosophical work focuses on ethics and natural law. He argued that moral judgments are based on truth, and that actions are morally good or bad depending on whether they assert a truth or a falsehood. He believed that humans have an innate capacity to discern truth and therefore understand moral obligations. Wollaston's epistemology draws from rationalism and emphasizes the importance of reason in determining moral principles. He believed that moral goodness is a natural consequence of understanding and acting in accordance with truth and reason, as dictated by the "Religion of Nature." His work was influential in the development of deism and natural religion during the Enlightenment. Wollaston rejected revealed religion in favor of a moral system grounded in natural law discoverable through reason.