Although he was a celebrated playwright during the 18th century, modern English
speakers remember Joseph Addison for his perfection of the English essay as a genre in
his magazine, The Spectator. The Spectator would publish short papers
on philosophical, theological, or other topics meant to start lively discussions among its
readership. Addison left The Evidences of the Christian Religion, along with other
essays, unfinished upon his death. What he did complete, however, addresses some of the
very same topics other theologians and philosophers had addressed. Addison describes
the attributes of God as derived from rational argumentation, he promotes the praise of
God, and finally, he defends the authority of Scripture and the immortality of the soul
from the popular deistic philosophies of his day.