Abstract: [The Jansenist Pierre Nicole died in 1695 giving Bayle the opportunity to include in the Dictionary's first edition an appreciation of his work. The article is, I believe, a landmark in political theory insofar as it shows, a century before Kant, that Bayle foresaw an evolving role for the philosophe théologien. For ecclesiastics were apt to believe that their judgements concerning heresy should, as under a once-united church, remain binding on every Christian. Bayle's view, hardly grasped by those whom he challenges, was that a theologian had no more claim than any lay thinker to escape assessment by peers in the republic of letters. When Bayle refers to a ‘death of controversy’ he is mocking the prediction of ‘certain persons’ for whom the outcome of such respect for religious ‘error’ would supposedly be religious apathy.]
Publication Year: 2000
Publication Date: 2000-08-03
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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