Voltaire – Part 1

The famous French philosopher known to the world as Voltaire was born in November of 1694 and was named François-Marie Arouet. He became popular as a deistic writer (producing more than 2,000 books and pamphlets) and for his witty critique of Christianity. Voltaire was well known for his railing against the Bible: “The subject is now exhausted: the cause is decided for those who are willing to avail themselves of their reason and their lights, and people will no more read this [Bible].” It is said that he confidently predicted that Christianity and the Bible would be relics of history within 100 years of his death. He also championed secular theories of history at the expense of the Genesis Flood. When the news of the day reported the discovery of turbot and pike fish fossils in the Alps, the famous skeptic went out of his way to deny that this was evidence of a Flood. He stated, “…it is much more natural to suppose, that these fish had been brought thither by some traveller, who, finding them spoiled, threw them away, and in the process of time, they became petrified…” This preposterous account was concocted because the organic remains of marine creatures on the tops of mountains was compelling evidence of the global deluge. Voltaire also championed old earth ideas that would later become foundational for evolutionary theorists. Next month we will explore the end of Voltaire’s life and how things turned out for his prediction about the Bible.

Posted on June 1, 2019 by dwoetzel.