Between Protestant Orthodoxy and Rationalism: Fundamental Articles in the Early Career of Jean LeClerc

Pierre Bayle and Richard Simon: toleration, natural law, and the Old Testament

“…The debate essentially broke down along confessional lines. 94 Simon believed that the evolution of the text of the Old Testament confirmed the Roman Catholic position on Sacred Tradition. 95 In his Histoire critique du Vieux Testament, he contended that Israel was a theocratic state, in which the kings were merely vice-regents of Yahweh.…”

“…Thus, despite the rise of confessionalism, such an ecclesiological approach was widespread amongst Protestants, ranging from the Reformed Orthodoxy of Francis Turretin (1623Turretin ( -1687 to the Remonstrant and biblical critic Jean Le Clerc (1657-1736). 5 Even the ardent Calvinist Pierre Jurieu (1637-1713) wrote that the invisible church extended beyond Presbyterians to include members from other churches, even including Romans Catholics, who Jurieu argued were nevertheless governed by the anti-Christ. 6 Framed in this way, toleration was meant to include various groups of 'orthodox' Christians, who believed in the fundamentals of faith but disagreed over principles that were indifferent to salvation.…”

“…As Simon used textual critical insights to argue for the contrareformatio position, Le Clerc employed them to advocate for an expansive version of the Protestant notion of adiaphora. 100 He rejected Simon's theory of inspired public scribes, arguing that there is insufficient evidence to warrant such an extravagant claim. 101 Following in the footsteps of the Remonstrant theologians Jacobus Johannes Batelier (1593-1672) and Hugo Grotius (1583-1645), he likewise argued that Scripture was only inspired in regards to essential matters pertaining to salvation.…”

“…101 Following in the footsteps of the Remonstrant theologians Jacobus Johannes Batelier (1593-1672) and Hugo Grotius (1583-1645), he likewise argued that Scripture was only inspired in regards to essential matters pertaining to salvation. 102 Le Clerc thereby distinguished between the mere 'words' of Scripture, and the inspired 'things' of Scripture relating to matters of salvation, 103 In so doing, he sought to discourage theologians from placing too much emphasis on sophisticated doctrinal distinctives based on the complex exegesis of the grammar, diction, and semantics of the text. 104 The Old Testament textual transmission has variants, but it is nonetheless historically reliable, and inspiration comes from the historical narrative rather than the jots and tittles of the Hebrew text.…”

“…Indeed, evidence indicates that Bayle was profoundly immersed in this dispute. In 1685, the year before Bayle's Commentaire, Le Clerc published his Sentimens in order to refute Simon, 109 and Bayle's publisher, Reiner Leers, published a fourth edition of Simon's Histoire critique du Vieux Testament. 110 In a recent article, Jean Bernier has observed that Bayle had heard about Simon's work as early as 1678; however, he was likely unable to read it due to its quick suppression.…”