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'''Voltaire''' (pen name of François-Marie Arouet) (1694-1778) was a leading [[French]] [[philosopher]] in the [[Enlightenment]], advocating freedom everywhere and emphasizing his form of reason. He was a [[Deism|deist]] who criticized contemporary [[Christianity]] and often [[religion]] in general.  Voltaire is sometimes called the "Father of the Enlightenment," and remains an inspiration for robust [[freedom of speech]] despite ironically enough denying free speech to Christians and even going out of his way to silence them (which if anything resembled [[cancel culture]]).<ref>http://myemail.constantcontact.com/JAN--11---Plot-to-destroy-Christianity-revealed-by-Yale-President-Timothy-Dwight.html?soid=1108762609255&aid=CbibQMZY5JY</ref><ref>https://www.catholic.com/encyclopedia/Encyclopedists</ref><ref>http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05418a.htm</ref><ref>https://archive.org/details/BarruelMemoirsIllustratingTheHistoryOfJacobinism</ref>

'''Voltaire''' (pen name of François-Marie Arouet) (1694-1778) was a leading [[French]] [[philosopher]] in the [[Enlightenment]], advocating freedom everywhere and emphasizing his form of reason. He was a [[Deism|deist]] who criticized contemporary [[Christianity]] and often [[religion]] in general.  Voltaire is sometimes called the "Father of the Enlightenment," and remains an inspiration for robust [[freedom of speech]] despite ironically enough denying free speech to Christians and even going out of his way to silence them, up to and including directly instigating the expulsion of the Jesuit order from France (which if anything resembled [[cancel culture]]).<ref>http://myemail.constantcontact.com/JAN--11---Plot-to-destroy-Christianity-revealed-by-Yale-President-Timothy-Dwight.html?soid=1108762609255&aid=CbibQMZY5JY</ref><ref>https://www.catholic.com/encyclopedia/Encyclopedists</ref><ref>http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05418a.htm</ref><ref>https://archive.org/details/BarruelMemoirsIllustratingTheHistoryOfJacobinism</ref>

In ''Candide'' (1759), his chief work, Voltaire criticized a popular philosophical theory of [[Leibniz]] which  described the world as being in its best possible state because it was in [[God]]'s hands. To illustrate this point, he follows the story of Candide as increasingly terrible things happen to him until he loses his optimistic view of the world and his [[Christianity|faith]].

In ''Candide'' (1759), his chief work, Voltaire criticized a popular philosophical theory of [[Leibniz]] which  described the world as being in its best possible state because it was in [[God]]'s hands. To illustrate this point, he follows the story of Candide as increasingly terrible things happen to him until he loses his optimistic view of the world and his [[Christianity|faith]].