Voltaire | Letters on England-On Religion and Toleration | Philosophers Explained | Stephen Hicks

François-Marie Arouet(1694-1778), who later came to call himself Voltaire, was an intellectual of the French Enlightenment. He was most famous for being the author of "Candide," which is still widely read to this day.

He was a staunch critic of the Catholic Church in France and an advocate for freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

He expressed his love of the tolerant English system of government and his criticism of French government in his "Letters on England."

The text can be found here: https://www.stephenhicks.org/wp-conte...

Timestamps:

00:44 The text
02:07 The Table of Contents
03:55 Letter One: The Quakers
07:31 Meeting a Quaker
10:31 Were you baptized?
15:37 The Quakers have dispensed with titles. They prefer plain speaking.
17:37 The Quakers avoid pleasure, especially gambling and drinking.
19:03 Letter Two: A Quaker meeting and what happens there
22:46 Even woman may speak there
23:17 Are there no priests then?
25:32 Letter Four: The influence of the Quakers is global
27:03 Letter Five: The Church of England
28:52 The morals of British clergy
30:53 Letter Six: The Presbyterians
31:50 Religious tolerance in the Royal Exchange

Philosophers, Explained covers major philosophers and texts, especially the great classics. In each episode, Professor Hicks discusses an important work, doing a close reading that lasts 40 minutes to an hour.

The playlist of current videos can found here:    • Philosophers Explained  

Stephen R. C. Hicks, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy at Rockford University, USA, and has had visiting positions at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., University of Kasimir the Great in Poland, Oxford University’s Harris Manchester College in England, and Jagiellonian University in Poland.

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Playlists:

Education Theory:    • Education Theory  
Entrepreneurship and Values:    • Entrepreneurship and Values Series  
Nietzsche:    • Nietzsche