for oplysningstidens mest fremtrædende aktører på grund af sit indædte forsvar for religiøs tolerance. Han er i dag stort set ukendt herhjemme. Man kunne kalde ham en kristen oplysningsmand, en tolerant stridsmand, født ind i en kamptid, hvor det katolske Frankrig gennemførte et ofte blodigt opgør med sine protestanter. Han var en enestående kritisk begavelse, der talte tolerancens sag, og som derfor blev en emblematisk figur for oplysningsfolk som Montesquieu og Voltaire. Den religiøse fanatisme var hovedfjenden for Bayle, den manglende tolerance skulle bringes frem i de stridende parters bevidsthed. Hans liv og kampe har karakter af forspil til Oplysningstiden. Derfor er Bayle og hans skrifter vigtige elementer i den kamp der fortsat pågår: Kampen mellem fanatisme og tolerance. John Pedersen var fra 1973 til 1999 professor i romanske sprog og litteraturer ved Københavns Universitet. Ud over sin faglige produktion har han virket som anmelder og været tilknyttet Den Store Danske Encyklopædi. Han har tidligere skrevet om Oplysningstiden og gendigtet bl.a. fransk barokpoesi og Molières Amfitryon. EnglishThe philosopher Pierre Bayle (1647-1706) is one of the most enigmatic figures in the history of the European Enlightenment. He was persecuted by the Catholics for his Calvinist beliefs. He was seen as a heretic by his co-religionists because of the doubt that was an essential part of his view of life. He became an icon for many of the Enlightenment’s most prominent figures because of his inveterate defence of religious tolerance. He is widely unknown in today’s Denmark. You could call him a figure of Christian Enlightenment, a tolerant warrior, born in a time of war, where Catholic France carried through a bloody showdown with its Protestant population. He was an exceptionally gifted thinker who spoke on behalf of toleration, thus becoming an emblematic figure for Enlightenment thinkers as Montesquieu and Voltaire. Religious fanaticism were Bayle’s primary enemy; the contending parties should brought to an awareness of their the lack of tolerance. His life and battles seems like a prelude to the Enlightenment. Because of this Bayle and his writings are important elements in still on-going battle: the battle between fanaticism and tolerance. Forlagets emneord: Filosofi og psykologi - Religion og teologi - Filosofihistorie - Kirkepolitik - Kristendom - Oplysningstiden - Forfatterportræt - Forfatterskab - Frankrig - Holland - Pierre Bayle - 17. årh. - 18. årh. - Dansk