[68] The tortures of the Inquisition.—J. M.
[69] Since the words “it” and “he” are both expressed by the French word “il,” it is not clear whether Voltaire would have spoken of his supreme being as “it” or “he.” I interpret his feeling as carefully as the context permits.—J. M.
[70] Leibnitz taught that material things never acted on each other; the only cause was God. The leaf fell from the tree, when the wind blew, because God had pre-established that coincidence, or harmony, of movements.—J. M.
[71] The allusion is to priests, in their coloured vestments, singing masses for a successful war.—J. M.
[72] Voltaire always candidly faces the problem of evil, and admits that it is inconsistent with infinite power and goodness. In another treatise he makes the bold observation that, since morality is merely a social law regulating the relations of men, it has no application to his isolated “great being.”—J. M.
[73] Well-known Jews in mediæval history.—J. M.
[74] “Sub Deo justo nemo miser nisi mereatur [Under a just God no one is miserable who has not deserved misery.]”—St. Augustine.
[75] The Egyptian and Persian principles of evil. The problem is discussed in the preceding essay.—J. M.
[76] In a lengthy note Voltaire explains that Bayle never questioned Providence, and that the scepticism in which he follows Bayle is in regard to the source of evil. It will be seen from earlier pages, however, that Voltaire does not ascribe infinite power to his God. The words “all-perfect” and “almighty,” which occur in this poem, are poetic phrases.—J. M.
Transcriber’s Notes