Pierre Bayle's philosophical commentary on the words of Jesus Christ: Compel them to come in

• Main Authors: KILCULLEN, John, KUKATHAS, Chandran
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2005
• Subjects: Ethics and Political Philosophy; Political Science
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2975; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/soss_research/article/4232/viewcontent/Bayle_1302_EBk_v7.0.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

In this defence of religious toleration, Bayle discusses the words attributed to Jesus Christ in Luke 14:23, “And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be full.” Bayle contends that the word compel cannot mean “force.” From this perspective, he constructs his doctrine of toleration based on the singular importance of conscience. Bayle argues that if the orthodox have the right and duty to persecute, then every sect will persecute since every sect considers itself orthodox. The result will be mutual slaughter, something God cannot have intended.