The Polygenism In Voltaire's Views Of Christianity

Voltaire did not limit his attack to aspects of Judaism that Christianity used as its foundation. He repeatedly made clear that Jews were indeed materialistic, greedy, eminently qualified usurers, iniquitous, rootless, calculating animals, but not because Christians made them so; however, he did deplore their persecution in Europe, specially by the Spanish and Portuguese inquisitions. He urged them to integrate themselves into Western civilization and to become thinking animals otherwise. The despicable history of the Jews according to the Old Testament, ancestors and models of the Christians, allowed Voltaire to arrive to devastating conclusions about both religions and to draw parallels of disapproval. Nevertheless, some authors link Voltaire's anti-Judaism to his polygenism instead. Interestingly, such anti-Judaism had a relative importance in Voltaire's philosophy of history.

Voltaire's views of Islam were also generally negative, as he
Voltaire believed that because of their different origins, Blacks did not entirely share the natural humanity of whites. Voltaire often invoked racial differences as a means to attack religious orthodoxy, and the Biblical account of creation. His most famous remark on slavery is found in his Candide, through the main protagonist who seemed horrified to learn the price at which Europe was enjoying the pleasures of sugar: The result of hard labor of slaves who were tortured, mutilated, and forced into inhumane living and working conditions. He also observed that if the Bible taught all men being related by a common origin, it seemed completely preposterous and paradoxically ironic that Christians treated their relatives so horribly. He cleverly denounced those Whites and Christians who often purchased Negroes cheaply to sell them pricey later as slaves in