Pierre Bayle called François de La Mothe Le Vayer and Gabriel Naudé the two "savants de ce siècle qui avaient le plus de lecture et l'esprit le plus épuré des sentiments populaires" (thinkers in this century whose readings were the most extensive and whose thinking was the least contaminated by the opinions of the masses). Though the debate continues with regard to the extent La Mothe Le Vayer actually influenced the philosophes (philosophers) of the French Enlightenment, rarely does anyone note that his writings include the foundational texts for the beginning of historical criticism and the comparative study of religion in France. Modern scholars such as René Pintard have definitively unmasked La Mothe Le Vayer's unprecedented radical attack on revealed religion, successfully obscured by his claim that his "Christian skepticism" served only to humble the human sciences in the face...