Pensées Diverses sur la Comète

This is a good primer on Enlightenment thinking. Bayle begins his argument by saying that phenomenon traditionally understood as miraculous (comets, eclipses) could and should be understood as completely naturalistic events. Bayle applies similar logic to politics, arguing that governance is an earthly matter and should therefore also be divorced from any divine references. Bayle's general argument might sound a bit banal to the modern ear, so you might find yourself doing a lot of skipping.