De la suffisance de la religion naturelle Un manifeste déiste de Diderot ?

It is commonly accepted that Diderot professed deism at the beginning of his philosophical career and even that he was possessed by a « quasi-mystical enthusiasm » when confronted with the marvels of nature, regarded as a « temple of the divinity ». The author seeks to refute this interpretation, thus completing his arguments in three earlier publications devoted to the philosophe’s early writings, to the Essai sur le mérite et la vertu and to the Pensées philosophiques.