I have been working on a surprizingly unnoted book, considering its extreme
position. It is:
FRIEND TO TRUTH[?] : OBSERVATIONS UPON THE FOUR GOSPELS; SHEWING THEIR
DEFECTS, and how far those defects, together with the writings of St. Paul,
have misled the compilers of our church services, etc. Thereby evincing the
necessity of revising the whole by authority. By a Friend to Truth.
[Translated from the French.] v [3], 350Pp. J. B. Letellier: Geneva, 1789.
8o., 21.5 cm. ESTC T101661
I have no problems with it bibliographically. I do have problems evaluating
it as a religious document. It is clearly not exactly what it purports to
be. But I have not been able to find any religious or philosophical
discussion or the expected condemnation of its content and the probable
actual position of its author both in religion and in philosophy. It is a
very ungenerous attack on the legitimacy of the Gospels during a period
when all sorts of religious groups were still clear in attempting to derive
their authority from their positive interpretations.
Any suggestions of sources of study would be welcomed. The book is uncommon
enough so that it must often have been overlooked.
Sincerely,
GAbriel Laderman