Complex sentence: Matthew Tindal, (1657--August 16,1733), was an eminent English deist whose works, highly influential at the dawn of the Enlightenment, caused great controversy and challenged the Christian consensus of his time.
Split into simpler sentences: Matthew Tindal, (1657--August 16,1733), was an eminent English deist author. His works, highly influential at the dawn of the Enlightenment, caused great controversy and challenged the Christian consensus of his time.