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PHIL 1073 - Spinoza’s Book Forged in Hell |
*“A Book Forged in Hell”: Religion, Enlightenment and Spinoza’s Theological-Political Treatise*
What is the role of religion in a modern state? When citizens’ religious freedoms collide with state interests, which should prevail? In his /Theological-Political Treatise/, Spinoza rejected the divine origin of scripture and the authority of religion and set the stage for modern textual criticism. He championed the separation of religion and state and laid the groundwork for modern secularism. One reviewer denounced the /Treatise/ as “a book forged in hell.” We begin with a close reading of the /Treatise/ and then consider Spinoza’s long legacy: the rise of liberalism and secularism, the origins of modern Biblical criticism, and the reasons why Spinoza has been called “the first modern Jew.”
0.000 OR 1.000 Credit hours 0.000 OR 1.000 Lecture hours 0.000 TO 2.000 Other hours Levels: Undergraduate Schedule Types: Lecture Humanities Division Philosophy Department Course Attributes: EUR, PHL, WTR |