Mondays 6:30 – 8:00 PM
March 5, 12, 19, 26
Modern scholarship has come to view Benedict (Baruch) Spinoza as the Father of the Enlightenment and an incredibly powerful influence on the development of subsequent Western philosophy. But religious leaders of his own day viewed him much less charitably: Having their authority challenged by his insistence on the primacy of logic in all human affairs resulted in severe condemnation by the Roman Catholic Church and excommunication from the Jewish community. Still, he never lost his deep reverence for Maimonides—even while critiquing this cultural icon and perfect intellectual foil. In studying this seeming contradiction, we’ll look at portions of Spinoza’s fascinating Tractatus Theologico-Politicus, as well as current academic takes on the subject.