So, why was Baruch Spinoza excommunicated? There is play in New York now called New Jerusalem: Interrogation of Baruch De Spinoza, Talmud Torah Congregation—Amsterdam, July 16, ’56.
So, who is Spinoza? And why is he so important?
Modern Jewish philosophy shared with Hellenistic and Medieval Jewish philosophy. A certain concern for relating for general philosophy to Judaism. But one of the main people to do that was this guy named Baruch Spinoza. One of the greatest philosophers of the entire western philosophy. Who was born in Amsterdam in 1632.
Why is he so infamous or famous?
In 1656, Spinoza begin to attract considerable attention for its unorthodox opinions which he questioned Moses’ authorship with the Torah, whether if Adam was the first man, whether Moses’ law superseded naturally? But these issues and others, Spinoza was excommunicated and the Jewish community was forbidden to be in contact with him.
He then left Amsterdam and then noted his story and Arthur Hertzberg described him as the first modern Jewish since he was the first to leave the Jewish community without becoming a Christian.
What about his philosophy in clear and more clearly and what was it that so early Jewish establishment at that time?
He insisted that religious teenage will be judged only on the basis of reason. He rejected Moses as the author of the Torah and the possibility of Genuine Prophecy. He said that anything that looks supernaturalistic is actually not.
There have to be rationalistic explanations for it. The bible which is to be examined as a human document expressing human developments in the past, none of that is anything that would not be taught at the reconstruction as biblical college now or Secular Humanistic Judaism.
He did not believe that the world and God can be separate. He was a pantheist, that God and the universe are one. Everything follows there structure. God does not act independently of the world for God is the world.
For Spinoza, God was not a purposeful being. There are no goals being achieved, God just is and God was being, everything happens with necessity. He said that man’s ultimate aim is the intellectual level of God. He can give man the continuous and unending happiness that was sought.
For Spinoza, Jews were unenlightened and so conveying the moral teachings by stories, supposed prophecy, and the promise that they can have an important social effect that making people behave better and be better. But he said wise people need only reason to come to this.
Spinoza’s completely rationalistic vision incorporated some basic things. The existence and unity of God, the dependence of all things on God, the love of God is the basis of morality.
He was really the first one to provide any basis for rejecting any form of Judaism or Christianity. He denied the possibility of any supreme events or revelatory knowledge because he just simply did not believe God could do that.
He has asserted that the history of the bible should consist of three aspects; and he also uses Hebrew language and the compilation and the classification of the biblical books and researches to their biblical writings. So, nothing can contradict natural law. Biblical miracle stories should always be explained in the natural way.
Spinoza alone seems to have taken the drastic step with replacing religious tradition completely by rational-scientific reason. Interesting that Prime Minister Ben Guerin in the 50’s suggested that the writ of excommunication for Spinoza be withdrawn but the Amsterdam Rabbi’s did not act on that opinion.
So, interesting that Spinoza has been called the most impious atheist that ever lived and also a God intoxicated man. Seemingly contradictory things, his revolutionary steps replaced all this tradition by rational-scientific study but definitely do not accept much of what Spinoza said personally.
Although, he made a huge contribution in creating and understanding that the bible had to be investigated scientifically and challenging the completely incorrect view of the total Mosaic Worship of the Torah.
But in my opinion, went way too far because I am a religious person and I think that God is not the all the universe. I am not a pantheist. Definitely think that God has a will but in any case it is important to understand Spinoza, to understand the critical of Jewish history when he was excommunicated and the issues that it raises.
Transcription by:
Scribe4you Transcription Services