Spinoza and the Kingdom of God

Spinoza’s Theological-Political Treatise (1670–2020). Commemorating A Long-Forgotten Masterpiece

“…Balibar exposed 'liberal mystifications', which imply all kinds of dualism and transcendence, which Spinoza criticizes. Although Spinoza et la politique contains few essentially new ideas, it owes its significance to its clear style [45].…”

“…Unlike Voetius, Van Velthuysen did not write a treatise devoted to state and Church relationships, but the contours of his theologico-political argument, comprising biblical interpretation, the fundamental articles of Faith, the nature of the Church, and its relation to the state, are clearly visible in the Dutch pamphlets he wrote during the 1660s. According to his Tractaet van de Afgoderye en Superstitie (Treatise on idolatry and superstition), the purest act of idolatry-unsurprisingly, considering Van Velthuysen's Protestant persuasionsis the Roman Catholic Mass, described by the Heidelberg Catechism (question 80) as an "accursed idolatry" [45] (p. 1). Yet, Van Velthuysen's aim is not to participate in confessional polemics, but to adjust the balance between the Magistrate's duty to defend true religion and the liberty of conscience.…”

“…The weapon of one is thought and pen, and of the other action and life. 45 These lines imply that chapter twenty is translated to defend freedom of inquiry and to overcome theocratic obstacles to democratization. Therefore, it is clear that, in 2009, Spinoza's TTP began to be read more politically and, from that year onwards, Spinoza's political philosophy received increasing public attention to such an extent that the TTP was used at least once, in response to Spinoza's popularity among government critics, to defend clerical positions and to deny human rights.…”

The Coherence of Spinoza’s Theological-Political Treatise

“…My premise that the Treatise is a unified and coherent whole requires not only understanding a necessary balance between individual freedom and societal peace but also the distinction between internal and external religion, something which is also discussed by Rosenthal [43], Frank & Waller [44], Giardino [45] and Juffermans. The underlying importance of these related distinctions in fact connects the theological part of the Treatise to its political part.…”