Episode 166: Spinoza on Politics and Religion (Part One)
The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast
Mark Linsenmayer
4.6 • 2.3K Ratings
🗓️ 19 June 2017
⏱️ 50 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On Benedict de Spinoza's Tractatus Theologico-Politicus (1670), ch. 12-20 and the Tractatus Politicus (1677).
What's the relationship between ethics and political power? Given that religious factions tend to create strife, what's the optimal role of the government in mitigating that damage? Is theocracy in any way a good idea?
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Partial Examined Life relies on your support. |
| 0:02.5 | To find out how to help in ways that are cheap or even free, |
| 0:05.4 | please visit partiallyexaminedlife.com slash support. |
| 0:16.4 | You're listening to Partial Examined Life, |
| 0:18.2 | a philosophy podcast by some guys who are at one point |
| 0:20.4 | set on doing philosophy for a living, but then thought better of it. |
| 0:23.3 | Our question for episode 166 is something like |
| 0:26.3 | what is the appropriate role for religion in society? |
| 0:29.3 | And reread Spinoza's Tractatus A Theological Politicus published in 1670, |
| 0:33.8 | chapters 12 through 20, and a bit of the Tractatus Politicus |
| 0:36.9 | published posthumously in 1677. |
| 0:39.6 | To get the readings and more information, |
| 0:41.1 | please check out partiallyagaminedlife.com. |
| 0:43.9 | This is Mark Linson-Mire, |
| 0:45.2 | free to think and speak as I please so long as it is not |
| 0:48.1 | interfere with the welfare of the state in Madison, Wisconsin. |
| 0:51.5 | This is Seth Paschinen, Austin, Texas. |
| 0:53.7 | This is Wes All-One in Cambridge, Massachusetts. |
| 0:56.4 | This is Dylan Casey, a real agitator for freedom in Middleton, Wisconsin. |
| 1:01.3 | All right. |
| 1:02.5 | So we had said we were going to cover the first half of the Tractatus last time. |
| 1:06.6 | And I was hoping that that would be the religion half. |
... |
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