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Early Modern · 1670
Theological-Political Treatise
Tractatus Theologico-Politicus
Baruch Spinoza · 1632–1677
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What it is
An argument that scripture must be interpreted by its own history and language alone, that Moses did not write the Pentateuch, and that the state should leave belief free.
Why it lasted
The founding work of modern biblical criticism and of the argument for freedom of thought — published anonymously and banned almost everywhere.
Where to read it
Public domain and free to read in full, though not held here. The archives below have it.
These open a search on each archive rather than a direct link, which is the honest way to point at an edition nobody here has checked line by line.
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