April 9 - Department of Philosophy hosts Guest Lecture with Steven Nadler “Why Was Spinoza Excommunicated?”

Department of Philosophy

hosts

Guest Lecture with Steven Nadler

“Why Was Spinoza Excommunicated?”

The Department of Philosophy is hosting Guest Speaker, Steven Nadler, on Thursday, April 9 at 5:00 pm in Bellarmine’s Diffley Room. Dr. Nadler is the Vilas Research Professor and William H. Hay II Professor at the University of Wisconsin—Madison.

About the lecture:

In July 1656, Bento (Baruch) de Spinoza was given the harshest herem (ban or ostracism) ever issued by the Amsterdam Portuguese-Jewish community. The text of the ban rains curses down upon the young man, for his “abominable heresies and monstrous deeds.” Unlike other bans issued by the community in the period, it was never rescinded. But why was Spinoza excommunicated with such prejudice? He was only twenty-three years old, not yet the famous (and “scandalous”) philosopher he would later become. In this lecture, we will consider the circumstances of the ban and use them as a way of examining some of the major themes of Spinoza’s philosophy.

Professor Nadler’s research focuses on philosophy in the seventeenth century. He has written extensively on Descartes and Cartesianism, Spinoza, and Leibniz. He also works on medieval and early modern Jewish philosophy. He is currently director of UW-Madison’s Institute for Research in the Humanities. In 2020, he was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Lite fare and refreshments will be served. Hope you can join us!