REL 2120 Study Guide - Deism, Montesquieu, Torah
Document Summary
Enlightenment thinkers examined the process in which we believe, and as a result the rejected the absolute authority of the church and the state. Enlightenment not a set of ideas demanding unthinking agreement but a method of posing critical questions about traditional institutions, customs, and morals: the core of the enlightenment is a questioning of the thinking of the authority. In addition, young jews were allowed to enter public universities for the first time, and they began to contribute to the growth of the human intellect. Because of his oppressive views about law, he emphasized with the suffering of jews. But, he says: it is a mistake to base civil laws on religious principles. : religion is about perfecting the individual. Civil laws are about the society as a whole: he also made a distinction between sin and crime: God has his own laws to that we all agree, and he is quite capable of enforcing them without human assistance.
