Monday, September 9, 2013

Atheism in the Leviathan


While reading Leviathan, I picked up on some themes that would be considered atheistic in Hobbes’ era. He certainly writes about different opinions on the concept of Christianity than his time generally accepted. Leviathan rejects the authority of the Church, the concept of spirit, and challenged the classical interpretation of scriptures. Hobbes also eliminates all Christian dogma including clergymen, theologians, popes and monks. The only thing that remains over from the faith of the time is that Jesus is the Christ. Is that enough, though, to classify Hobbes and his work as Christian? In his time, being an atheist was a high offense  but I do not think that quite defines Hobbes' thinking. If you consider his Prime Mover as the Christian God, a figure from which all authority comes from, then Hobbes' Leviathan is a Christian society. Especially since it has a central deity that set the whole world in motion.

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