Lessings exoterische Verteidigung der Orthodoxie: Die Wolfenbütteler Beiträge gegen die Aufklärungstheologie (1770–1774)

Eleonora Travanti

Published by De Gruyter 2023

Lessings exoterische Verteidigung der Orthodoxie

Die Wolfenbütteler Beiträge gegen die Aufklärungstheologie (1770–1774)

Lessing's Exoteric Defence of Orthodoxy: Wolfenbüttel Writings Against the Theology of Enlightenment (1770–1774)

Eleonora Travanti
Funded by: Wilhelm Hahn und Erben-Stiftung

Volume 251 in the series Frühe Neuzeit

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110793055

Overview
Contents

About this book

In his early years in Wolfenbüttel, Lessing published a series of writings about philosophy and religion directed against Enlightenment theology. The Enlightenment thinker took the side of dogmatic theology to attack Socinians, Neologists, and Deists. Lessing's position in these texts remains one of the most controversial issues in Lessing research to this day: why was the well-known freethinker a bitter enemy of rational Christianity?

Lessing's opinion pieces written in favour of orthodoxy have been viewed as indecisive, tactical, and hypocritical. By reconstructing the Aristotelian tradition of the twofold philosophical manner of teaching, this study shows that Lessing, even in his theological writings, made use of both an exoteric and an esoteric art of writing, with the result that the key to understanding Lessing’s orthodoxy can be found in his vindications of Leibniz.

Lessing’s defence of orthodoxy thus proves to be merely exoteric. The Enlightenment thinker defended dogmatic Lutheranism because the rationalization of Christianity compromised philosophy’s autonomy from theology. Only a strict separation between faith and reason, he believed, would guarantee the libertatem philosophandi.

Author / Editor information

Eleonora Travanti, University of Marburg, Germany.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	I
Danksagung Publicly Available Download PDF	XI
Inhaltsverzeichnis Publicly Available Download PDF	XIII
1 Einleitung Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2 Lessing, ein Aufklärer gegen die Aufklärungstheologie Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	14
3 Das Begriffspaar „exoterisch-esoterisch“ als Interpretationsschlüssel von Aristoteles bis Lessing Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	30
4 Lessing als Herausgeber der Zeitschrift der herzoglichen Bibliothek zu Wolfenbüttel Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	76
5 Lessing gegen die Aufklärungstheologie in den ersten Wolfenbütteler Jahren Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	101
6 Lessings Verteidigung der Orthodoxie in den ersten Wolfenbütteler Jahren Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	146
7 Lessings angeblicher Spinozismus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	183
8 Die esoterische Lehre Lessings Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	221
9 Schluss Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	251
Literaturverzeichnis Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	263
Abbildungsverzeichnis Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	293
Tabellenverzeichnis Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	295
Abbildungen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	297
Tabellen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	323
Namensregister Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	333

(Deutsch)

Language: German
Publisher: De Gruyter
Audience: Scholars in the fields of the history of philosophy, philology, theology
Pages
- Front matter: 15
- Main content: 336
Illustrations
- Coloured Illustrations: 29
- Tables: 7
Keywords: Leibniz reception; Socinianism; Spinozism; Art of writing

eBook

Published: April 3, 2023
ISBN: 9783110793055

Hardcover

Published: April 3, 2023
ISBN: 9783110792164