Free Political Propositions

But we, considering as before that all humans by nature are well inclined toward their mutual prosperity and good for the sake of mutual sociability, and as if necessarily driven, also come to be admonished away from all deceit as the most abominable evil; there remains nothing else but to make people see and understand through the most manifest reason what can best contribute to their mutual fellowship and necessary strengthening, for the warding off of all bodily and spiritual evils with a certain attainment of their own goods and prosperities. And such we consider to be located primarily in the pursuit and induction of a Commonwealth, as being, for any assembly of humans, the only true and firm Foundation, Bond, or Religion that can ever be grasped and presented by anyone with full certainty.

The bodily interests, as being the most manifest and the most pressing for the preservation of humans, I shall here also try to base myself upon, and, according to the order of nature, let them go before the particular interests of the souls. The more so because I am of the opinion that no prosperity of the soul, in particular, much less communicative or common among many people, can ever be well and surely pursued outside the warding off of bodily slavery and threat. And what is more, I also judge that to begin a Commonwealth among an assembly of humans, it can be done well and readily without close considerations of the soul’s particular interests; but never can it happen without accurately observing the interests of the bodies, and which accurate observations of the interests and prosperities of the bodies must also last as long as the Commonwealth shall be able to remain standing or can be held.

Regarding the interest of the soul, I would think that at the beginning of a Commonwealth it would be sufficient if all paths to deceit were cut off as zealously and circumspectly as possible. And to which the foundations of an evangelical freedom—to be able to pursue and seek the particular prosperity of one’s soul to the utmost, without damage to the common, with the opposition of all deceits—would be able to help unbelievably much. Especially if a strict law of the common were drawn up that no one, on pain of death, would be able to go against or teach against general and evangelical freedom. In which regard it would also be completely necessary that in a truly evangelical-freedom-pursuing Republic or Commonwealth, with the highest care and oversight, all outstanding degrees or ranks of pretended learning, such as the titles of Doctoren Doctors and Professoren Professors, etc., must be avoided and prevented. For these can cause nothing other than a vain arrogance in the enjoyers and possessors, and a contempt for all the rest of the otherwise evangelically-free citizenry, and a notorious ruin of all righteous learning and dear evangelical freedom. Therefore, in a well-ordered Republic, regarding all instruction, as much for mature as for young persons...