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The philosophy of rebirth and reformation is briefly the most important. Renaissance and Reformation

In the 15th century, the Middle Ages were replaced by the era of the European Renaissance (Renaissance), which entailed a cultural flourishing and a change in views on the world. In our article you can read briefly the most important thing about the philosophy of the Renaissance.

Characteristic

The philosophy of the Renaissance developed under the influence of a pan-European passion for classical humanism that arose in the 14th century (Florence). Humanists believed that the study of ancient works would help modern (for them) knowledge and improvement of the social nature of man.

The spread of humanistic ideas among philosophers in the 15th century was the organization of the Platonic Academy in Careggi (1462).

The well-known philanthropist and statesman Cosimo de Medici provided his villa for meetings of scientists and thinkers. The association was headed by the Italian philosopher Marsilio Ficino.

Let's list the main features of the philosophy of the Renaissance:

: basic philosophical questions concern a person. It is separated from the divine principle and is regarded as an independent system. A person must know and develop himself, determine his goals, in achieving which he must rely on personal abilities;
anti-religiousness : official Catholic statements are criticized; philosophy acquires a civil rather than ecclesiastical character. The center of everything is no longer God or the cosmos;
interest in antiquity : ideas of that time were used; the statements contained in ancient works formed the basis of humanism.

In the philosophy of the Renaissance, most often there are such main directions:

Notable philosophers

For convenience, we indicate the most famous philosophers of the Renaissance and their achievements in the table:

*Representative*	*Contribution and general characteristics worldview*
Marsilio Ficino (astrologer, priest)	representative of Platonism. Translated and commented on ancient theological texts; wrote a treatise in which he explained Plato's ideas from the point of view of Christianity
Nicholas of Cusa (theologian, scientist)	representative of pantheism. In treatises, he reflected on the place of man in the world, the infinity of God and his manifestations (one of which is nature). Studied mathematics and astronomy. He argued that the Universe is infinite, and the Earth revolves around the Sun.
Michel Montaigne (writer)
Nicolaus Copernicus (astronomer, mathematician, mechanic)	representative of heliocentrism. He introduced a new monetary system in Poland, built a hydraulic machine, fought the plague epidemic. The main work "On the rotation celestial bodies”, in which he substantiated a new model of the world
Giordano Bruno (monk, poet)	Representative of pantheism and esotericism. He was fond of reading non-canonical texts, doubted some church "miracles", for which he was recognized as a heretic and burned. Treatises on the infinity of the universe and the multitude of worlds, expanded the Copernican model.
Galileo Galilei (physicist, mechanic, astronomer, mathematician)	representative of heliocentrism. He was the first to use a telescope to observe space objects. Founder of experimental physics.

Almost all Renaissance thinkers studied ancient Greek and latin languages which allowed them to independently read and translate ancient texts.

Rice. 3. Marsilio Ficino.

What have we learned?

We found out the characteristic features of the philosophy of the 15th-16th centuries, deciphered its anthropocentric orientation. Learn about the impact philosophical thought Renaissance to the reformist direction in religion.

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The revival of philosophical and scientific thought, which came with the beginning of the Renaissance, also affected jurisprudence. The recognition of a person as an individual led to new searches for justifications for the essence of society and the state. There is a so-called humanistic direction in jurisprudence, whose representatives focus on studying the sources of the current (especially Roman) law, the intensified process of reception of which required harmonization of its provisions with the new conditions of socio-political life and with the norms of local national law. Beginnings begin to develop historical understanding and interpretation of law.

For thinkers of the humanistic direction, law is, first of all, legislation. Movements against feudal fragmentation, for the centralization of state power, uniform legislation, and the equality of all before the law are intensifying.

The focus of the humanists in question historical era on positive law, however, was not accompanied by a complete denial of natural law ideas and ideas, since the current positive law also included Roman law, which includes these ideas and ideas. The popularity of Roman law remains quite high, it continues to be regarded as "the best objective norm of natural justice."

Renaissance humanists began to study law as a special factor in social life. But humanism has carried out the delimitation of theory and dogma only in the methods of study, i.e. Roman law and only Roman law remained the subject of study for both the lawyer-dogma and the lawyer-humanist. The subsequent activity of philosophers expanded the subject of study of law.

One of the first outstanding humanists of the Renaissance, who made a significant contribution to the theory of law, can rightfully be considered Lorenzo Valla (1407-1457), who, on the basis of a deep and comprehensive analysis of ancient Roman law, created the basis for further scientific developments in the field of jurisprudence.

Having put personal interest at the basis of legal ethics and made it a moral criterion, Valla calls to be guided in assessing human actions not by abstract moral or legal principles, but by specific life conditions that determine the choice between good and bad, between useful and harmful. Such moral individualism had a significant impact on the further development of European jurisprudence, laid a new ideological ground for the moral and legal values of the future bourgeois of modern times.

The modern science of state and law begins with the famous Florentine Niccolo Machiavelli(1469-1527), who set himself the goal of creating a stable state in the conditions of the unstable socio-political situation of that time in Europe.

Machiavelli distinguishes three forms state government- monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. In his opinion, all of them are unstable and only a mixed form of government gives the state the greatest stability. An example for him is Rome of the era of the republic, where the consuls were a monarchical element, the senate - an aristocratic, and the people's tribunes - a democratic one. In his writings "Sovereign" and "Judgment on the first decade of Titus Livius" Machiavelli considers the causes of successes and failures in politics, which he interprets as a way to retain power. In the work "The Sovereign" he acts as a defender of absolute monarchy, and in "Judgments on the first decade of Titus Livius" - a republican form of government. However, these works express the same real-political point of view on the forms of state government: only political results are important. The goal is to come to power and then keep it. Everything else is just a way, including morality and religion.

Machiavelli proceeds from the premise of the selfishness of man. According to this, there are no boundaries for the human desire for material goods and power. But due to limited resources, conflicts arise. The state, on the other hand, is based on the needs of the individual for protection from the aggressiveness of others. In the absence of a force behind the law, anarchy occurs, so a strong ruler is needed to ensure the safety of the people. Without going into philosophical analysis essence of man, Machiavelli considers these provisions as obvious.

Based on the fact that, although people are always selfish, there are varying degrees of depravity, Machiavelli uses the concept of a good and bad state, as well as good and bad citizens in his argument. He is interested precisely in the conditions that would make possible the existence of a good state and good citizens. The state, according to Machiavelli, will be good if it maintains a balance between various selfish interests and is thus stable. In a bad state, various selfish interests openly conflict, and a good citizen is a patriotic and militant subject. In other words, a good state is stable. The aim of the policy is not good life, as it was considered in ancient Greece and in the Middle Ages, but simply the maintenance of power (and thus the maintenance of stability).

Machiavelli understands the importance of strong state power. But above all, he is interested in a pure political game. He shows relatively little understanding of the economic conditions for the exercise of power.

In general, Machiavelli's contribution to the development of philosophical and legal theory is that he:

rejected scholasticism, replacing it with rationalism and realism;
laid the foundations of philosophical and legal science;
demonstrated the connection between the politics and forms of the state with the social struggle, introduced the concepts of "state" and "republic" into modern meaning;
created the prerequisites for building a model of the state based on the material interest of man.

Assessing the teachings of Niccolo Machiavelli, one cannot but agree with those researchers who believe that his Political Views have not been formed into a coherent and complete theory, and even at its very foundation, some inconsistency is noticeable. But the main thing is that, starting from Machiavelli, political force, rather than moral attitudes, is increasingly considered as the legal basis of power structures and individuals, and politics is interpreted as an independent concept separated from morality.

In addition to Niccolo Machiavelli in the Renaissance, a significant contribution to the development philosophical and legal thought made Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499), Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam(c. 1469-1536), Thomas More (1478-1535)".

Along with the philosophical and legal teachings of the Renaissance, a significant contribution to legal science at the level philosophical reflection rights introduced period reformation. The process of overcoming medieval scholasticism in principle, it was carried out in a dual way: on the one hand, through the Renaissance, on the other, through the European reformation. These currents differ from each other in the way they criticize medieval scholasticism, but both of them express the need for death medieval philosophy, ideologies, political theories, are a manifestation of their crisis, form the prerequisites for creating the foundations of the philosophy of law of the New Age.

One of the brightest representatives of the reform movement is Martin Luther(1483-1546). This German reformer, the founder of German Protestantism, was not a philosopher and thinker. Despite this, the impulsive religiosity of his theology included philosophical elements and ideas.

Luther substantiates the rights and obligations of a person as a member of society from a religious and moral point of view and sees the meaning of his teaching in salvation by the power of faith alone. In personal faith, he sees something completely opposite to faith in authorities.

The vital activity of a person, according to Luther, is the fulfillment of a duty to God, which is realized in society, but not determined by society. Society and the state must provide legal space for the implementation of such a duty. A person must seek from the authorities the sacred and indisputable right to action taken in the name of expiation of guilt before God. Based on this, the Lutheran idea of freedom of conscience can be defined as follows: the right to believe according to conscience is the right to the whole way of life, which is dictated by faith and is chosen in accordance with it.

The philosophical and legal concept of Luther as a whole can be characterized by the following provisions:

freedom of belief according to conscience is the universal and equal right of all;
not only faith deserves legal protection, but also its premises;
freedom of conscience presupposes freedom of speech, press and assembly;
the right should be realized in disobedience to the state power regarding infringements of freedom of conscience;
only the spiritual deserves legal support, while the carnal is left to the gracious discretion of the authorities.

In the demand that nothing else is needed but the word of God, an antipathy to the rational is expressed. Hence Luther's attitude to philosophy: word and mind, theology and philosophy should not be confused, but clearly distinguished. In the treatise "To the Christian nobility of the German nation" he rejects the teaching of Aristotle because it turns away from the true Christian faith, without which a happy social life, the normal functioning of the state and its laws are impossible.

For a more complete picture of the philosophical and legal paradigm of the Renaissance and Reformation, it should be emphasized that on the political map of Europe in the 16th century. such powerful states as France, England, Spain with a strong central government were fully formed. Strengthens belief in the possibility of giving up authority catholic church, and this provides for unconditional submission to secular state authorities. In the light of the events that took place in the XVI century. and had a significant impact on the development of new ideological and political doctrines, it is no coincidence that the emergence of a completely new doctrine of the state, the author of which was a French lawyer and publicist Jean Bodin (1530- 1596) .

He owns the justification of the state priority over all other social institutions, including the church. He first introduced the concept sovereignty as a hallmark of the state. In my work "Six Books on the Republic"(1576) Bodin promotes the idea of a sovereign state that has the ability to protect the rights of an autonomous person and resolutely affirm the principles of peaceful coexistence of various socio-political forces within the country.

Developing his philosophical and legal concept of the state, political power, Jean Bodin, like Aristotle, considers the family to be the basis of the state (Bodin defined the state as legal administration households or families), recognizes wealth inequality in society as natural and necessary. Bodin's political ideal was secular state, which has the ability to ensure the right and freedom for all. in the best way to maintain law and order, he considered a strong monarchy, because the monarch is the only source of law and sovereignty.

Under the sovereign state, Bodin understood the supreme and unlimited state power, contrasting such a state with a medieval feudal state with its fragmentation, social inequality and the limited power of kings.

Boden believed that the main features of a sovereign state should be: the constancy of the supreme power, its unlimitedness and absoluteness, unity and indivisibility. Only such power can ensure a single and equal right for all. Sovereignty for Boden does not mean the sovereignty of the state itself, the subject of sovereignty is not the state, but specific rulers (monarch, people in democratic republics), i.e. state bodies. Depending on who is the bearer of sovereignty, Bodin also distinguishes the forms of the state: monarchy, aristocracy, democracy.

In the work of Jean Bodin, a “geographical typification of states” is outlined, i.e. dependence of the type of state on climatic conditions. So, according to his ideas, the temperate zone is characterized by a state of reason, because the peoples living here have a sense of justice, philanthropy. The southern peoples are indifferent to work, therefore they need religious power and the state. The peoples of the north living in harsh conditions can only be forced to obey a strong state.

Thus, the philosophy of law of the Renaissance and Reformation made an attempt to "purify" ancient philosophy from scholastic deformations, made its true content more accessible, and also in accordance with the needs of life, a new level of social and scientific development went beyond its borders, paved the way for the philosophy of law of the New Age and the Enlightenment.

Some historians of law consider Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374) to be the pioneer of scientific developments in the field of socio-political thought. However, his role in the history of Western European philosophy lies in the fact that he only outlined the main paths for the development of the philosophical and socio-political thought of his time, called on his contemporaries to pay close attention attention to the problems of a person, his place in society, the problems of regulating social relations. He also pointed out the means by which these problems can be solved - the revival of ancient philosophy.
It is recommended to study in more detail the contribution of L. Valla to the development of the philosophy of law, using the literature given at the end of this chapter.

In the clerical journalism of the Renaissance, we will not find any enthusiasm for the rebirth (spiritual uplift and recovery). Its honest and thinking representatives are filled with deep anxiety; they speak of the depravity of the sacred class, the general decline of morals, the disastrous state of the church and faith. Out of this anxiety, which resonated among the broad masses of the laity, a passionately creative movement for the renewal of the faith was born, which turned against the papacy and already in the first third of the 16th century acquired a truly democratic scope. This movement is a religious reformation. It begins with Luther's vigorous sermon and passes through such dramatic events as the formation of the Lutheran Church in the German principalities, the rise of Anabaptism, and the peasant war of 1524-1525; the establishment of Calvinism in Switzerland; the spread of Protestantism in the Netherlands, Scandinavia, England and France; the struggle of the Netherlands for independence (1568-1572); the monstrous religious wars of the first half of the 17th century, which led to the establishment of the ideas of religious tolerance and the separation of church and state; the emergence of a "second generation" of Protestant denominations (Socinians, Pietists, Hernguters, Quakers, Mormons, etc.); English Revolution 1645-1648 The recognized leaders of the Reformation were Martin Luther (1483-1546), Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531) and John Calvin (1509-1564).

There is no doubt that the early Reformation inherited the main initiative of the Renaissance - its personalistic spirit. The Reformation inherited the main initiative of the Renaissance - its personalistic spirit. Continuing the main - personalistic - effort of the humanists of the XIV-XV centuries, the first reformers made an attempt "to create a new doctrine about God, the world and man […] on the basis of free cognitive evidence." The humanists of the Renaissance and representatives of the early Reformation thought were related by the pathos of a free conscience, the idea of returning to the origins (in one case - to the ancient and evangelical, in the other - to the evangelical and patristic); striving for a moral interpretation of Scripture; a deep dislike for scholasticism, dogma and the frozen formulas of church tradition. These coincidences are so obvious that more than once they gave rise to the temptation to articulate the Renaissance and the Reformation in one socio-cultural and spiritual era. But the other side of the problem is no less important. The Reformation is not only a continuation of the Renaissance, but also a protest against it - a resolute, passionate protest, sometimes cast in fanatical formulas of anti-humanism and even misanthropy. To take these formulas under protection would be to abandon a civilized, philanthropic way of thinking. And at the same time, one cannot fail to see that the disagreement between the Reformation and the Renaissance was well founded, and that the very civilized mode of thought owes much to this disagreement. In solidarity with the renaissance recognition of the individual human self, the early reformers categorically rejected, however, the Renaissance generic exaltation of man, his exaltation as a category, as a special kind of being (or - in theological language - as a special kind of creature). In the Renaissance dithyrambs addressed to human perfection (especially expressive, for example, in Marsilio Ficino), they were able to hear the tendency towards the deification of man.

Renaissance (Renaissance)- an era in the history of culture and philosophy, characterized by the restoration of interest in ancient culture and philosophy. In the era of the Middle Ages, antiquity was generally assessed negatively, despite the borrowing of some philosophical ideas. L. Valla called the Middle Ages "dark ages", i.e. time of religious fanaticism, dogmatism and obscurantism. rebirth geographically and chronologically it is divided into southern (first of all, Italy 14-16 centuries) and northern (France, Germany, the Netherlands, 15-16 centuries).

Features of the philosophy of the Renaissance:

- anthropocentrism- the idea of a special "dignity" (place) of a person in the world;

- humanism- in a broad sense: a system of views that recognizes the value of a person as a person, his right to freedom, happiness, development and realization of creative abilities;

- secularization- culture and philosophy acquire a secular character, freed from the influence of theology, but this process did not reach the emergence of atheism;

- rationalism- the conviction in the power of the mind as a means of cognition and the "legislator" of human actions increases;

- anti-scholastic orientation- you need to study not words, but natural phenomena;

- pantheism – philosophy, identifying God and the world;

- interaction with science;

- interaction with artistic culture.

Humanism as a cultural movement of the Renaissance, primarily in Italy, Florence, is divided into "early" ("civil") humanism, 14 - 1st half. 15th c. (C. Salutati, L. Valla, L. B. Alberti, D. Manetti, P. della Mirandola) and "late", 2nd floor. 15th - 16th century (Neoplatonism M. Ficino, neo-Aristotelianism P. Pomponazzi). From the end of the 15th century the humanistic movement moved to the Netherlands (E. Rotterdam), Germany (I. Reuchlin), France (M. Montaigne), England (T. More). Humanism was divided into "secular", distancing itself from religion, and "Christian" (E. Rotterdam); in his ethics, a humanistic understanding of man was synthesized with the ideals of early Christianity. Renaissance natural philosophers: N. Kuzansky, N. Copernicus, D. Bruno, G. Galileo. Social thinkers:N.Machiavelli, T.Campanella, T.Mor.

Cosmology and ontology:

- heliocentrism - the doctrine that not the Earth, but the Sun is the center of the world;

- pantheism;

- the idea of the unity of the universe and its laws;

- idea of the infinity of the universe and plurality of worlds.

Epistemology:

- strengthening the positions of reason, development scientific methods knowledge of nature;

- skepticism- in the philosophy of M. Montaigne: critical examination on the basis of reason, doubts about any ideas, no matter how true they may seem;

- experiment- G. Galileo: the main method of knowing the laws of nature;

- mathematics plays a special role in the knowledge of nature (N. Kuzansky, G. Galileo).

Philosophical anthropology:

- principles of humanism;

- rehabilitation of the bodily principle in a person;

- similarity of the microcosm to the macrocosm- a principle indicating the special status of a person in the world, his ability to know God and the world he created (N. Kuzansky, Mirandola);

- the cult of a creative, comprehensively developed personality.

Ethics:

- secularization of morality- exemption from religious sanction;

- civic humanism- the doctrine according to which participation in public and state affairs is the duty of every citizen;

- civic virtues, ensuring the reasonable subordination of personal interests to public interests in the interests of the common good;

- work- the main factor in human development, a way to realize creative abilities;

- hedonism- getting pleasure as the main goal of human life;

- nobility- a concept that characterizes the dignity of a person not by origin, but by personal qualities and merits;

- idea of Fortune- luck comes only to an active, hardworking person.

social philosophy:

- machiavellianism- a concept that characterizes the socio-political doctrine of N. Machiavelli, set out in the treatise "The Sovereign", that politics and morality are incompatible and that any means can be used to achieve political goals;

- Utopia- in a broad sense: an unrealizable project of an ideal society; in a narrow sense: the name of the work of T. Mora, in which such a project was proposed, along with the work “City of the Sun” by T. Campanella.

Philosophy of history:

- the idea of the laws of historical development, which are developed in the course of the collective historical activity of people, the non-participation of God in the historical process;

- theory of historical circulation- the doctrine according to which all peoples go through approximately the same, repeating stages of development;

- the concept of the role of an outstanding personality in history in connection with the idea Fortune.

Reformation - in broad sense: socio-political, religious and ideological movement in the countries of Central and Western Europe directed against the Catholic Church as a political and spiritual force, against its "secularization", abuses of the Catholic clergy; in narrow sense: revision of the basic tenets of Catholicism, which led to the emergence of a new branch in Christianity - Protestantism. Reformation subdivided into burgher-bourgeois, substantiated in the teachings of M. Luther (Germany), W. Zwingli (Switzerland), J. Calvin (France - Switzerland), and folk, substantiated by T. Münzer (Germany).

Ideologists reformation opposed the "corruption of the church", for a return to "true Christianity of apostolic times", "cleansing" the faith from historical accretions. To achieve this, it is necessary to check the Holy Tradition with the authority Holy Scripture(Bible), to oppose the authority of the Bible to the Catholic Church, to preserve the sacraments, dogmas and rites that are based on the Bible. Protestantism recognized two of the seven sacraments of the Church, abolished the worship of saints, obligatory fasting and most church holidays. Principles:

- "justification by faith"- the principle of the teachings of M. Luther: sincere faith is the only condition for the salvation of the soul, and "good deeds"- only a manifestation of faith, and not a self-sufficient path to salvation;

- "universal priesthood"- the principle of the teachings of M. Luther: clergy and the church are not needed for salvation, any layman is a priest himself, and worldly life is the priesthood;

- "freedom of opinion" (conscience)- the principle of the teachings of M. Luther: the believer has inner freedom, the right to independently interpret the Bible, and not just the Pope;

- predestination- the principle of the teachings of M. Luther: a person does not have free will, the will of God predetermines the life of every person;

- "absolute predestination"- the principle of J. Calvin's teaching: even before the creation of the world, God predestined some people to salvation, and others to death, and no human efforts can change this, but everyone must be sure that he is “God's chosen one”;

- professional activity - in the teachings of J. Calvin: success in it is a sign of God's chosenness, a profession is a vocation, a place of service to God, professional success is valuable in itself, and is not a means of achieving worldly goods;

- worldly asceticism- the principle of the teachings of J. Calvin: a person in Everyday life should be content with only the necessities of life.