Nature's God : the heretical origins of the American republic

**Longlisted for the National Book Award.** Where did the ideas come from that became the cornerstone of American democracy?Not only the erudite Thomas Jefferson, the wily and elusive Ben Franklin, and the underappreciated Thomas Paine, but also Ethan Allen, the hero of the Green Mountain Boys, and Thomas Young, the forgotten Founder who kicked off the Boston Tea Party—these radicals who founded America set their sights on a revolution of the mind. Derided as "infidels" and "atheists" in their own time, they wanted to liberate us not just from one king but from the tyranny of supernatural religion. The ideas that inspired them were neither British nor Christian but largely ancient, pagan, and continental: the fecund universe of the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius, the potent (but nontranscendent) natural divinity of the Dutch heretic Benedict de Spinoza. Drawing deeply on the study of European philosophy, Matthew Stewart pursues a genealogy of the philosophical... Drawing Deeply On The Study Of European Philosophy, Matthew Stewart Pursues A Genealogy Of The Philosophical Ideas From Which America's Revolutionaries Drew Their Inspiration, All ... Researched And Documented And Enlivened With Storytelling ... Along The Way, He Uncovers The True Meanings Of 'nature's God,' 'self-evident,' And Many Other Phrases Crucial To Our Understanding Of The American Experiment But Now Widely Misunderstood--dust Jacket Flap. The Dirty Little Screw Of The American Revolution -- Pathologies Of Freedom -- Epicurus's Dangerous Idea -- On The Genealogy Of Nature's God -- Self-evident Truths -- The Pursuit Of Happiness -- The Empire Of Reason -- The Religion Of Freedom. Matthew Stewart. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Longlisted for the National Book Award. Where did the ideas come from that became the cornerstone of American democracy? America's founders intended to liberate us not just from one king but from the ghostly tyranny of supernatural religion. Drawing deeply on the study of European philosophy, Matthew Stewart brilliantly tracks the ancient, pagan, and continental ideas from which America's revolutionaries drew their inspiration. In the writings of Spinoza, Lucretius, and other great philosophers, Stewart recovers the true meanings of "Nature's God," "the pursuit of happiness," and the radical political theory with which the American experiment in self-government began. Discusses how America's revolutionaries--including Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Thomas Paine and Ethan Allen--were inspired by ideas that were ancient and pagan in nature, including the work of Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius and Dutch heretic Benedict de Spinoza