Spinoza: 6 Reasons for the Excommunication of the Philosopher

A Jewish Portuguese philosopher of the Enlightenment period born and raised in Amsterdam, Baruch Spinoza was excommunicated by the city’s Jewish authorities in 1656. His questioning of the nature of God and the divine origin of the Hebrew Bible had, the community’s leaders believed, crossed the line into heresy. Centuries later, this is considered a formative event in the development of Western Jewish thought. David Ofek’s accessible and fascinating documentary excavates this history, tracing six reasons why Spinoza was kicked out and explains why his unorthodox, profoundly spiritual ideas were revolutionary and remain radical to this day. (New York Jewish Film Festival)