Editing Openai/6923f6d0-6398-800f-88a6-895979bdbe94 (section)

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# Wars and structural violence
* Europe in the 17th century inherited the direct consequences of Crusades and religious wars (Protestant–Catholic).
* Violence, fear, and political instability were part of daily life.
* Cities constantly faced siege, pillage, and political strife.
* Even relatively “free” Amsterdam experienced external threats and economic competition.
# Church dominance and religious monopoly
* Churches acted as political and judicial authorities: Inquisition, excommunication, censorship.
* Any philosophical dissent was a direct threat to their power.
* People experienced religion through madhhab, not through personal spiritual engagement.
# Economy and social classes
* Europe’s economy was largely feudal and land-based; markets were limited and regulated.
* Urban middle classes (like Sephardic Jews in Amsterdam) faced economic and social pressure.
* Innovators had to constantly balance survival with intellectual freedom.
# Culture and education
* Spinoza grew up in a Sephardic Jewish family, recently exiled from Spain and Portugal.
* Education was rigorous but conservative: Torah, Jewish philosophy, rabbinical theology.
* The environment offered cultural security but intellectual constraint.
# Impact on Spinoza’s intellectual development
* Exposure to instability, violence, and censorship led him to see reason and naturalism as alternatives to official religion.
* Personal experiences of excommunication, social isolation, and opposition to religious authority directed his thinking toward God = Nature and ethics independent of madhhab.

Conclusion:
Spinoza was a product of a Europe full of war, violence, censorship, church domination, and social–economic pressure.
Without understanding this context, his philosophy appears abstract, but in reality, it is deeply shaped by social, political, and religious wounds.