From the very first pages of the Theological-political Treatise, Spinoza deals with the issue of prophecy with a clear purpose, that is to expunge any possible relation between prophetical language and godly transcendence, in order to prevent that prophecy could become an instrument of domination in the hands of the theocratic power. Anyway, Spinoza also maintains that the prophetic message played a relevant ethical and political role among the ancient people, especially among the Hebrews, since it contributed to create a social bond, based upon the passions and the imaginations of the community. Such an ambivalent peculiarity of prophecy seems to have disappeared in Spinoza’s times, insofar as «we have no prophets in our day» (TTP, chapter 1), but only preachers who make use of popular superstition to strengthen their authority. Actually, we can explain differently this TTP’s statement, by considering a possible influence of the Collegiant movement in Spinoza’s thought, and therefore maintaining that the free prophetic discussion represents the genesis of any process aimed both to liberate individuals from superstition and to resist to non-democratic rules.
