| In the period 1670-1740 received opinions on religion and the state in the Dutch Republic changed almost beyond recognition. Theological rivalries and political factionalism were brought under control. Rather than a Weberian disenchantment, republican bureaucracy and secularization, the process resulted in a flowering of pietisms and a renewed Orangism. Ernst Troeltsch's theories on the modernization of religion around 1700 and its contribution to modernity provide useful tools to describe the indicated changes. But HOW could hegemonic discourse change in a strongly decentralized society, where public opinion was severely limited -? especially on politics and religion? The project focusses on 'communicative spaces' where current affairs could be held up for examination and debate, testing new ideas without directly challinging recieved orthodoxies and legitimate authorities, and without involving the general public. Allegorical print, pamphlets, historical treatises, correspondence networks, and devotional works provided such spaces. This project aims at elucidating how a public sphere emerged, where new insights from natural and political philosophy, the study of antiquity and exotic cultures gradually transformed religious and national identities in an ongoing conversation by cultural intermediaries between radical innovators and established authorities. |
