Between Science and Religion: Hermeticism in 17th Century England

This lecture looks at how hermeticism in Early Modern Europe was located at a philosohical nexus between religion and science.

Lecture 4 in the Western Hermeticism series. All the lectures in this series stand alone, and may fruitfully be attended without having attended any of the preceding evenings.

This lecture looks at how hermeticism in Early Modern Europe was located at a philosohical nexus between religion and science. The rise of science and religion brought about the exile of Hermeticism from mainstream European thought. It survived through three main channels: Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry and the magical tradition, later re-emerging at the end of the 19th century. By studying the relations and tensions between these movements in figures such as Francis Bacon, the alchemist Thomas Vaughan, and the underrated magical writer John Heydon, we shall bring this time of transition to life, and point to its contemporary relevance.

James North studied the history of philosophy at Magdalen College, Oxford and the Warburg ‎Institute. His interests include renaissance hermeticism, Elizabethan literature and cryptography. ‎He is editor of the Francis Bacon Society’s website, and its journal Baconiana. He is currently an ‎intelligence analyst, and his previous career involved music and theatre in odd combinations.

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