Infinite Existence : A Study of Spinoza's God

Abstract

The essay gives an interpretation of Spinoza’s God. It argues that Spinoza’s God can be viewed as the principle of infinite existence. Therefore, everything there exists is necessarily in contact with this infinity, and thus the manner of being in contact with God is rendered actual by existing within existence itself. This means that Spinoza’s God cannot be understood without being in contact with the world. In other words, understanding God does not happen by the axioms and propositions within the system of the Ethics, it happens by being in contact with existence itself.

In addition to this, the interconnectedness of everything is emphasised, and also the inseparable nature of the finite modes in relation to the substance, that is, to God. The idea is that the substance wouldn’t be the substance it is without its modes. It doesn’t require this or that particular mode – because the modes are not eternal – but it requires all of them, each in their own place and order. To alter the nature of any mode in the slightest of ways is to alter the nature of the substance as well. Therefore, the substance is connected to its modes in the most intimate manner, and so, the alleged gap between God and his creations becomes rather vague.