Conscience

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Conscientarii (Latin: Conscientarii ) is the name of an alleged sect whose support Matthias Knutzen , a German free spirit of the 17th century, appealed. He stated that this sect had over 700 members in Jena alone, and that it also existed in Hamburg, Paris, Amsterdam, Rome and other places.

When Matthias Knutzen came under pressure from the authorities in Jena, he moved to Altdorf , the university of the imperial city of Nuremberg , in September 1674 , without being able to achieve success here either. In fact, it is doubtful whether Knutzen had followers at all, not to mention a sect of the alleged size.

More important than this question are the spiritual historical roots of Knutzen: In the rejection of the Christian revelation belief, a certainly atheistic attitude, Knutzen ties in with ancient atheism . In its emphasis on personal conscience and reason as the exclusive moral authority, the influence of neoicism can be assumed. Knutzen is also certainly influenced by Socinianism and took up its more widely understood ideas of tolerance in order to reject the claims of the Christian churches with it. An external element of this connection lies in the choice of Altdorf, at whose university the Socinian Ernst Soner taught at the beginning of the 17th century .

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