Messianic Moment of 1666: Sabbatai Zevi, the Millenarianism of the „Fifth Monarchy“ and the Origins of Radical Enlightenment

Messianic Moment of 1666: Sabbatai Zevi, the Millenarianism of the „Fifth Monarchy“ and the Origins of Radical Enlightenment

Introduction: Crisis of Eschatological Expectations

The year 1666 entered European intellectual history not only as the date of the Great Plague and the Great Fire of London but also as the culmination of messianic expectations focused on the figure of Sabbatai Zevi. Traditional historiography long isolated Sabbatianism, considering it solely as an internal crisis of Judaism. However, the works of Richard Popkin and monumental studies by Jonathan Israel convincingly demonstrated that this phenomenon was deeply embedded within the broader European context. Through a network of dissenters (non-conformists) in England and the Netherlands, the figure of the Jewish false messiah became a catalyst for discussions extending far beyond theology, paradoxically laying the groundwork for secular cosmopolitanism.

Theoretical Framework and the „Third Force“

Richard Popkin advanced the thesis that in the 17th century there was a „Third Force“ — an intellectual group that was neither part of orthodox scholasticism nor of strict Cartesian rationalism. These were thinkers combining scientific skepticism with a profound interest in biblical prophecies. Jonathan Israel emphasizes that Amsterdam was a unique „melting pot“ where confessional boundaries were blurred. Here, news about Sabbatai Zevi was not seen as heresy but as a potential fulfillment of prophecies shared among the Abrahamic religions.

The central link in this process was Petrus Serrarius — a Dutch theologian and millenarian. Acting as an information hub between the Jewish community in Amsterdam and London’s intellectuals, Serrarius contributed to creating an atmosphere in which Protestants saw Sabbatai Zevi as an instrument of Divine Providence. For many Christians of that time, the return of the Jews to Palestine was a necessary prelude to the Second Coming of Christ, making Zevi’s successes theologically legitimate in the eyes of radical Protestants.

Political Radicalism: Sabbatianism and the „Fifth Monarchy“

The phenomenon of Sabbatai Zevi received particular resonance in England thanks to the ideological climate fostered by the movement of the „Fifth Monarchy Men.“ This radical Puritan sect, active during the English Revolution and Cromwell’s Protectorate, based its teachings on the book of the prophet Daniel. They believed that after the fall of the four earthly monarchies (Babylonian, Persian, Greek, and Roman), the Fifth would come — the kingdom of Christ on earth.

After the Stuart Restoration in 1660, the political hopes of the „monarchists“ collapsed, and the movement went underground, in deep frustration. The appearance of Sabbatai Zvi in 1665–1666 was seen by them as the long-awaited external signal — „Deus ex machina“ — which would destroy the old world order, including the hated Stuart monarchy and the papal throne. In their interpretation, the Jewish messiah was to overthrow the Ottoman Empire, triggering a chain of events leading to the world dominion of the saints. Thus, the interest of English radicals in Zevi was less philosemitic and more revolutionary-political: Jewish mysticism became the fuel for English republicanism.

Baruch Spinoza: the Rational Alternative to Mystical Ecstasy

Amid the messianic hysteria, the figure of Baruch Spinoza, expelled from the Amsterdam Jewish community a decade before Zvi’s rise, takes on special significance. Jonathan Israel emphasizes that Spinozism and Sabbatianism developed within the same socio-cultural context and represented two diametrically opposed responses to the crisis of traditional Judaism and European consciousness as a whole.

While Sabbatianism offered irrational, mystical escapism through miracles and charismatic leaders, Spinoza advocated reason and philosophical monism. The collapse of the Zevi movement (his apostasy into Islam) dealt a crushing blow to rabbinic authority and the faith in prophecies as such. According to Israel, this created the ideal conditions for the acceptance of Spinoza’s ideas. The „Theologico-Political Treatise“ (1670), published shortly after the collapse of Sabbatianism, was read by many disillusioned intellectuals as a manifesto of a new era, where prophets are replaced by philosophers and miracles by the laws of nature. Paradoxically, the failure of Sabbatianism paved the way for Radical Enlightenment.

Henri Oldenburg and Proto-Masonic Networks

A key aspect of the reception of Sabbatianism is the role of scientific communication. Henri Oldenburg, secretary of the Royal Society in London, maintained extensive correspondence with Spinoza, Boyle, and Serrarius, regularly inquiring about the „Jewish Messiah.“ The fact that the secretary of Europe’s leading scientific institution was interested in the Kabbalistic messiah contradicts the popular myth of a strict separation between science and mysticism in the 17th century.

Although Oldenburg died in 1677 and could not physically participate in the founding of the First Grand Lodge in 1717, his activities laid the foundation for this event. Oldenburg was the architect of what Robert Boyle called the „Invisible College“ — a network of thinkers seeking truth beyond confessional dogmas. Esoteric researchers (notably in the works analyzed by Popkin) note that the structure of the Royal Society and Oldenburg’s correspondence networks incorporated elements of the Rosicrucian ideal of „universal reform.“ These intellectual circles, where discussions of physics and eschatology were permitted, became prototypes of the speculative Lodges of Freemasonry. The transition from „operative“ to „speculative“ Freemasonry, completed in 1717, was precisely based on this culture of tolerance, scientific curiosity, and hidden dissent cultivated by Oldenburg’s circle, influenced in part by the philosemitic expectations of the Sabbatian era.

Conclusion

The connection between the English and Dutch Protestants and the Sabbatian movement constitutes a critical node in the intellectual history of early modern times. The interaction between radical Protestantism („Fifth Monarchy“), Jewish messianism, and the emerging new science (Oldenburg circle) created a unique ferment. The failure of Sabbatian hopes discredited eschatological ways of understanding the world, forcing European thinkers to seek new foundations. In this context, Spinoza’s rationalism and the organizational structures that prefigured Freemasonry offered an alternative — to build the „New Jerusalem“ not through miracles but through reason and social construction.