Cicero On The Nature Of The Gods book 2 - Providence And Human Beings - Sadler's Lectures

28/09/2025 16 min
Cicero On The Nature Of The Gods book 2 - Providence And Human Beings - Sadler's Lectures

Listen "Cicero On The Nature Of The Gods book 2 - Providence And Human Beings - Sadler's Lectures"

Episode Synopsis

This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher and statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero's work, On The Nature Of The Gods, which critically examines Epicurean, Stoic, and Skeptic perspectives on matters of theology and cosmology

Specifically it focuses upon the presentation of Stoic cosmology and theology by Quintus Lucilius Balbus in book 2, and in particular on his discussion of how divine providence can be seen in the nature and capacities of human beings, including how the parts of our bodies are arranged, the scope of our senses and their perception, our capacities for reasoning and understanding, and the use of our hands to engage in using tools and altering nature to suit us better.

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