The chief authority for Spinoza's life is the little book by
Johannes Colerus (Kohler), German minister of the Lutheran
congregation at the Hague. This congregation, existing side by
side with the Dutch Reformed Church in freedom and security
much beyond any rights officially allowed to it, was to some



X SPINOZA : HIS LIFE AND PHILOSOPHY

extent under the protection of German Lutheran princes ; and,
for the convenience of Germans residing at the Hague in the
service of the States or otherwise, there was a German minister as
well as a Dutch one. This office was filled by Colerus from 1693
to 1707. The usage of a bilingual ministry was kept up till 1832,
when the last German pastor died. Colerus first published his life
of Spinoza in Dutch, together with a controversial sermon against
Spinozism (Amsterdam, 1705). This original edition, though
not quite so rare as was once supposed, is still extremely rare. It
was almost immediately followed, and for all practical purposes
supplanted, by a French version (La verite de la resurrection de
Jdsus Christ defendue contre B. de Spinoza et ses spectateurs
[sectateurs]. Avec la vie de ce fameux philosophe, tiree, tant de
ses propres Ecrits, que de la bouche de plusieurs personnes dignes
de foi qui Font connu. Par Jean Colerus, Ministre de TEglise
Lutherienne de la Haye. The Hague, 1706. Bibliogr. 90.)
This French version of the life — which unfortunately is far from
accurate, see Freudenthal, p. 250 — has been several times reprinted ;
it is to be found in Paulus' edition of Spinoza, in Saisset's and
Prat's French translations, and at the end of Dr. Ginsberg's edition
of the Letters. An English translation of it appeared in the same
year, which is reprinted at the end of this book, and a German
one in 1723, remarkable for a portrait of Spinoza, in the lettering
of which he is described as "characterem reprobationis in vultu
gerens." There was a later German translation from the original
Dutch, 1734. Many details have been added, corrected, or
cleared up since, but Colerus remains the principal authority.
