Saving the Philosopher’s Soul: The De pietate Aristotelis by Fortunio Liceti

The De pietate Aristotelis erga Deum et homines (1645) by Fortunio Liceti is a one-of-a-kind text. In this book Liceti claimed that Aristotle converted to Judaism, and that he never contradicted the Scriptures in his writings. At a time when competing philosophical and scientific schools put Aristotle at odds with faith, restoring his reputation from a religious point of view could be seen as key to safeguarding Peripateticism. Nonetheless Liceti composed his work not to polemicize with anti-Aristotelians, but rather with fellow Aristotelians who were not sufficiently committed to defending his stature.