Locke against Extremism

Christ, Epistemic Humility, and Toleration

Abstract

This paper brings together three central aspects of Locke’s philosophy—his theology, epistemology, and political theory—to present a more holistic understanding of his thought. I argue that we can find a commonality in these three aspects of Locke’s thought as vested in his view of reason as ‘the Candle of the Lord’, which hinges upon his understanding of the individual’s relation to God and Christ as the mediator. There is a standing debate in Locke-scholarship on the role of God in his political philosophy. Whilst taking Locke’s theological commitments seriously, and siding with Stanton (2012), this paper shows that Locke’s Christian view of human nature, as created in the image of God, yields the foundation of both his humble epistemology and political philosophy. I base this compatibility argument on Connolly’s (2015) definition of Locke’s epistemic humility. I argue that there are no limits to Locke’s conception of reason, rather he thinks that humans are limited by the mediocre state that they live and experience on this level of existence. In this way, there are different degrees of knowledge and Locke is, optimistically, committed to a conception of reason that is by design a sufficient foundation for living a good, moral life. In this way, Locke has more in common with the Cambridge Platonists than Hobbes. I argue this is actualised by the normative aspect of his humble epistemology, that is, toleration. In conclusion, Locke’s philosophy is united by a project of salvation and the outcome of his humble epistemology—toleration—can also help our contemporary understanding of the relationship between the individual and knowledge against extremism and authoritarianism.