Download or read book Lessing: Philosophical and Theological Writings written by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2005-02-17 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gotthold Ephraim Lessing is the most representative figure of the German Enlightenment. His defense of Spinoza, who had traditionally been condemned as an atheist, provoked a major controversy in philosophy, and his publication of Reimarus' radical assault on Christianity led to fundamental changes in Protestant theology. This volume presents the most comprehensive collection in English of Lessing's philosophical and theological writings, several of which are translated for the first time.