Nature's God: The Heretical Origins of the American Republic, ch 7

This will be our last meeting on Nature's God: The Heretical Origins of the American Republic, by Matthew Stewart. For this meeting, please read:
Chapter 7: The Empire of Reason

Where did the ideas come from that became the cornerstone of American democracy?
America’s founders intended to liberate us not just from one king but from the ghostly tyranny of supernatural religion. Drawing deeply on the study of European philosophy, Matthew Stewart brilliantly tracks the ancient, pagan, and continental ideas from which America’s revolutionaries drew their inspiration. In the writings of Spinoza, Lucretius, and other great philosophers, Stewart recovers the true meanings of “Nature’s God,” “the pursuit of happiness,” and the radical political theory with which the American experiment in self-government began.
LINK

I recommend using an AI tool like ChatGPT to ask these questions:

• What does Matthew Stewart say about the empire of reason in his book Nature's God?

I hope to see you there!

Fred