Faustus Socinus

1630-1660) is the theology of the Socinians, a heretical, yet intellectually sophisticated Protestant sect that originated in Poland through the writings of Faustus Socinus. Although a constant presence in the early-modern age, Mortimer argues that Socinians have not received the scholarly attention they deserve and that "Socinianism needs to be integrated into the broader political and religious landscape of the period, for only then can the real importance of Socinian ideas be understood" (pp.

Edwards, in his various critiques of Reasonableness, suggests that Locke is, if not an atheist, at least a Socinian, a member of, or sympathizer with, the Polish Brethren who followed the theology of Faustus Socinus (1539-1604) and who espoused a number of heretical views.

Tinsley provides separate chapters analyzing Bayle's articles on five major Protestant reformers (Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon, Martin Bucer, John Calvin, and Theodore Beza), six Protestant outsiders (Melchior Hoffman, Sebastian Franck, Sebastian Castellio, Bernardino Ochino, Francesco Stancaro, and Faustus Socinus), and two mutually contrasting Catholics (Desiderius Erasmus and Ignatius Loyola).