Biography

Ralph Cudworth was born in England in 1617. He studied philosophy and theology at Emmanuel College in Cambridge. Earning several degrees including a Doctorate of Divinity, he not only preached but also held a variety of leadership roles in educational institutions. Perhaps he is most famous for the formation of the Platonist School where theology and philosophy were melded through the ideas proposed by Plato. Emphasis was on man’s free will and shunning of materialism. His trilogy of   The True Intellectual System of the Universe, A Treatise Concerning Eternal and Immutable Morality, and A Treatise on Freewill best describes the basis for this school of thought. Cudworth also published many of his sermons which expounded his Platonist beliefs. Upon his death in 1688, Cudworth was buried in Christ’s College’s chapel.

Wailand Groenendyk
CCEL Staff Writer