How did Spinoza become associated with the Collegiants after leaving the Jewish community?

By 1656, the year of his excommunication from the Jewish community, Benedict de Spinoza had already established acquaintances among the Collegiants, a religious group in Amsterdam that rejected formal creeds and practices.1

The exact nature of his living arrangements following his departure from the Jewish community remains a subject of scholarly debate:

• Collegiant residence: Some scholars suggest that Spinoza lived directly with members of the Collegiants after his excommunication.1
• Alternative residence: Other researchers believe it is more probable that he stayed with Franciscus van den Enden, a political radical and former Jesuit, while teaching at the school van den Enden had founded in Amsterdam.1

Regardless of his residence, Spinoza maintained intellectual ties to the group. In 1661, he was visited by Pieter Balling, a former Collegiant who belonged to a philosophical circle interested in Spinoza’s ideas. It is believed that Spinoza may have helped Balling formulate the text of Het licht op den kandelar, a work that became a standard piece of Quaker theology and utilized terminology later employed by Spinoza himself.1