Quote:
Originally Posted by Cantando  [I will pre-empt any possible reply of, Well, it already has!]
Imagine what society would have been like, if Christianity had not taken hold – I mean early on, around 50 AD when the Roman Empire was still going strong. Imagine all the Christians had been thrown to the lions and that was it.
Would Roman society have continued – with Gladiatorial games, worshipping other Gods, etc?
Would Attila the Hun have invaded Rome and taken over Europe and created his own empire?
Would we have evolved naturally to become more humane, loving and compassionate eventually, or would it have remained as a dog-eat-dog, ruthless, militaristic world where power and might were the only things worth striving for (pre-empt again: Well, it's like that now!)?
Would Buddhism have spread over from the East? Might Islam have taken over the western world?
Any imaginative, visionary storytellers out there? |
You seem to put a lot of stock in the impact Christianity as a form of religeon had on the development of Western Culture.
I believe you overestimate it's worth.
Perhaps The Church could be credited with (or blamed for depending on your particular point of view) what you describe, but the belief in Christ as God had very little impact in and of itself (other than to create the foundation for a new proselytizing cult).