The Darkening Age: The Christian Destruction of the Classical World, by Catherine Nixey
Catherine Nixey is angry, and she doesn't do a very good job of hiding it. She is a classicist, someone who studied the literature, art, and history of the people who lived before Jesus Christ was born and his followers came to rule much of the Western world. And though her parents were devout Catholics, Nixey's attitude toward Christianity, or at least early Christians, is decidedly cynical. Her work in this book is important, but could have been a bit less antagonistic.
As Christianity slowly spread across the Roman Empire, the changes it wrought were often quite violent, amounting to what we might now term a terrorist or guerilla warfare against the state and its pagan citizens. While some Romans were certainly believers, many were far more concerned about philosophy than theology. Religious fervor of any kind would have seemed distasteful, though of course the gods were to be generally respected and worshipped. Rationality and logic were highly valued, and many believed that this life was the only one life, so we might as well enjoy it. Romans did have social mores, as any culture does, but they were nearly diametrically opposed to the new Christian view of morality.
To these Christians, hell and the devil were very real entities. Demons were everywhere, inspiring evil thoughts and deeds, doing everything in their power to damn our souls to eternal fire. The body was a mere husk, more dangerous than anything else, and suffering was the only true path to heaven. The history of the early desert monks is astonishing: these men and women barely ate or slept, wore hair shirts, lived in caves or on top of columns, all to assure their place at God's side in heaven. Such religious devotion was in itself an oddity in the classical world.
Then there was the destruction. Temples, shrines, and statues to the Roman gods were anathema, deemed false idols and often accused of housing actual demons. In attack after attack, Christians systematically destroyed some of the greatest works of art the world has ever seen, gleefully mutilating gods and goddesses, and, worst of all, burning as many pagan books they could find. Philosophy, poetry, science - all went to the fire. The few works we have now represent about 1% of the total intellectual output of the classical world.
Nixey does not hold back in describing this orgy of violence and the horror with which educated pagans must have watched it happen. Her point is not that Christianity is a violent, destructive religion at its core, but rather that it didn't take long for people to use it as a means of gaining power. The Roman Empire, and the Greek civilization before it, had reached a point of sophistication where art and education were the greatest goods a man could possess. The early Christians valued only their souls, to the detriment of everything else, and were so intolerant of other viewpoints that they destroyed them wholesale. While I certainly think this is an important work, and Nixey is right to shine light on this oft-misrepresented era, the book cannot be said to be truly academic. She is obviously biased; she feels very strongly about the revisionist view of history the church has presented as fact. Though her passion makes for good reading, I'd imagine it would also make some Christians rather uncomfortable. Nixey has one line in her prologue about how this isn't a condemnation of Christianity or Christians, but it certainly does read that way. I'm the least religious person I know, but even I thought her tone was a bit more strident than necessary. Also, do we really need 80 pages on statue smashing? It was a bit much.
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As Christianity slowly spread across the Roman Empire, the changes it wrought were often quite violent, amounting to what we might now term a terrorist or guerilla warfare against the state and its pagan citizens. While some Romans were certainly believers, many were far more concerned about philosophy than theology. Religious fervor of any kind would have seemed distasteful, though of course the gods were to be generally respected and worshipped. Rationality and logic were highly valued, and many believed that this life was the only one life, so we might as well enjoy it. Romans did have social mores, as any culture does, but they were nearly diametrically opposed to the new Christian view of morality.
To these Christians, hell and the devil were very real entities. Demons were everywhere, inspiring evil thoughts and deeds, doing everything in their power to damn our souls to eternal fire. The body was a mere husk, more dangerous than anything else, and suffering was the only true path to heaven. The history of the early desert monks is astonishing: these men and women barely ate or slept, wore hair shirts, lived in caves or on top of columns, all to assure their place at God's side in heaven. Such religious devotion was in itself an oddity in the classical world.
Then there was the destruction. Temples, shrines, and statues to the Roman gods were anathema, deemed false idols and often accused of housing actual demons. In attack after attack, Christians systematically destroyed some of the greatest works of art the world has ever seen, gleefully mutilating gods and goddesses, and, worst of all, burning as many pagan books they could find. Philosophy, poetry, science - all went to the fire. The few works we have now represent about 1% of the total intellectual output of the classical world.
Nixey does not hold back in describing this orgy of violence and the horror with which educated pagans must have watched it happen. Her point is not that Christianity is a violent, destructive religion at its core, but rather that it didn't take long for people to use it as a means of gaining power. The Roman Empire, and the Greek civilization before it, had reached a point of sophistication where art and education were the greatest goods a man could possess. The early Christians valued only their souls, to the detriment of everything else, and were so intolerant of other viewpoints that they destroyed them wholesale. While I certainly think this is an important work, and Nixey is right to shine light on this oft-misrepresented era, the book cannot be said to be truly academic. She is obviously biased; she feels very strongly about the revisionist view of history the church has presented as fact. Though her passion makes for good reading, I'd imagine it would also make some Christians rather uncomfortable. Nixey has one line in her prologue about how this isn't a condemnation of Christianity or Christians, but it certainly does read that way. I'm the least religious person I know, but even I thought her tone was a bit more strident than necessary. Also, do we really need 80 pages on statue smashing? It was a bit much.
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