Photograph: Sainte Chapelle in Paris, France. It was constructed from 1238 - 1248. Photo credit: Nate Boyer.

Introduction

These resources rebut the claim that Christian faith led to a “Middle” (insinuating incomplete) or “Dark Age” in Western Europe, out of which came the “Enlightenment” led by atheist scientists and philosophers freed from the Church. While Christians certainly made mistakes, the narrative arc is entirely wrong.

Western Europe had more peace and economic-technological development than ever, led by Christian monasteries. The Eastern Byzantine and Slavic Christian realms maintained a robust intellectual and cultural inheritance.

By contrast, the Enlightenment was an intellectual dead-end and led to today’s environmental and political crises, along with the resurgence of authoritarianism and tribal-racism checked by Christians for centuries. Also, Christians in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East contributed immensely to their cultures.

Incidentally, the Anastasis Center, therefore, re-examines global Christianity prior to colonialism and the “Enlightenment” — for that, in addition to the resources below, you might be interested in our resources on Church and Empire.

Messages and Resources

The Impact of Jesus

A written message and slides on how Jesus brought about a radical change to human history. Christian faith brought about dramatic improvements in health care and hospitals, abolition, education and schools, science and technology, criminal justice reform, and beauty and the arts. A 15 - 20 minute read.

God as the Foundation of Human Rights

Text of a message from Genesis 1 - 11, which was aware of other Ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean creation stories, and argued against them, as shown by literary analysis.  Topics of disagreement include:  the value of every human being; the relations of humans and God/gods; the reason for catastrophes like the Flood; the resolution or movement. 

Human Dignity: Does Every Individual Matter?

Science, philosophy, existentialism, other religions, and double-predestination based theologies mean that some human beings do not matter. Only a fully Trinitarian theology with a medical substitutionary atonement can provide an adequate foundation.

The Role of Jesus in Revolution and the Pursuit of Justice

A written message, graphics included, on how Jesus inspired twentieth-century non-violent resistance movements around the world, and why. Spotlights Tolstoy in Russia; Gandhi in South Africa and India; Ahn Chang-ho in Korea; the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S.; the Filipino People Power Revolution; Solidarity in Poland; the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia; the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa; the Women’s Movement and Liberia’s Civil War. This is a shining thread of moral clarity, courage, and hope during humanity’s bloodiest century. A 15 - 20 minute read.

Slavery: How the Early Church Got It Right

Presentation given October 2, 2021 to the Reconstruction class. Explores early Christian emancipation and abolition. While Christians did not eliminate all forms of servitude, since servitude for civic penalties, indebtedness, war captivity, and self-indenture persisted, Christians eventually did eliminate what we know as chattel slavery. The presentation examines the Old Testament institution of the Hebrew ebed servant, and the New Testament approach to Greco-Roman modes of servitude. We glance at how colonialism and Trans-Atlantic slavery deformed traditional Christian teaching, mindful that more slavery exists today across the globe than every before, and that in the U.S., indebtedness and incarceration show that we have greatly exaggerated the claims that the U.S. has done better than the Bible on “slavery” and its constellation of challenges.

Slavery in Christianity, Part 1:  Slavery in the Bible, Slavery Today 

Research and slides which explores the Old Testament, then the New Testament. It looks at what the Hebrew "ebed" service meant in context, and then what Greek "duolos" meant and how the New Testament understood the various ways people could enter servitude. It uses a sociological approach, exploring different ways in to becoming an “ebed” or “duolos,” what rights and responsibilities those roles had, and how one could leave and/or escape.

Slavery in Christianity, Part 2:  Abolitionism from the First to Fifteenth Century

Research that demonstrates that, although “slavery” was a complex phenomenon and varied across cultural groups and time periods, Christians understood the Bible as being against chattel slavery, and most other forms as well, and that Christian faith began to abolish slavery immediately, eventually formally abolishing it in northwestern and northern Europe by the 1300’s, despite the political upheavals and rising and falling of various political regimes. I am aware of ups and downs, because kingdoms rose and fell, regimes changed, and governments were not always consistent. Nevertheless, these historical record challenges the narrative that Christianity is ambiguous at best on slavery. Rather, Christianity is the only belief system that has generated abolitionist and anti-trafficking movements. See also Slavery in Islam: From the Seventh to Twenty First Century, which raises serious questions for both Muslims and also secularists who might want to argue that all belief systems are the same, etc.

The Problem of the Body for the Liberal Theory of Personhood: Your Body is Not Just Your Own

A message from 1 Corinthians 6:18 - 20 highlighting how the individualistic view of human bodies does not account for relationality and relational obligations

Christian Faith, Not Secularism, as the Basis for Political Pluralism and Economic Progressivism

A brief outline explaining from both biblical texts and early church precedent why Christian faith leads to a political posture of human rights without theocracy. There is a vision for relational obligations, and principled respect for other religions.

Why Question Atheism from a Political and Moral Perspective?

A presentation on how the Enlightenment tradition gave birth to racist liberal democracies on the one hand, and Marxist communism/state-capitalism on the other.  The Enlightenment tried to dethrone Christian faith from political theory and the Christian church from political power.  Thus, the ideology of the individual and the nation-state went to these two extremes, colored by the presumption of cultural, intellectual, and spiritual superiority that Europeans had about themselves.

Searching for faithful ways of understanding and engaging our political and racial climate? Examine U.S. history from the standpoint of church history. This series of blog posts explore how Christian (mostly Protestant) heresies started and continue to influence our modern political and racial challenges, including in housing, schooling, policing, and business systems. Christians must take responsibility for these heresies in the framework of repentance.  We lead the material in online discussion groups, but you can use the study guide with the blog posts for personal reflection or discussion in your family, church, organization, etc. See the whole course or just the blog posts.

The Church: Topics:

Christian Restorative Justice Critique of the Left: Domestic Policy Topics:

Christian Restorative Justice Critique of the Left: Philosophical Influences: