Research On Religion » paganism

Jim Papandrea on Christianity’s Seven Revolutions

tonygill — Sun, 22 Mar 2015 08:00:43 +0000

What difference does a religious tradition make? If it is Christianity, Prof. Jim Papandrea of the Garrett-Evangelical Seminary at Northwestern University says it matters a great deal. Jim returns to our show for the third time (hat trick) and discusses his new book Seven Revolutions: How Christianity Changed the World and Can Change It Again, coauthored with Mike Aquilina. The general thrust of the book is that Christian theology introduced to the world (at least) seven new ways to envision human society, starting with the individual person and proceeding up through the state.

Jim starts us off by listing the seven great revolutions introduced by Christian thought, including how we look at: the person, the home (and gender roles), work (and the laborer), religion, community, death, and (finally) the state. He also notes how Christianity promoted a “God of love” that opened the door to an inclusionary religion that shaped all of these critical areas. We then look into the fourth revolution — religion — more closely and Jim notes that although based upon a Judaic foundation, Christianity opens the door to proselytizing and including all peoples into one single religion. This has a major impact on how individuals and neighbors are conceived, and will impact the how early Christians opened the door to new thinking on government. We cover the reaction to this new message amongst the Romans of the day, which wasn’t always welcoming. Persecutions were common, yet Christianity kept growing culminating in its final acceptance under the Edict of Milan (313 CE). Jim discusses the role that Constantine played in this process and notes that the Edict of Milan, contrary to the notion that it established Christianity as the official church, was really the world’s first document on religious liberty. This springboards us into another one of Jim’s seven revolutions regarding the role of the state. Here we spend some time talking about how Christianity changed the notion of sovereignty by not placing the “person at the top of the governing pyramid” as the ultimate authority, but rather noting that God is a separate authority. Jim discusses how this translates into the role of citizen sovereignty and how it relates to the foundation of the US government some 230 years ago. We also take time to cover the revolutions of community (“love thy neighbor”) as well as how Christianity developed the concept of human dignity for all and how this helped change views on labor and family roles, not to mention the topics of euthanasia, abortion, and infanticide (practices common in the Roman Empire).

Our conversation ends with some reflection on Christianity in the “post-Christian era.” Jim qualifies that term by noting that there have been moments in history that have looked dire for the demise of the Christian faith, but he raises concern about a secular ethos that may be returning our culture towards the mindset of the pre-Christian era. We ruminate about the role that violent sport and reality TV (a form of entertainment that relishes in humiliation) and what role Christianity can play in addressing the contemporary culture. Jim ends on an optimistic note by asserting that Christianity is always primed for a revival and that by joining together across denominational lines, Christianity can remain highly relevant in the world. Recorded: March 17, 2015.

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part II

tonygill — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 08:00:57 +0000

What path did Christianity take following Emperor Constantine’s Edict of Milan in 313? We address this question with Prof. Rodney Stark, co-founder and co-director of Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion. This interview is the second in our three part series examining Prof. Stark’s book, The Triumph of Christianity. We begin by looking at what effects the Edict of Milan had on Christianity, including both the benefits and drawbacks. A discussion of the downside of becoming an official state religion brings us to a discussion about the Church of Power, where clerical offices were often held for personal gain, and the Church of Piety (e.g., monasticism) that pushed back against institutional corruption. We also note how the level of religious practice among the European peasantry has been exaggerated during this period and what implications that holds for secularization theory. Both elements were in play during the medieval era. We then examing whether or not the “Dark Ages” were really that “unenlightened” or merely a caricature imposed upon that time by thinkers such as Voltaire. Rod argues that Europe actually flourished after the collapse of the Roman Empire and Christianity was a big part of economic and moral progress during the millenium stretching from the 5th century to the 15th century. We discuss the Church’s role in ending slavery as well as its support for scientific inquiry. Galileo becomes a topic for our discussion as Prof. Stark demonstrates why this renowned scientist was actually censured by the Church … and it wasn’t because of his scientific theories, but rather how he presented them. We finish off by looking at religious dissent, touching briefly on witchcraft and the Protestant Reformation, which brings us to the topic of the Spanish Inquisition, which Prof. Stark also notes has been badly misrepresented in some academic circles. Recorded: March 2, 2012.

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part 1

tonygill — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:00:54 +0000

In 2012, Christians represented roughly 2.8 billion people (or 40%) of the world’s 7 billion inhabitants. How did a small group of individuals representing what could be considered a Jewish sect on the outskirts of the Roman Empire succeed in become the world’s largest faith tradition. Prof. Rodney Stark, co-director of Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, discusses his new book The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World’s Largest Religion. While that books spans over 2000 years of world history, our focus is on the century leading up to “Christmas Eve” (Christ’s birth) and the three hundred years that followed. Prof. Stark details the religious landscape of the Roman Empire at that time, starting with the sectarian nature of Judaism and then discussing what paganism was all about and how there was a tendency towards monotheism and what implications that had for Christianity. We then discuss several other sociological factors that played a role in the expansion of Christianity, including the role of mercy (and health care), the paradoxical effects of persecution, the surprising socio-economic status of early converts, and the important role that women played in the early Church. Rod also discusses some recent understandings of who Jesus was and why this mattered. We finish with the conversion of Constantine and Rod hints at what consequences this had for the medieval Christian Church, which will be a topic of future conversation. Recorded: January 6, 2012.