When the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity in AD 312 he changed the course of European history in a way that continues to have repercussions to the present day. Adopting those aspects ofthe religion that suited his purposes, he truned Rome on a course from the relatively open, tolerant and pluralistic civilization of the Hellenistic world towards a culture based on the rule of fixed authority - whether that of the Bible, the writings of Ptolemy in astronomy, and of Galen and Hippocrates in medicine. Only a thousand years later, with the Renaissance and the emergence of modern science, was Europe to begin to free itself from the effects of Constantine's decision. The Church, on the other hand, remains hierarchical and authoritarian, and the effects persist to this day of Constantine's establishment of Christianity as a state religion.
- ISBN10 1299019765
- ISBN13 9781299019768
- Publish Date 1 January 2007 (first published 22 August 2002)
- Publish Status Active
- Out of Print 25 February 2015
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Vintage
- Format eBook
- Language English