Bart Ehrman on gains and losses to Western Civilization due to Christianity

[Sammy Jankis]

Yes, things would have changed and improved in some ways, no matter what.

The Chinese made advances in applied technology, textiles, engineering over two thousand years prior to sustained European contact. Same with the Indians.

What is utterly unique about western civilization is its development of a liberal education, experimental science, formal logic, fine arts and music evolved to an unprecedented level.

That didnt happen anywhere else on the planet, and East Asian nations were quick to copy and adopt western models in education, science, technology as soon as they saw how superior they were to Eastern models. That's not chauvinism, that's just historical fact.

The question is why these developments occurred uniquely in the West. I don't think it was pure chance. People are always a reflection of their history, culture, and geography.

they're not totally unique to the west.

you're just ethnocentric and theocratic.

 

[Dutch Uncle]

What is utterly unique about western civilization is its development of a liberal education, experimental science, formal logic, fine arts and music evolved to an unprecedented level.

That didnt happen anywhere else on the planet, and East Asian nations were quick to copy and adopt western models in education, science, technology as soon as they saw how superior they were to Eastern models. That's not chauvinism, that's just historical fact.

The question is why these developments occurred uniquely in the West. I don't think it was pure chance. People are always a reflection of their history, culture, and geography.

True as history proves.

Not at the time. I can conjecture too along with doing the math. Modern human beings have been around for 300,000 years. Left Africa up to 100,000 years ago and developed language 50,000 years ago. We only know about the past 12, 000 for human civilization. Look how far we've come in the past 3,500 years. There's a lot of time gaps in the timeline. Who's to say those stories of "ancient astronauts" or Atlantis aren't based on previous human civilizations that collapsed due the one or more of the Four Horsemen?

My point is that we shouldn't be patting ourselves too much on the back based on our limited knowledge of our own history. We only know what we know but there's a lot of time gaps that need to be filled in before declaring Western Civilization is the GOAT.

Khan Academy

www.khanacademy.org

• Homo sapiens, the first modern humans, evolved from their early hominid predecessors between 200,000 and 300,000 years ago. They developed a capacity for language about 50,000 years ago.
• The first modern humans began moving outside of Africa starting about 70,000-100,000 years ago.

Neolithic Revolution - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Archaeological data indicate that the domestication of various types of plants and animals happened in separate locations worldwide, starting in the geological epoch of the Holocene 11,700 years ago, after the end of the last Ice Age.

 

[EdwinA]

lol 'well respected'??? By who? 'Respected' like say, Maxine Waters is 'widely respected'?

 

[Sammy Jankis]

Yes, things would have changed and improved in some ways, no matter what.

The Chinese made advances in applied technology, textiles, engineering over two thousand years prior to sustained European contact. Same with the Indians.

What is utterly unique about western civilization is its development of a liberal education, experimental science, formal logic, fine arts and music evolved to an unprecedented level.

That didnt happen anywhere else on the planet, and East Asian nations were quick to copy and adopt western models in education, science, technology as soon as they saw how superior they were to Eastern models. That's not chauvinism, that's just historical fact.

The question is why these developments occurred uniquely in the West. I don't think it was pure chance. People are always a reflection of their history, culture, and geography.

Prussian Education.

straight up Nazi bullshit.

 

[Cypress]

Prussian Education.

straight up Nazi bullshit.

^^ Random thoughts with no relevancy to the truth.

The classic western liberal education included, among other things, logic, rhetoric, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and originated in the Catholic universities and the monastery schools - centuries before there was even a Prussian nation.

 

[Sammy Jankis]

^^ Random thoughts with no relevancy to the truth.

The classic western liberal education included, among other things, logic, rhetoric, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and originated in the Catholic universities and the monastery schools - centuries before there was even a Prussian nation.

that's Greek.

our system is provably nazi-istic and prussian, in that its not really interested in actual knowledge, but creating a compliant mass population, in that it focuses on conformity and moving when bells ring.

I have receipts if you want to get into it.

 

[Cypress]

that's Greek.

Greek knowledge was mostly lost in western Europe after the collapse of the western Roman Empire, and islands of literacy and education were only kept alive in the monasteries. The recovery of Greek knowledge in western Europe was largely due to monasteries, theologians, Christian scholars.

The Greeks did not have universities or school systems. The elite could hire tutors for their children. Aristotle was Alexander the Great's tutor. Universities and monastery schools were the invention of Christianity.

These are just basic historic facts, and it shouldn't cause pain and grievance to a militant atheist like you.

The classical Seven Liberal Arts were taught as part of a Christian education at the Catholic universities and monastery schools.

our system is provably nazi-istic and prussian,

In the late 19th century, America did start copying recent German innovations in technical and scientific education. But on the landscape of the history of Western Civilization that is a very late development, and this entire thread starting with post #1 is framed on the broad historical arc of Western Civilization.

 

[Sammy Jankis]

Greek knowledge was mostly lost in western Europe after the collapse of the western Roman Empire, and islands of literacy and education were only kept alive in the monasteries. The recovery of Greek knowledge in western Europe was largely due to monasteries, theologians, Christian scholars.

The Greeks did not have universities or school systems. The elite could hire tutors for their children. Aristotle was Alexander the Great's tutor. Universities and monastery schools were the invention of Christianity.

These are just basic historic facts, and it shouldn't cause pain and grievance to a militant atheist like you.

The classical Seven Liberal Arts were taught as part of a Christian education at the Catholic universities and monastery schools.

In the late 19th century, America did start copying recent German innovations in technical and scientific education. But on the landscape of the history of Western Civilization that is a very late development, and this entire thread starting with post #1 is framed on the broad historical arc of Western Civilization.

but the Greeks were on the topics you mentioned.

the systemic aspect tho is purely prussian, k-12 compliance bell obedience training for all.

you;re so easy to rebut, butt.