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Sophie's World (pp.162-184) Sophie on the Middle Ages: Chronology of the Decline of the Roman Empire:
The "Dark Ages" The "Dark Ages" is a misnomer
for the period of time between the fall of the Roman Empire and the
Renaissance of the 14th century. The era instead should be considered a
time of germination and growth. For instance, during the 9th c. AD the first church schools were founded, and these schools would develop into the first universities by the 12th. c. AD. Europe produced a rich cultural tradition during the Middle Ages. Think of it as the era of fairy tales and folk songs, of Charlemagne, Joan of Arc, Ivanhoe, and the Pied Piper of Hamlin. It was the era of chivalry, knights and their damsels, of the crusades, of witch burnings, and of monasteries and the great cathedrals.(Gaarder 169) 400- 700 AD These three centuries were
the time of the true Dark Age in Western Europe. After the collapse of
the Roman Empire, the infrastructure of that civilization
disintegrated: not only the great buildings, but also the roads,
aqueducts, sewers, public baths and libraries. International trade
collapsed, and the population declined. People reverted to a local,
barter economy. (Gaarder 169-70) Feudalism Feudalism eventually emerged
as the predominant economic system in this culture wracked by constant
warfare. Wealth was defined purely in terms of land ownership. Noble
landowners offered armed protection to peasants who in turn worked the
lands for no pay. Instead, the peasants "paid off" landowners by
surrendering all of their crops and by laboring on the great master's
building projects. Peasants eventually deteriorated into "serfs":
laborers with no rights who were tied to the land on which they worked,
completely at the service and mercy of the local landowner. The Greater Mediterranean World Three Separate Cultures emerged in the larger Mediterranean world:
Greek philosophy diverged into three streams:
The Renaissance (or rebirth) of European philosophy would await the re-convergence of these three streams of thought in Northern Italy during the 14th c. CE. (Gaarder 171) Medieval Philosophy The great objective of medieval philosophers was the reconciliation of Greek philosophy's emphasis on reason with Christian faith in revelation as the path to truth. Medieval philosophers tried to make knowledge and faith compatible. (Gaarder 172) Sound familiar? You've already written twice before about this kind of philosophical project:
St. Augustine's Solution to the Problem of Evil (354-430 CE) St. Augustine was a North African who lived most of his life in the cities near ancient Carthage. His philosophical quest was to explain how evil could exist in a universe created by a benign God. His answer was to combine Plato's philosophy with Christianity.
Think about how previous thinkers and prophets have struggled with the same philosophical problem:
St. Augustine was not originally a Christian. As a young man, he experimented with the different religions that thrived in his region. At first he was a Manichean: Manichaeism was a religion which asserted that a cosmic war was being waged in the universe between forces of good and evil, light and dark, spirit and matter. But this explanation of evil did not satisfy Augustine: he could not understand how evil could derive from a good source. (Gaarder 172) He turned next to Neo-Platonism which taught that all existence is divine in nature. There is only light-- and the absence of light. St. Augustine sought to reconcile this Platonic notion of good and evil with Christianity. (Gaarder 173) Follow his theological reasoning:
Original Sin and Predestination: The City of God: A Linear Vision of History Through this sequence of thought, St. Augustine built the theology which would dominate Roman Catholicism throughout the Middle Ages. The Universe is divided into the elect and the damned, into the City of God and the City of the World, and the struggle between the two unfolds in the history of civilization. God's triumph is assured. Eventually, the Day of Judgment will come at the end of time, and perfect justice will be achieved.(Gaarder 175) 800-1200 AD During the long Dark Age,
ancient learning was preserved in the scriptoriums of monasteries. In
the 9th c. AD, schools were formed in these convents which eventually
developed into the cathedral schools of the great Romanesque and Gothic
cathedrals of the 11th and 12th c. AD. These schools founded the first
great universities to exist in Europe since Plato's Academy was closed.
(Charles University in Prague, Oxford University in England). (Gaarder 177) In the cathedral schools in Northern Italy during the 12th c. AD, a vital moment in the History of Ideas transpired. Visiting scholars from Islamic Spain lectured on the scientific theories of Aristotle, long lost to Western thought. A new interest in the natural sciences sprang up, and with this interest a new philosophical problem emerged: how can the study of science (which in St. Augustine's view focuses on an irredeemably corrupt world) be reconciled with Christianity? (Gaarder 177) St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274 AD) and the Birth of the Renaissance This Italian monk christianized Aristotle. His synthesis of
knowledge with faith made the study of our world legitimate again and
helped open our culture to the possibility of a Renaissance. Follow his chain of theological reasoning:
The Natural Hierarchy:
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