How Did Christianity Influence Western Civilization

713 Words3 Pages
The religion Christianity has been a part of our history from the beginning of time. Christianity has always been historically intertwined with Western civilization. Through its long history, the church has been a major influential source of fundamentals and principles. Given alternative religious possibilities, Western societies are well advised to recover their religious roots in a cultural tradition informed by Jewish and Christian beliefs. Western ideas of human rights and also the primary idea of human freedoms have their basis in these beliefs. In Christian teachings each person is a part of God’s everlasting love and that human freedom has its foundation in the relationship with God through faith. Each human person is created in the…show more content…
The Bible and Christian theology have also strongly influenced Western philosophers and political activists. The teachings of Jesus, such as the Parable of the Good Samaritan, are among the important sources for modern notions of Human rights and the welfare measures commonly provided by governments in the West (Role of the Catholic Church in Western Civilization). Long held Christian teachings on sexuality and marriage have also been influential in family life (Role of Christian church in civilization). Also the many basic morals of what are considered to be right are wrong are based off of biblical principles, for example the Ten Commandments. Christianity also influenced Western Civilization with the creation of public holidays that were based off of religious…show more content…
The effect of Christianity on states is also insightful. In its early days, Christianity was viewed by the emperor of Rome as a political force and a danger of the empire, therefore there were many Christians were persecuted in the Roman Empire. These cultures had slowly merged with the Western culture after the majority of the people representing these cultures had changed to Christianity. Christianity plays an important role in Western civilization. For example Christianity’s contribution to culture is great. From architecture and literature to music and the visual arts, Christianity's impact in western culture is extremely important (Impact of Christianity on the World). Christianity also contributed to philosophy through the ideas of St. Thomas Aquinas. Also, without the help of monasteries all over Christian Europe, ideas wouldn't be well-kept. Judaism contributed not so much to Western civilization but Christianity came from Judaism. In the 1800’s Christianity became less important in society. This is when Charles Darwin brought about his ideas of evolution and natural selection. Evolution is the belief that humans came from primates. Also Darwinism followed the ideal of survival of the strongest. This ideal meant that weaker species or persons would not survive. These ideas completely went against all Christian beliefs but Darwin and other

More about How Did Christianity Influence Western Civilization

Open Document