Book Review [155] : The Darkening Age - Catherine Nixey

In the book 'The Darkening Age' written by Catherine Nixey (born to Christian Monk and Nun parents), the writer talks about complete annihilation of classical Greco-Roman civilization by the Christian order over a period of 200 years. The glorious Greco-Roman civilization is now called a Pagan civilization and almost all contemporary historians celebrated the destruction of classical civilization. Every temple was destroyed, the great Parthenon was destroyed, the great Idols were first mutilated and then burned before great mass of applauding Christians. The great Mathematician Hypatia was murdered brutally in broad day light in Alexandria in 415 AD. In 315 AD Christianity was declared the religion of Empire by Emperor Constantine. By end of 4th century almost all temples and symbols of Pagan religion were destroyed. Millions of books were burned and millions were overwritten. All the early Christian saints including St. Augustine called old Pagan religion as demonic and it deserved complete destruction. The great saints of contemporary Christianity led the zealot followers and publicly destroyed 'Pagan' Temples and libraries. The famous Roman baths were condemned and so were the free spirit of Romans. The Homosexuality was considered sin and was out-rightly banned. 

Idols of Aphrodite, Athena, Zeus, Apollo etc were mutilated and some were even baptized with cross on their heads. 

History is written by conquerors and conquered people have no say in it. We don't know how 'Pagans' and their philosophers fought back. Their stories are not known and possibly lost for ever. In todays era there are hardly any Pagan left. The liberal and tolerant Polytheistic Greco-Roman religion was completely vaporized by the violent intolerance of Monotheism and this Monotheism did not take any prisoner. It was a complete takeover. Though Polytheistic religion lost politically and theologically the cultural mores were hard to die. The Western civilization ( almost completely Christian now) celebrates - the heroism of Pagan Alexander, Julius Caesar etc, - the philosophy of Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Cicero etc - the ancient architecture and art of that period, the Olympics etc. This is the ultimate victory of Pagan Europe. 

The story of encounter of Pagan Europe with Christianity is pretty similar to our own encounter with Arabs and Turks. Perhaps someone will write on this with same audacity and clarity. 

Highly Recommended Book (10/10)