[font:9f9e="]Christianity had become the official
religion of the Roman Empire in the fourth century and had begun spreading
among the Germanic tribes before the fall of Rome. The split of the Roman
Empire into eastern and western halves also resulted in a split within the
Christian Church. The western part, centered in Rome, became Catholic. The
eastern part, centered in Constantinople, became Orthodox. In the seventh
century, one of the last of the world's great religions, Islam, was founded in
Arabia.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]<i>Christianity<i>[/font]
[font:9f9e="]The spread of Christianity among the
barbarians was a powerful civilizing force and helped to ensure that some
vestiges of Roman law and the Latin language carried on in France, Italy,
Spain, and Portugal. Only in England was Roman Christianity subsumed by pagan
beliefs. The Franks became Catholic under Clovis and thereafter spread
Christianity to the Germans across the Rhine. The Byzantines spread Orthodox
Christianity among the Bulgars and Slavs.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]Christianity was brought to Ireland by
St. Patrick in the early fifth century and spread from there into Scotland and
back into England from the north. In the late sixth century, Pope Gregory the
Great sent missionaries into England from the south. Within a century, England
was Christian once again.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]<i>Monasteries<i>[/font]
[font:9f9e="]During the turmoil of the Dark Ages, a
few strongly committed Christians withdrew from society to live as hermits,
usually on the wild and forbidding edge of civilization. Hermits in turn
inspired more conventional priests to pledge vows of poverty and service,
harkening back to the teachings of Jesus Christ.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]Many of these priests formed new
communities of like believers called monasteries. Pope Gregory encouraged the
building of monasteries throughout Christian Europe. In parts of Europe they
became the only remaining centers of learning. Irish monks, for example, are
credited by some with preserving civilization in their monasteries. Irish monks
went out into other parts of Europe to teach and revive an interest in
learning. Monasteries were the main source of educated men who could help
administer government, and many became important assistants to kings.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]In time monasteries grew wealthy with
donations of land, as did the Roman church. Different monastic orders were
founded with different goals. Some kept entirely to themselves, some trained
missionaries to be sent into the wild, some advised the popes on church
doctrine, and others provided important community service such as care for the
elderly, health care, and emergency relief.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]<i>Islam<i>[/font]
[font:9f9e="]Islam was founded in Arabia in the
seventh century by the prophet Mohammed. It spread rapidly and inspired a great
movement of conquest. The political map of North Africa, the Middle East, and
Central Asia changed almost overnight. All of North Africa, the Iberian
Peninsula, the Middle East, Asia Minor, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, parts of
India, Pakistan, and part of Russia became Muslim. During the brief period that
the Islamic Empire remained united, it threatened to accomplish its goal of
converting the entire world to its beliefs. The stability and economic growth
within the new Muslim world brought peace and prosperity far in advance of that
in western Europe of the time. The Muslim culture surpassed even the Byzantines
in art, science, medicine, geography, trade, and philosophy.[/font]
[font:9f9e="]Conflicts between the Muslims and
Christians resulted in the Crusades, a series of attempts by western Christians
to regain the Holy Lands in Palestine.[/font]
Home 
Calendar
