Lecture 2 The Challenge to Christian Europe PDF

Lecture 2 The Challenge to Christian Europe From the birth of Christian Europe to the Middle Age  2/23 Political Challenges 1. The Challenge of Religion (lectures 1, 2, 3 on European history) 2. The Cha...

Lecture 2 The Challenge to Christian Europe From the birth of Christian Europe to the Middle Age  2/23 Political Challenges 1. The Challenge of Religion (lectures 1, 2, 3 on European history) 2. The Challenge of Sovereignty (lecture 4 on the European nation state) 3. The Challenge of Checking Power (lecture 5 and 6 on the history and functioning of Democracy) 4. The Challenge of Unchecked Power (lecture 7 on Authoritarianism) 5. Checked Power in Practice (lecture 8 on the Branches of Government) 6. The Challenge of Accurate Representation (lectures 9, 10 and 11 on Ideologies and Political Parties) 7. The Challenge of Fair Representation (lecture 12 on Elections) 8. The Challenge of Freedom beyond the State (lecture 13 on Civil Society)  3/23 This week’s guiding questions What features of the Christian Church were modelled after the Roman Empire? Why were kings obeyed in Medieval Europe? What is the first united Europe? Why? What is the role of religion in politics in Medieval Europe? Mandatory reading: Hirst, chapter 1 Documentary “Story of Europe” Part 2  4/23 Where are we? End of antiquity Beginning of middle ages  5/23 European values Separation of church and politics/state Belief in rationality, empiricism  Christian Europe 6/23 Despite these secular statements, Europe has a strong historical relationship with a particular religion: Christianity Christian: 64% Source: Eurobarometer, 2019  7/23 A challenge to Christian Europe? How central is Christianity to European identity? The role of Christianity in European identity Starts when a small sect of Judaism, local, tribal religion, after centuries of persecution becomes the dominant religion of the Roman Empire.  9/23 Defining Christianity: St. Augustine Reworking of the Greco-Roman ideas in a Christian sense Books: “Confessiones “ and “De Civitate Dei” Two cities/worlds. Man is on a journey to reach the Heavenly City which can only be done by obeying the teaching and rules of the Church, established by Christ, God’s son.  10/23 Turbulent times: the fall of the Roman empire Long decline: from 3rd to 5th century AD Under attack by “barbarians” and marred by internal instability 395 AD: division of the Empire between West and East 410 AD: sacking of Rome by the Visigoths 455 AD: second sacking by the Vandals 476 AD: Fall of the last Roman Emperor  Heir of Rome With the demise of the Roman Empire, the Christian Church became its heir through its: 1. bureaucratic structure: The Church adopted the organizational hierarchical structure of the Roman State: the bishops and the Pope, head of the Church. Became a political player. 2. organizational strength: network of authorities that offered services, protection and security to people 3. civilizing ideology: Christian conversion of old Greco-Roman elites schooled in the ideals of paideia, who needed to redefine themselves. “The church preserves Greek and Roman learning” (Hirst, p.18)  12/23 The first united “Europe” Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire The “barbarians” that brought down the Roman Empire settled and created states. Tribe’s chief gave conquered land to his warriors. “German warriors supported Christianity” (Hirst, p.20) Kings were legitimated by “divine right” and anointed by priests. Charlemagne, a Frankish leader, engaged in expansionist campaigns that led to the establishment of Christianity among all the tribes he subdued. 800 AD: Charlemagne went to Rome to be given the imperial crown by the Pope, as the first in a long line of Holy Roman Emperors  13/23 Carolingian Europe “United Europe” take 1 For the intellectual elites of the West (mostly monks and priests): seemed as though the glory of the former Roman Empire had been resurrected The territories of this Christian Emperor were dubbed “Europe”: Carolingian Europe. Similar to early EU due to its: geography, Greco-Roman roots and Christian religion  14/23 Education spreads Christianity Charlemagne committed to advance the cause of education in his Empire. Education = Christian way of life = better understanding of the Holy Scripture Intention to create an educated elite that would contribute a cultural and religious unity and thus to the better governability and welfare of the empire Carolingian culture: mixture of Christian, Roman and German values: Germanization of Christianity.  15/23 Education Spreads Christianity (cont.) This Roman-Christian ideology became the very essence of civilization. It was implemented through a specific curriculum, taught in Latin which rapidly emerged as the universal language of the time, contributing to the creation of a common European culture. The school attached to the imperial palace in Aachen (Charlemagne’s capital) became an example followed by educational establishments throughout Western and Central Europe.  16/23 Monasteries Creating the “European mind” Fundamental Christian institution Idea: retreat in the private sphere of prayer Monastic communities: seen as places that belonged to God Vows of chastity, obedience and individual poverty (institutional wealth) Monasteries: centers of learning and education, libraries, production of copies of Christian and ancient texts Contributed to Christianization and created the “European mind”  Source: www.indiana.edu First monastery: Benedict of Nursia, a Roman of noble ancestry converted to Christianity. Benedictine rule of prayer and working as well as learning. Hirst, chapter 1 Christian religion is the backbone of the medieval political order Divine right: provides kings with authority since they are militarily weak and dependent on their noblemen, who decide how many soldiers to provide (king does not have an adequate army). Power always fragmented: “Not everything is the king’s” (Hirst, p.19). Land is the private property of nobles. Root of individual rights (contrast with oriental despots who owned everything) and control of government (taxation and budget in the hands of the noblemen).  20/23 The limits: Byzantium Christian expansion continued even after Charlemagne’s death Missionaries spread Roman Christianity going as far as the Baltic and the Balkans. Stopped at the frontier of Byzantium, area controlled by the Eastern Christian Church, headed by the Patriarch of Constantinople, created after the Great Schism of 1054 Catholic - Orthodox Churches  22/23 Roman Christianity: True heirs of Christ Bishop of Rome claimed that Peter, Jesus’ disciple was the first Vicar on Earth and the first bishop of Rome Invention of the “Donation of Constantine”, legitimizing the Western domination of the popes Indeed for Western Europe: Rome and the Pope were the centers of the new spiritual and cultural space.  For the seminar Key concepts: The Roman state model The Christian church Augustine’s two cities Carolingian Europe Medieval education Medieval social structure