Ancient Worlds Western Civilization

The Western literary canon has come to epitomize the official—and sometimes controversial—list of works that every educated person should know. Among its more than 3,000 works are the Odyssey, Beowulf, Hamlet, and War and Peace—all of which have stood the test of time to become essential aspects of Western culture and our reading lives. Even if you haven't read some of them, you've undoubtedly heard of them—their mere titles are synonymous with greatness.

The series explores influences of discoveries and shared knowledge on the perception of the Universe and man’s place in it. It looks at times when new knowledge or discoveries has altered that thinking and explores the cultural changes those discoveries effected. The primary focus is on the effect of advances in science and technology on western philosophy. James Burke tells the various stories of important scientific discoveries and technological advances and how they fundamentally altered how western civilization perceives the world.

The early Christian claim that Jesus of Nazareth was God completely changed the course of Western civilization. In fact, without the Christian declaration of Jesus as God, Western history as we know it would have never happened.

Phillip Cary
Eastern University
Ph.D., Yale University

Phillip Cary is the Director of the Philosophy Program at Eastern University in St. Davids, Pennsylvania. He is also a scholar-in-Residence at the Templeton Honors College.
He received his undergraduate training from Washington University (St. Louis) with a double degree in English literature and philosophy. He earned his M.A. in philosophy and a Ph.D. in philosophy and religious studies from Yale University…
Long before he was declared a saint by the Church, Augustine gained profound influence as both a Church Father and a Christian Platonist philosopher—defending the doctrine of the Trinity, defining the epochal idea of religious grace, delving into the inner relationship between God and soul, and much more.
Today, according to Professor Phillip Cary, Augustine is recognizable even to non-Christians as the most important Christian writer outside of the Bible.
Yet Augustine was also a man—a rhetorician trained in the Roman way whose life and discovery of his calling make for one of the most fascinating stories in the history of religious philosophy.