A world without Christianity

[Fidel_Castronaut]

Thanks for persecuting us for over 2 thousand years, guys. We're really greatfull that between abuse at the hands off Muslims and abuse at the hands of christians, you guys took it upon yourself to be the executioner to save us the hassle of deciding.

Seriously. Thanks for that.

Who's we. As was pointed out in another thread, atheists were never a group (hence little mention of Stalin) so you have nothing in common with the atheists that may have been persecuted ( Though I doubt anyone professed atheism in the middle ages)

Who on earth gave you that idea?

Atheists are united by a single concept; lack of belief. I have that one thing in common with every other atheist.

And seeing as the benchmark for large swathes of European theology throughout the middle ages was a dick waving contest between those competing theological paradigms, being an atheist was generally pretty bad for your health.

I mean, re: bold - Did you mean to undermine your own retort or were you trying to be nonconformist in an ironic fashion? Oh dear oh dear.

:|

For the record, I don't disagree with some of the points you raise in your OP, however as it's all effectively extrapolation based on little data, it's impossible to say either way. Some things may have been better, some may have been worse. It's impossible to tell without a crystal ball. I agree with whoever else said that trying to divorce the political and spiritual impact of christianity from European development is an impossibility.

One thing you missed out in your list, probably singularly the most important thing christiainty ever did the for the development of the modern world, was invent and implement secularism; Cuius regio, eius religio.