Dark Ages
The "Dark Ages" is a term used for the time period lasting roughly from AD 450 to 1000. They were the early part of the European Middle Ages. In False conflict: Christianity is not only compatible with Science--it created it Rodney Stark writes:
| “ | Recent historical research has debunked the idea of a "Dark Ages" after the "fall" of Rome. In fact, this was an era of profound and rapid technological progress, by the end of which Europe had surpassed the rest of the world. Moreover, the so-called "Scientific Revolution" of the sixteenth century was a result of developments begun by religious scholars starting in the eleventh century.[1] | ” |
Few written documents and buildings of this time remain. From this it has been concluded that little was accomplished culturally or academically. However, how much was actually achieved, but was destroyed during the migration of nations and was not readily rediscovered.
The "Dark Ages" has also been explained as a period of spiritual darkness when the light of true Christianity was nearly snuffed out by the persecution and killing of millions of Christians and withholding of the Bible truths by organized "religion" which had more of a base in paganism than in Bible teachings.[1]
However, this is a false perception of the period. The so-called 'Dark Ages' was also the period when Christianity spread through much of Europe, bringing enlightenment, knowledge and science. New monasteries were established which were the universities of their day, centres of science, learning, medicine and law, able to communicate with each other by well-developed networks, and capable of diffusing knowledhge with remarkable efficiency. The life of the polymath scholar monk St. Bede is just one example of the intellectual revolution wrought by the spread of Christianity. Bede lived at Jarrow in Northumbria (modern-day north-east England); he was a theologian, historian and scientist, writing and researching prolifically and communicating with scholars across Europe. In later life he gained fame for organising what became known as the Jarrow March, a celebration of Christianity in which local believers marched behind ceremonial banners.
