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Learner Reviews & Feedback for A Journey through Western Christianity: from Persecuted Faith to Global Religion (200 - 1650) by Yale University

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693 ratings

About the Course

This course follows the extraordinary development of Western Christianity from its early persecution under the Roman Empire in the third century to its global expansion with the Jesuits of the early modern world. We explore the dynamic and diverse character of a religion with an enormous cast characters. We will meet men and women who tell stories of faith as well as of violence, suppression, and division. Along the way, we encounter Perpetua and her martyrdom in Carthage; the struggles of Augustine the bishop in North Africa; the zeal of Celtic monks and missionaries; the viciousness of the Crusades; the visions of Brigit of Sweden; and the fracturing of Christianity by Martin Luther’s protest. We hear the voices of great theologians as well as of those branded heretics by the Church, a powerful reminder that the growth of Christianity is a story with many narratives of competing visions of reform and ideals, powerful critiques of corruption and venality, and exclusion of the vanquished. The troubled history of Christian engagement with Jews and Muslims is found in pogroms and expulsions, but also in the astonishing ways in which the culture of the West was transformed by Jewish and Islamic learning. We shall explore the stunning beauty of the Book of Kells, exquisitely prepared by monks as the Vikings terrorized the coast of England. We will experience the blue light of the windows of Chartres, and ponder the opening questions of Thomas Aquinas’ great Summa. We will read from the Gutenberg Bible of the fifteenth century, which heralded the revolution brought by the printing press. We will travel from Calvin’s Geneva to Elizabeth’s England to Trent, where a Catholic Council met to inaugurate a modern, missionary Catholic church. We will walk through the great Escorial of Philip II of Spain, hear the poetry of John of the Cross, and follow the Jesuits to Brazil and China. Christianity in the West was forged in the fires of conflict and tumult, and it brought forth both creativity and violence. It echoed with calls for God’s world to be transformed, it inspired the most sublime art and architecture, yet it also revealed the power of the union of cross and sword to destroy. The course is a journey through the formation of the West as one strand of Christianity, as one chapter in a global story. It is a journey that has shaped our world....

Top reviews

MD

May 5, 2023

Loved the course. Engaging content, Prof Gordon and team were able to condense complex ideas into key concepts and figures.

AB

Jan 2, 2021

Thank you so much for offering this course for free. It was a great way to learn and understand the complicated history of my faith as it maneuvered the world around it that I was never aware of.

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101 - 125 of 214 Reviews for A Journey through Western Christianity: from Persecuted Faith to Global Religion (200 - 1650)

By monideepa m

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Aug 24, 2020

I learnt a lot about the birth, growth, and spread of Christianity in the world from Asia.

By Daniel A R D

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Jul 12, 2019

Fue un curso genial, sin embargo con una visión parcializada de la historia de la iglesia.

By Neil K

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Apr 17, 2018

Just superb. Engaging lucid speakers, vast scope of subject matter, lucidly spoken about.

By Jeffrey H

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Sep 5, 2021

Excellent, concise, and interesting summary of the growth and expansion of Christianity.

By Keith H

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Jun 17, 2020

Wonderful course, informative, engaging and the art used in the lectures was supreme!

By Neelam P

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Mar 26, 2018

Great course to get you introduced to the first Millenia of Christianity in the west!

By Gladys N G D

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Jul 6, 2020

MUY BUENO. ME GUSTO MUCHO. VIAJE EN EL TIEMPO Y POR LOS LUGARES QUE NOS MOSTRARON.

By Adriana A

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Oct 1, 2017

It was a great course! I enjoyed it a lot, it helps me to understand many things.

By barton f

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May 16, 2017

Not only an excellent survey, but ties the "threads" together, making Christianit

By bernard y

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Apr 26, 2017

A very good course! Thank you so much for putting the rich contents all together!

By FRANK A

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Jul 18, 2020

A very interesting that covers the whole topic of Church History extremely well

By Beatriz m d

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Sep 8, 2024

Es un curso excelente.Una gran lección de la historia a través de la religión.

By Christal B

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Aug 9, 2020

Excellent source for Church History and strengthening of your Christian Faith.

By Soon H Y

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Jul 10, 2017

an eye opener and a great point of reference conducted by an excellent team

By Karen T

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Mar 6, 2023

An excellent overview of religion. The detail was very well moderated.

By Ana C J

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Feb 18, 2021

A course with lots of useful and interesting content! Congratulations!

By Carlos N

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Oct 16, 2020

Simply good I learned a lot about the history of the Church, thank you

By Alfredo G

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Mar 5, 2024

Un excelente curso para conocer sobre el desarrollo del cristianismo.

By Sophie L

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Sep 28, 2017

Wonderful course! I enjoy it very much and would highly recommend it.

By Ashok K A

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Jun 9, 2017

Was a very informative course. I never knew such a history was there

By Aleah K

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Aug 21, 2019

Highly informative! Thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge.

By Greg L

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Apr 19, 2018

A good survey of Western Christianity taught in an engaging manner.

By Charles g

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Jun 27, 2020

Muy buen curso, aprendi mucho sobre la formación de la iglesia.

By Deleted A

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Apr 1, 2020

Great, informative course! Thank for offering this opportunity.

By Kimberly W

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Sep 30, 2020

Great overview of the spread of Catholicism and Christianity!