Aristotle's children : how Christians, Muslims, and Jews rediscovered ancient wisdom and illuminated the Dark Ages
/ Richard E. Rubenstein
- 1st ed.
- Orlando : Harcourt , c2003.
- xii, 368 p. ; 24 cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. [337]-350) and index.
Prologue : the medieval star-gate -- "The master of those who know" : Aristotle rediscovered -- The murder of "Lady Philosophy" : how the ancient wisdom was lost, and how it was found again -- "His books have wings" : Peter Abelard and the revival of reason -- "He who strikes you dead will earn a blessing" : Aristotle among the heretics -- "Hark, hark, the dogs do bark" : Aristotle and the teaching friars -- "This man understands" : the great debate at the University of Paris -- "Ockham's razor" : the divorce of faith and reason -- "God does not have to move these circles anymore" : Aristotle and the modern world.
Europe was in the long slumber of the Dark Ages, the Roman Empire was in tatters, and the Greek language was all but forgotten, until a group of Arab, Jewish, and Christian scholars rediscovered and translated the works of Aristotle. His ideas spread across Europe like wildfire, offering the scientific point of view that the natural world, including the soul of man, was a proper subject of study. The Catholic Church convulsed, and riots took place at the universities of Paris and Oxford. Richard Rubenstein recounts with energy and vigor this magnificent story of the intellectual ferment that planted the seeds of the scientific age in Europe and reflects our own struggles with faith and reason.