Incluye notas bibliográficas al final del libro.

Thomas Aquinas and "the triumph of faith". -- The quest for certainty. -- The quest for virtue. -- Changing political contexts: Alexander and the coming of the Hellenistic Monarchies. -- Absorbing the east, Rome and the integretion of Greek culture. -- "All nations look to the majesty of Rome": The Roman Empire at its height. -- The Empire in crisis, the Empire in recovery: Political tranformations in the third century. -- Jesus. -- Paul, "The founder of Christianity"?. -- "A crowd that Lurks in cornesr, shunning the light": The first Christian communities. -- Constantine and the coming of the Chistian State.

When the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity in the fouth century A.D. and declred in the official religion of the Roman Empire, he initiated a change that would thrust the Weatern world into a dark age. The closing of the Western Mind is Charles Freeman's entralling account of this pivotal point in Western history.
Drawing on his encyclopedic knowledge of the ancient world, Freeman shows how the first alliance of church and state resulted in the abandonment of the Greek intellectual tradition. He explains how the efforts of Christian Leaders to establish an orthodoxy and solidify their position within the state led them to stifle debate and dissentand to paper over doctrinal contradictions. And he examines early church councils, writings, art, and such personalities as Augustine and Ambrose of Milan in a fascinating chronicle of the church's expanding influence, the origins of its uneasiness whith sexuality, its profund opposition to science, and the development of anti-Semitism. With brilliance, claity, and an eye for the vital detail, Freeman has made a signal contribution to our understanding of the early church and the legacy of faith's subjugation of reason.