In the wake of Pope John Paul IIÆs death, many are asking: What is the future of the Catholic Church? Given its recent scandals, students of theology might discount its influence on Western civilization and simply cast it off as a corrupt religion. That would be a big mistake; as New York Times bestselling author Thomas Woods chronicles in his book, the Church has had a pivotal role in shaping Western civilization for the last two thousand years.
How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization uncovers the lost truth of the ChurchÆs contributions to our history, including:
* How the father of atomic theory, the father of aviation, and the father of Egyptology were all Catholic priests
* How Catholic priests developed the idea of free-market economics five hundred years before Adam Smith
* How the Catholic Church was the great defender of the sanctity of human life and the individual against the state
* How the Church invented charitable workùand the charitable spiritùas we know it in the Western world
* How the Church bestowed the most unique gift to the Worldùwhat we now know as the university
In this magnificent volume, students and faithful alike will come to comprehend the Catholic ChurchÆs monumental impact on society and western civilization as a whole.
