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July 1, 2019Dr. Peter Brown is, hands down, one of the greatest historians of late classical antiquity. His biography of St. Augustine of Hippo. His ability to explain the historical context, theological struggles and character of his subject is enlightening. In addition, he is a great writer. Dr. Brown is not a Catholic, but he is able to write about the faith with sympathy and understanding.
Through the Eye of a Needle, is about the transition from the pagan Roman Empire to the Christian medieval world. The early Church, faithful to the Lord's warnings about wealth and riches, taught that "The love of money is the root of all evil." 1 Tim. 6:10. How did the medieval Church fall into corruption? The story is rooted in the Third to Eighth Centuries. This book describes that transition.- Did you know that St. Augustine invented the idea that we now know as corporations? In the ancient world, all wealth, real and personal, was closely held. Augustine worked out the idea that you could give wealth to the Church and control would pass from bishop to bishop.
- St. Paulinus of Nola was a super-wealthy Roman landholder who, along with his wife, decided to become a saint. He left his holdings in Gaul (France) and moved to Southern Italy, that is, Nola. He put his money into a church, a monastery and the poor. He was criticized because the wealthy were supposed to be the patrons of their own neighborhood. When he moved from Gaul to Southern Italy, his wealth followed hurting his own native region. The unintended consequence of wanting to be a saint!
This book examines early Catholicism through the lens of wealth. He does not accuse bishops of greed, but instead shows how the transfer of wealth to the bishop transformed the episcopacy into patrons of local needs. Mostly, Catholics know that Medieval Bishops and Popes became the patrons of Raphael, Michelangelo, Mozart and Vivaldi to name but a few. This is how that came to pass.