Whatever Happened to Western Civilization?

There has been a monumental transformation taking place in the heart and soul of Western Civilization over the past four centuries. This book provides an easy to understand bird's eye view of this transformation and a sobering look at its implications for the future. As a culture, are we moving in the right direction or have we lost our way? Is secularism really the natural evolution of intelligence, or does it lack the transformative power of religious tradition? How does modern morality compare to spiritual standards of the past? Have our newly acquired abilities to understand our universe helped to free us from the superstitions of our ancestors? Can human progress be achieved solely through scientific study and exercises in self-awareness, or do we, as a species, require the guidance and divine inspiration of an all-knowing God? Today, the discussion of religious belief is somehow both ubiquitous and taboo. By introducing the reader to the evolution of modern philosophy and its effect on recent history, the author provides a much needed and often unspoken perspective on the topic of Western Civilization. Whether you are an atheist, agnostic or devout believer, if you are struggling to apply deeper meaning to an increasingly material existence, then this book will introduce you to the philosophical concepts that form the basis of current theories about who we are, where we came from and where we are headed. For parents who are concerned about the absence of religious instruction in modern education, this book is the ultimate addendum to increasingly secular college and high school curricula designed to teach Philosophy, History, Western Civilization and Current Events. This book questions the social merits of unfettered individualism while providing sound and simple arguments for preserving theological principles. In short and easy to follow chapters, the social values of Judeo-Christian traditions are clearly contrasted against the promises of modernism and the pitfalls of postmodernism.