Why the Renaissance Began in Italy?

[@elainebelzDetroit]

This video makes it sound like it's just that Italy possessed all the seeds of the Renaissance unto itself. I think it's great that you highlighted the Church's role, as many people consider the Church to have been the cause of the "Dark Ages" - a term which the humanists of the Renaissance gave, disparagingly, to the era that came before them. (They also thought Gothic architecture was barbaric and so named it after the Goths who'd sacked Rome.) But, as you mention the "rediscovery of ancient texts," you don't mention how that happened. Constantinople, the heart of Byzantine culture, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. Scholars, artists, Church leaders, and others from Constantinople/Byzantium fled west - and this is crucial - bringing their Greek texts with them. This is the source of the "rediscovery" of ancient (Greek) texts that had been lost in Western Europe as it was functioning in Latin. With this return of Greek texts to the West, Western Europeans began returning to classical culture and taking interest again in ancient ruins (which had previously been treated as quarries for marble, among other things). The Renaissance artists were unaware that ancient sculptures and temples had once been brightly painted, so the "classical" style of marble sculptures derives from something that didn't quite exist in the classical era.

[@Bidmartinlo]

There were 1000 years between the start of the Early Middle Ages and the start of the Renaissance, so the Church supporting the arts during the Renaissance doesn't mean that they would've supported the arts 1000 years ago. They did destroy many pagan statues and temples. After all, you're supposed to according to Deuteronomy 12:2-3 and Deuteronomy 7:5. I'm sure that the Catholic Church learned the hard way that you should give some wiggle room for what was originally branded for "heretic and "pagan" teachings. Oh and maybe see much of the bible as a metaphor and not taking it as a law book. Things like crop rotation, budding and grafting could even be seen as heresy (just so you know I'm not joking: Leviticus 19:19 ), which would've caused starvation. Early priests did ban public bathing and that did spread through Europe, which made it harder for peasants and serfs to get a bath. And destroying pagan religious statues and temples which we will never get back or know what they even looked like is just a tragedy on it's own, considering they would've looked nearly pristine today (like many Roman buildings of non-religious nature). So for humanity's sake: *Don't rewrite and lie about history* to make it seem like your people are more right than those before, because many things were done wrong in the name of "God". History, professional work and statecraft are separate things from spirituality, so keep that separate. It's important to keep these mistakes in and admit that they were done, so that we're not doomed to repeat them.

[@elainebelzDetroit]

@@Bidmartinlo Was that aimed at me? I'm not sure how you're reading all that into my comment. I wasn't trying to make anyone look any kind of way. Dividing "history, professional work ad statecraft" from "spirituality" is a modern thing to do, though. People prior to the modern era didn't partition like that. The whole reason different religions tended to persecute each other was precisely because they didn't separate religion & statecraft. If you didn't worship the national god(s), you were putting the state in danger. Shoot, US televangelists and politicians seem to still think that way. When I say "the Church," I don't just mean the Catholic Church. From the very beginning there was a lot of diversity and a number of different churches. You mention iconoclasm without acknowledging the iconoclast controversy in the 8th century, in which churches decided that icons/images ought to be used in church (I'll refer you to John of Damascus' work on that subject, since he helped win the controversy). Orthodox churches celebrate the decision to allow images in church as "the Triumph of Orthodoxy," a feast day.

[@Bidmartinlo]

@@elainebelzDetroit It's generally aimed at Christians. Whether you accept it or not, your religion has been the cause of many horrible things. Of course Christianity (both the priesthood and common people), before the Catholic Church, is part of the cause of the Dark Ages (or early middle ages), but isn't entirely at fault. Still, the persecution of teachers branded pagan or sorcerers and the destruction of many texts written by pagans helped the Dark ages come. For example, the Library of Alexandria was only partly destroyed by Cesar, but it was neglected (which is just as bad as destruction due to writing on papyrus) by the new Christian state and destroyed by Islam. Finally any art done by pagans or "false gods" must be destroyed (which is also iconoclasm) in accordance to your bible. It's part of why ISIS destroyed so many landmarks during their rise to power, because they believe the exact same thing in Islam (they aren't really allowed to draw things that God made). What worries me is the utter denial from Christians that your predecessors could even do this. Sometimes I've seen it as an outright attempt to rewrite history just writing "No, that never happened. Modern propaganda." or conspiracy theory then assigning blame to someone. Modern Christians should change their behavior, just so we don't have Christian archeologists destroying old artifacts or Christian historians doing revisions. Or much worse. Then denying that it were called the Dark ages. That I don't understand at all. It's a very fitting name for all that we lost with the Western Roman Empire and with the slow decline of the Eastern Roman Empire. Not even to mention all the millions of lives lost to war and plague. Not to mention all the old liberties lost.

[@WhoElseLikesPortal]

i get told about the art of being human by an ai voice. great

[@LikhithaBunny]

Thanks for explanation❤

[@AdityaThakur-bf6ky]

Excellent job 👏.

[@z3r0_on_top]

Yupppp the new video keddddddd

[@franciskm4144]

🎉🎉🎉

[@mrvliron]

❤❤

[@ririkauwu7426]

the fact that even a peasant in the middle ages knew that the earth is a sphere, actually there's almost "no" difference between renaissance and middle ages, still the same, in middle ages, catholic and orthodox scholars were studying Plato and other classical works, that's also the same for renaissance, only for privilege people, and also the same in today's world

[@Wesleylikeshistory]

I hate modern art

[@MikeGreenwood51]

LOL-I kind of love it. You can't beat a good oil of Moob walking, space ships, laser weaponry and robots. Even a washish machine in oil paint must be the ebvy of those Renaissance artists who never got close to a mechnical device to do the washing.

[@Wesleylikeshistory]

@@MikeGreenwood51 you got a point I like those kind of modern arts too but of course I'm not referring to that arts, I'm talking about those arts where a person just jumps with on a wall then it sells for thousand dollars and the person hitting some butter 😞😭. And now that I think about it the Renaissance artist would be amaze of what art we have now I never really appreciate it thanks for replying to me.

[@lamphrangrovylyngdoh2780]

Thanks to both who discuss about this situation 😊.

[@Soloohara]

Italy Stupor Mundi

[@Neater_profile]

*Greece

[@gp4842]

@@Neater_profileToo