1648: Why Western Intellectuals Abandoned Theology for Technology

In our fabled land of Olympia, the great Age of Christianity began in AD 1, with the birth of Jesus Christ; and ended in 1648, with the collapse of the Latin Christian civil war into the Peace of Westphalia. After 1648, the best and brightest Western Christian intellectuals abandoned theology for technology.

Thomas Sprat (1635-1713) was both a bishop in the Church of England and a founding member and secretary of the Royal Society. In his book, The History of the Royal Society for the Improving of Natural Knowledge (1667), he explains why he and other Christian intellectuals made the switch.

Michelangelo: Pieta (1499)

Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475 in the village of Caprese, about 60 miles (100 km) east of Florence. He was almost 89 years old when he died on February 18, 1564, in Rome. He was buried in the church of Santa Croce in Florence.

Michelangelo first moved to Rome in June 1496 at the age of 21. Two years later he was hired to sculpt the Pietá. He finished the work a year later. It is made of marble from Carrara, Italy, and measures 68.5 x 76.8 inches (174 x 195 cm).