Observations and inanities by a second-shift assistant supervisor in the Puppy-Grinding division of the Evil Atheist Conspiracy® (our motto: "Sure it's cruel, but think of the jobs!"), your host, Brent Rasmussen.
Life Of Atheist Hypatia Of Alexandria To Be Made Into A Movie
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This looks interesting! (Painting by Charles Williams Mitchell.)
[link] A historical drama set in early Egypt, it concerns a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hopes of pursuing freedom while also falling in love with his master, a female philosophy professor and atheist.
Actress Rachel Weisz will be playing Hypatia of Alexandria, Oscar Isaac will be playing Orestes who falls in love with her, and Ashraf Barhom will be portraying a Christian monk named Ammonius - who doesn't seem to match up to any truly historical "Ammonius", but that's OK I suppose. They would have taken artistic liberties with the story in any case.
Hypatia's story below the fold...
For those of you who do not know the story, Hypatia was an atheist scientist and philosopher living in Roman Egypt during the 3rd century CE. She is notable because of the fact that she is one of the first recorded instances of a woman atheist, who was also a respected scientist, philosopher, and teacher. She was eventually killed and her body was burned by a Christian mob who blamed her for some political/religious fallout having to do with the archbishop and the prefect. Here's one of the earliest known accounts of Hypatia, from the 439CE history text written by Socrates Scholasticus called "The Historia Ecclesiastica":
[From the English translation] Chapter XV.--Of Hypatia the Female Philosopher.
There was a woman at Alexandria named Hypatia, daughter of the philosopher Theon, who made such attainments in literature and science, as to far surpass all the philosophers of her own time. Having succeeded to the school of Plato and Plotinus, she explained the principles of philosophy to her auditors, many of whom came from a distance to receive her instructions. On account of the self-possession and ease of manner, which she had acquired in consequence of the cultivation of her mind, she not unfrequently appeared in public in presence of the magistrates. Neither did she feel abashed in coming to an assembly of men. For all men on account of her extraordinary dignity and virtue admired her the more. Yet even she fell a victim to the political jealousy which at that time prevailed. For as she had frequent interviews with Orestes, it was calumniously reported among the Christian populace, that it was she who prevented Orestes from being reconciled to the bishop. Some of them therefore, hurried away by a fierce and bigoted zeal, whose ringleader was a reader named Peter, waylaid her returning home, and dragging her from her carriage, they took her to the church called Caesareum, where they completely stripped her, and then murdered her with tiles. After tearing her body in pieces, they took her mangled limbs to a place called Cinaron, and there burnt them. This affair brought not the least opprobrium, not only upon Cyril, but also upon the whole Alexandrian church. And surely nothing can be farther from the spirit of Christianity than the allowance of massacres, fights, and transactions of that sort. This happened in the month of March during Lent, in the fourth year of Cyril's episcopate, under the tenth consulate of Honorius, and the sixth of Theodosius.
I hope the movie is not a complete waste of film! ;)
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Alexandria Egypt
I was wondering if anyone knew what happened to modern Alexandria Egypt in the 20th century after Nasser came to power or know of any books about it. Thank you.
Thanks
I recently read Cosmos by Carl Sagan (who can pass up a Sagan book for $4? i love used book stores)and one of my favorite parts was just the history. Their is quite a bit of talk about the Library of Alexandria, including a bit about Hypatia. I really liked that book, but it one I would recommend to younger people or people with little scientific knowledge, but I think the history part would be interesting to almost anyone.
So thank you for pointing this out, I'll be interested to see the movie, and the reaction of the christians. Should piss off a few people. And like Brent said, I hope the movie does the story justice. Again thanks guys!
Hypatia
That painting, what I can see of it, makes it look like The Library was the Hooters of the ancient world.
Catholic League
This sounds very promising, and who doesn't love Rachel Weisz?
However, I'm more excited about the Bill Donohue insanity/entertainment that will surely ensue.
Yes, you did misunderstand.
No, I am not making that claim. My only point is that The Church™ was far from a single unified entity. It was a movement complete with a whole lot of factions, infighting, skulduggery and the like. Most of the factions would have considered themselves to be the True Believers™ among the infidels. A bewildering mix of what's best and what's worst in people.
In short, a very Human movement.
"I believe in preaching to the converted; for I have generally found that the converted do not understand their own religion." -G.K. Chesterton
In other words...
Things haven't changed much in 2000 years.
Questions
This account doesn't mention that the Library was looted and burned (by nice Christians), but I seem to remember that happening. Was that later?
And wasn't Hypatia the actual Librarian?
Hypatia
No Hypatia was not a librarian as many people thought. In the book The Rise and Fall of Alexandria Egypt the authors devote a chapter to Hypatia if you want to know more about her.
Who burned the library?
From eHistory.com:
But as far as the movie is concerned, they had me at Rachel Weisz.
I'm interested
Could be interesting.
I went for a look at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library and found your document quite easily, along with this piece. (note: please don't take the word "heathen" as an intentional insult, it was simply meant at the time as "non-Christian"). Even church historians will admit what happened, if anybody would bother to read them.
The only thing I would fear is presenting "The Church" as unified in that deed, for that was far from the truth.
"I believe in preaching to the converted; for I have generally found that the converted do not understand their own religion." -G.K. Chesterton
My new motto
Proud to be a Heathen!
I don't see why anyone would take it as an insult. It just means "heath dweller" (and "pagan" just means "country dweller".)
The heathens may not have been perfect but they were better adjusted, probably more in tune with their environment, and certainly less bloodthirsty, petty and vindictive than the church that spread an alien desert cult across Europe by the sword and the torture chamber.
- No More Mr. Nice Guy!
Heathen
I used to be OK with being called a heathen, but what's a Heath? I don't want to live in a candy bar.... er, I guess I do want to be a heathen. NO! I want to be a milky wayden. Oh wait I already am. Sorry guys, it was a dumb joke. but seriously what a heath?
Non-Unified Church
Yeah, it was probably just another case of the evil extremist "not-REAL-Christians" doing the bad deeds, and the wonderful, open-minded moderates being wonderful, open-minded moderates.
Not that simple.
I may wish it were, but there are always fanatics and zealots in every human activity, as well as more reasonable and respectful people.
Did you read the piece I linked to?
"I believe in preaching to the converted; for I have generally found that the converted do not understand their own religion." -G.K. Chesterton
Yes, Yes It Is
I agree with Hank, Rich. This sounds like nothing more than the "No True Scotsman" fallacy dressed up in flowery, philosophical language.
Are you seriously making the claim that the bad guys weren't "Real True Christians™"? Or did I misunderstand you?
And before you answer, consider this: Were there two types of Christians back then? Those who murdered "heathens", and those who didn't? If so, then which ones were the "Real True Christians™"?
God in Pieces
Besides which, it seems to me that talking about the fragmentation of that early Church is pretty much admitting the point that the whole mess is just made-up human stuff, a mere factional dispute between people who have different versions of a fantasy in their heads, rather than some sort of connected-with-divinity real thing.
If there WAS a real god, it would seem that would confer some sort of selective advantage to his/her/its followers. Stronger, better, smarter godders would evolve, rather than the same befuddled lumps we still seem to be stuck with.
There are two gods actually.
There is Ares, God of War, and Eris, Goddess of Discord and if you need any evidence of their existence you need only turn on the news and you will get a bellyful.
Yarr! Bow to the one true god!
The Flying Spaghetti Monster loves you! Let his saucy goodness flow over you and you too will be touched by his noodley appendage. Become a Pastafarian and sit beside me under the beer volcano! Or be banished to hell where you'll run into Tom Cruise complaining that his beer is flat and the strippers are ugly. Oh the humanity!
- Ramen
I am truly sorry
(insert cheap shot one-liner here)
Anyway, alas but I cannot join you in the worship of the Noodly One. My faith was fatally strained by the Great Ziti Schism of '03, and don't tell anyone, but I can't stand beer. If it was a Diet Coke volcano...well that would be a different story.