Christianity has made unparalleled contributions to Western civilization, according to acclaimed actor John Rhys-Davies.
“I am absolutely in love with Western European Christian civilization, which has given us and the world these glorious things like the right of the individual conscience, the right of free speech, the right of free assembly, democracy, the abolition of slavery, the concept of a just war,” he says. “We are the heirs and custodians of the greatest attempt at living morally and justly that there has ever been on earth.”
READ: Lord of the Rings actor defends Christianity
Rhys-Davies portrayed Sallah in the Indiana Jones films and Gimli in the Lord of the Rings series but has found a niche in recent years within faith-based projects, such as “I Am Patrick,” “The Apostle Paul: Redemption” and “Beyond the Mask.” His latest project is “Scrooge: A Christmas Carol,” in which Rhys-Davies lends his voice as the narrator of a faith-focused podcast series.
Among Christianity’s contributions to the world, he said, is music. Early Christians wrote music to praise the Lord, which led to “the Mass, and from the Mass, we get the great classical musical tradition. That is just one of the great glories of mankind in itself.”
Another contribution of Christianity, he told Crosswalk, is its rich tradition of art. Throughout church history, Christians have painted iconic scenes, crafted intricate murals and sculpted inspiring statues. Rhys-Davies cited 15th-century Jan van Eyck, a Christian who revolutionized the field of painting. Thanks to van Eyck’s advances, people could “draw with more precision than we’ve ever seen — those saints, that birth, the Annunciation, the Madonna and Child.”
“The whole tradition of Western art comes from there,” he said. “Good Lord, do we know what abundance we have? We should be celebrating it, and we do celebrate it.”
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice
Photo: Gage Skidmore | Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0