St. Paul and Free Speech

When Saint Paul spread the Christian gospel across the ancient Greco-Roman empire he faced a cohesive social dynamic of idolatry and a widespread interest in living for pleasure, as advocated by the Epicureans.

Despite these obstacles, mere generations later the Emperor Constantine declared himself a Christian and announced tolerance for the Christian faith at the Edict of Milan. How did Paul's message spread so quickly and with such success?

Professor Sam Mikolaski suggests one reason: the ancient civilization valued free speech. He reveals how Epicureanism is enjoying a modern revival and questions whether the modern world allows the same freedom of proclamation and choice the Greco-Roman world offered.

Does the modern age permit people the right to choose the Christian faith without reprisal? Are governments and the world at large willing to sanction public persuasion and freedom of choice? Or are we falling behind the freedom Paul enjoyed millennia ago?

An examination of freedom and religion in a society that increasingly hampers both, "St. Paul and Free Speech: Then and Now" reminds us such rights should never be taken for granted, while offering a detailed look at contemporary Epicureanism and how it affects modern-day Christianity.