Traveling through France or Italy, one is struck by the abundance of names associated with Christianity. Along the way, one encounters "Bois de Dieu" - "God's Wood" and "Rue de la Croix" - "Cross Road." The sheer number of saints lending their names to various towns is beyond count. Even in major cities like Paris, Lyon, or Marseille, there is a vast array of Christian toponyms: Saint-Denis, named after the first bishop of Lutetia (the ancient name for Paris), the renowned saint Dionysius the Areopagite. Montmartre, the Mountain of Martyrs, where three Christian martyrs were beheaded in Paris by pagan authorities.

What many may not know is that Saint Martin, Saint Genevieve, and other heavenly patrons of Paris are not only Catholic but also universal Christian saints.

Ancient Gaul contributed many luminaries to the world, celebrated by the Eastern Church, yet few outside devout Catholics know about these saints. How many inhabitants of bustling Lyon, apart from fervent Catholics, are aware of their city's patron saint, the great Irenaeus of Lyon, one of the early Church Fathers?

A paradox has emerged: the successors of the French, for whom Christianity played a predominant role, are now indifferent to Christ. Understandably, the French Revolution played a significant role, and historical reasons largely explain the strict secularization of society. This phenomenon is not exclusive to France or Italy. Currently, all of Europe observes a cultural phenomenon termed by some cultural analysts as "post-Christian society" – a society raised on Christian values and concepts but no longer regarding Christianity as an essential part of life.

Much is said and written about this in our media, often with a negative undertone. However, I would like to discuss not the negatives, although, as a Christian, it saddens me that for the French, the teachings of the Savior are merely a chapter in a long-outdated book, revisited only when needed for an exam.

I remember reading in one article that in a post-Christian society, people do not need the Church because they have already internalized Christ's commandments, and Christian virtues are seemingly dissolved in their everyday lives. This is a highly debatable assertion, in my view. Even if we assume that European residents uphold all evangelical principles, Christian life is impossible without Christ himself: one cannot believe in God within oneself without manifesting it externally. Most importantly, life with Christ is unthinkable without participation in the Eucharist. Without partaking in the communion.

Original article: https://radiovera.ru/posthristianskoe-obshhestvo.html