Watch The Western Story Lecture #4: The Origins of the Western Mind: The Synthesis of Judaism, Christianity and Classical Learning

Why did Western civilization survive the fall of Rome? The answer, in part, is that Rome had become Christianized, thus infusing Western civilization with a Judeo-Christian spirituality that appealed to the Northern European "barbarians." In embracing Christianity, the barbarians embraced Rome too, even as they destroyed its empire. The synthesis with Judaism and Christianity assured the West's survival.