than this legendary occurrence was the undoubted Gothic sack of Rome in 410. Under its old gods, Rome had gone for eight centuries untaken by foreign enemies. It was only under the new religion that Rome had become vulnerable.
             The Christian analysis of Roman defeats was discussed by Augustine in his book The City of God (3). His version was more subtle, and probably more honest. Augustine contended that for the true Christian earthly happiness was beside the point. This world was a place of pilgrimage, where on struggled against sin and for heavenly reward. Earthly empires had their place in God's scheme, but their rise and fall was not something that Christians should get overly excited about (1). Despite the importance of such views, both at the time and in the long run, they are hardly the whole story. Looking at the pagan view of the sack of Rome, we can see how such strong opinions can distort a historical account. This is especially true of Christianity when we examine their historical record in its entirety. Christianity's control of
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