The worst thing that ever happened to Christianity is when the cause was taken up by Constantine, beginning the persecution of pagans by “Christians”, of Christians by each other and wars to spread “Chritianity”.
The legitimate use of government is to protect people from each other, not to protect people from themselves regardless of the indirect effects. It is the responsibility of the churches without coercion to save bodies and souls.
“The worst thing that ever happened to Christianity is when the cause was taken up by Constantine, beginning the persecution of pagans by “Christians”, of Christians by each other and wars to spread “Chritianity”.”
That is one of the worst canards that has led to a twisted leftist narrative of Christianity. Constantine’s conversion and official acceptance of Christianity was far more nuanced than your one-liner states.
All Constantine did in the Edict of Milan was declare religious toleration and give back land confiscated under previous persecutions. That is far from the “persecution” of pagans, unless you consider taking properties given to pagans during the persecution back to Christians as “persecution of pagans.” Constantine himself was not baptized until he was dying, and was baptized by a bishop who was declared a heretic by the First Ecumenical Council, a council Constantine called, the conclusions of which he disagreed, yet he did not suppress.
It wasn’t until later emperors that real abuses started occurring, most often when the emperors accepted heretical doctrines and tried to suppress the Church. There are, however, plenty of *other* examples of later problems with the Byzantine marriage of Church and state.