In the pheado written by Plato (427-347 b.) Socrates was asked by Plato who was his pupil to define soul and body. Socrates" answer to this question was that body is "human" and "mortal" and that soul is "divine" and "immortal". This is important because from Socrates, Plato learned about body and soul and this education was the groundwork for Plato's philosophy.
Platonic spiritualism is a philosophy founded by Plato that emphasizes soul over body. On the other hand Aristotle (384-322b.c.) was a student under Plato and he embraced body over soul in his personal philosophy. Aristotle's way of thinking referred to as Aristotelian materialism was the beginning of scientific inquiry and because of this he is referred to as the father of modern science. .
The history of Western civilization can be defined as a conflict between the ancient Greek and Roman world. This also can be said as the conflict between Platonic Spiritualism and Aristotelian materialism. The Ancient Greek period (500 b.c.-a.d.) was a time when people believed in Aristotelian materialism. With the decline of the Roman Empire the Roman Catholic Church took its place ushering in faith and putting it before everything else. From the time that the Roman Catholic Church took over at around 500 until 1500 the people of the time believed strongly in Platonic Spiritualism. At around 1500, people began to think that they wanted to do more than prepare for death by putting faith in front of everything else. This began a period referred to as the Renaissance. Renaissance means rebirth which fits this period since it was the rebirth of Aristotelian materialism. Even today in modern times we are embracing these materialistic thoughts.
To best understand why people believe in the philosophy of Aristotle we must examine the ancient world and the modern world.
In the fifth century b.c. the rise of new science was threatening religious values.