I like the new perspective in this one. Ideas have been exchanged between the west and ancient near-east for millennia. The Renaissance, for example, was brought about in part because of an early wave of Arabic enlightenment, which was sadly cut short by the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 1265. Likewise, the basis for Rabbinic Judaism (the form from which Christianity is derived) is an ancient Persian religion called Zoroastrianism, which also influenced the pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus. You can trace these ideas as far back as you can find written words about it. Lots of dots to connect.