Wait... You're saying that the extinction of paganism in ancient Rome was a bad thing? That the replacement of paganism with Christianity was a setback for women?
Regards,
I think he has in mind that this demise marked the ascendance of an enlightened Christian view, in opposition to Roman decadence, and this is the biggest setback since that ascendance ... or something like that.
However, there was a conservative Roman tradition ( voiced by Juvenal, e.g. ) that was trampelled by this decadence, very much in parallel to our present decadent times.
Yes, I agree. Poorly written. The Roman pagan culture was terrible for women, and this new homosexual culture will be as well.