Modern History

There isn't more history in the last five centuries than all the previous millennia, we just have more plentiful records of it. In all honesty, sometimes the plethora of detail isn't only overwhelming, it obscures the whole point of the story. As humans, we're all too susceptible to the lure of obscurity, to the desire for darkness where there ought to be light.

In many ways, this is the chief characteristic of modern history. Mankind seems to have accepted Enlightenment ideals en masse, and the result is the non-stop acquisition of knowledge, as though information could shut us off from the eye of a just and jealous God. Evolutionary theory, psychology, existentialism and postmodernism, public education, Communism—all these ideas are intended to put man at a further remove from God.

During the Renaissance, thinkers and artists decided that if man was going to make himself great, he'd have to replicate the glory of the Classical Era, with its enduring artifacts and intellectual produce. Enlightenment thinkers took this one step further, insisting that man could only know what he could deduce using reason alone, and consequently amassing knowledge in order to have a more thorough basis for such reasonable inquiry.

Since then, philosophers and scientists have devoted themselves to interpreting the facts from a purely human perspective, creating a picture of the universe that is mechanistic and godless. Meaning is dead, God is dead, and hope is dead, but the Enlightenment ideal of human progress (repackaged as Darwinian naturalism) is alive and well, the phantom idol of countless millions.

Even a brief survey of the last century would seem to demolish the possibility of any such idea, but it continues to inform nearly every element of our culture, from pop music to public policy debates. Atrocities like the Holocaust, racism in America, abortion, and totalitarian rule in Asian countries are reinterpreted or explained away to fit the overarching rubrik of sustained forward progress.

Christians understand things a bit differently. We aren't pessimists by any means, but we aren't blind optimists, either. God's plan entails one thing: His ultimate glory, and for those who believe His promises and trust Him for salvation, that's the most hopeful doctrine conceivable. At the same time, we also understand that man's efforts cannot be responsible for whatever good befalls us, that "progress" is only a gift of the Most High, and that only through the Holy Spirit is evil overcome by good.

The modern world is increasingly secular. Even in the Church, men and women stray from biblical truth in favor of appealing arguments on behalf of man, substituting a Christ-centered Gospel with one that is primarily focused on mankind and our individual salvation. We must counter these attitudes with God's truth, but we can only do so with an understanding of where those ideas come from and why they've taken root. A thorough study of modern history can and will provide those answers, and teach us how to stand firm in the truth we hold dear.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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113 Items found Print
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Ahoy There, Little Polar Bear
by Hans de Beer
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
by Jean Fritz & Margot Tomes
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Biography for 2nd-4th grade
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Angel Child, Dragon Child
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Animals Robert Scott Saw
by Sandra Markle
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Aquila's Drinking Gourd
by Pamela Dell
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Book About Christopher Columbus
by Ruth Belov Gross, Illustrated by Syd Hoff
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Brave Harriet
by Marissa Moss
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Bravest Dog Ever
Step Into Reading Level 3
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Brothers in Hope
by Mary Williams, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
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2006 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award
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By the Dawn's Early Light
by Steven Kroll
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Christopher Columbus
by Elaine Murray Stone
500 Anv from Tyndale House
Biography for Preschool-3rd Grade
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Colonial People: The Silversmith
by Wil Mara
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Columbus: The Triumphant Failure
by Oliver Postgate & Naomi Linnell
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Coming to America
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Dakota Dugout
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Daniel Boone
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Davy Crockett, Young Pioneer
by Laurence Santrey
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Drinking Gourd
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by F. N. Monjo
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Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Duke Ellington
by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
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Duke Ellington
by Andrea Davis Pinkney
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1999 Caldecott Honor Book
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Eliza Pinckney
Weekly Reader Heroes of the Revolution
by Susan & John Lee
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Enemies of Slavery
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Eric the Red & Leif the Lucky
by Barbara Schiller
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Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
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Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
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Flight
by Robert Burleigh; illustrated by Mike Wimmer
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1992 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Follow the Drinking Gourd
by Jeanette Winter
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Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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George Washington's Breakfast
by Jean Fritz
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Biography for 1st-4th grade
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Glorious Flight
by Martin & Alice Provensen
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1984 Caldecott Medal winner
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Going to Town
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
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Going West
by Jean Van Leeuwen, illustrated by Thomas Allen
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Historical fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King
by Jean Marzollo, illustrated by J. Brian Pinkney
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How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning
by Rosalyn Schanzer
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How Many Days to America?
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If You Grew Up With Abraham Lincoln
If You Were There
by Ann McGovern
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Historical Non-fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War
If You Were There
by Kay Moore
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Historical Non-fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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If You Lived At The Time Of The Great San Francisco Earthquake
by Ellen Levine
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If You Sailed On the Mayflower in 1620
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by Ann McGovern
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If You Traveled West in a Covered Wagon
If You Were There
by Ellen Levine
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Historical Non-fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution
If You Were There
by Elizabeth Levy
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If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island
If You Were There
by Ellen Levine & Wayne Parmenter
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In 1492
by Jean Marzollo
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In 1492
by Jean Marzollo
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Isaac Newton and the Laws of Motion
by Andrea Gianopoulos
1st edition from Capstone Press
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Jamestown
Adventures in Colonial America
by James Knight
from Beautiful Feet Books
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John Brown: One Man Against Slavery
by Gwen Everett, Illustrated by Jacob Lawrence
from Rizzoli International Publications
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John Hancock
Weekly Reader Heroes of the Revolution
by Susan & John Lee, illustrated by Chuck Mitchell
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
John, Paul, George & Ben
by Lane Smith
1st edition from Hyperion/Madison Press
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Joke's on George
by Michael O. Tunnell; illustrated by Kathy Osborn
from Tambourine Books
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Josefina Story Quilt
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Eleanor Coerr
from HarperCollins
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Juan Ponce de Leon
by Tamara Green
from World Almanac Library
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King George's Head Was Made of Lead
by F. N. Monjo
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King's Day
by Aliki
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Last Princess
by Fay Stanley; illustrated by Diane Stanley
from HarperCollins
Picture Book Biographies for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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Lewis & Clark
by Steven Kroll
from Holiday House
Historical Non-Fiction for 1st-4th grade
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Lewis and Clark and Me
by Laurie Myers
from Henry Holt and Company
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Lindbergh
Classic Starts
by Torben Kuhlmann, Translated by David Henry Wilson
from NorthSouth
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Listening to Crickets
by Candice F. Ransom
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
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$6.00 (4 in stock)
Long Way to a New Land
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Long Way to a New Land
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
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Long Way Westward
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Lost Colony of Roanoke
by Jean Fritz, illustrated by Hudson Talbott
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Louis Braille
by Margaret Davidson
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$1.50 (1 in stock)
Memory Coat
by Elvira Woodruff, illustrated by Michael Dooling
from Scholastic Press
Realistic Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Mighty Jackie
by Marissa Moss
1st edition from Simon & Schuster Macmillan
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My Brothers' Flying Machine
by Jane Yolen
from Little, Brown & Company
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Mysterious Journey
by Martha Wickham
from Soundprints
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Nobody Gonna Turn Me 'Round
by Doreen Rappaport
Reprint from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-7th grade
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$6.50 (1 in stock)
Old Ironsides
by David L. Weitzman
from Sandpiper Books
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$4.50 (1 in stock)
On the Mayflower
by Kate Waters
from Scholastic Inc.
Non-fiction for 1st-3rd grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Patrol
by Walter Dean Myers, illustrated by Ann Grifalconi
from HarperCollins
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
Paul Bunyan
by Steven Kellogg
from William Morrow & Company
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for
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Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
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Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
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Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
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Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
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Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
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Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
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Picture Book of Davy Crockett
by David Adler
from Holiday House
Picture Book Biography for 2nd-4th grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Picture Book of John Hancock
by David A. Adler, Michael S. Adler
from Holiday House
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Picture Book of Lewis and Clark
by David A. Adler
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$4.50 (2 in stock)
Pilgrim Voices
by Connie Roop, Peter Roop, eds.
from Walker and Company
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Pilgrims Plantation
by June Behrens and Pauline Brower
from Children's Press
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
Polar the Titanic Bear
by Daisy Spedden, Laurie McGaw
from Hyperion/Madison Press
Word Books for 3rd-6th grade
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Ponce de Leon
by Trish Kline
from Rourke Publishing
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Pony Express
by Steven Kroll, illustrated by Dan Andreasen
from Scholastic Press
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Prince Henry the Navigator
by Leonard Everett Fisher
1st edition from Atheneum
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
Queen of the Falls
by Chris Van Allsburg
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Rockets to the Moon
by Erik Bergaust
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$25.00 (1 in stock)
Sarah Morton's Day
by Kate Waters
from Scholastic Inc.
Non-fiction for Nursery-3rd grade
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$7.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Secret to Freedom
by Marcia Vaughan, illustrated by Larry Johnson
from Lee & Low Books
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Shine-A-Light: On the Space Station
Shine-A-Light
by Carron Brown and Illustrated by Bee Johnson
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$7.00 (1 in stock)
Sieur de La Salle
by John Paul Zronik
from Crabtree Publishing
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Slave Family
by Bobbie Kalman & Amanda Bishop
from Crabtree Publishing
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$3.50 (1 in stock)
So Far from the Sea
by Eve Bunting
from Clarion Books
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Squanto's Journey
by Joseph Bruchac
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
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$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Story of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
Rep Anv Sp from Scholastic Inc.
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Story of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
from Scholastic Inc.
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$4.50 (2 in stock)
Story of the Spirit of St. Louis
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$2.50 (2 in stock)
Thanksgiving Story
by Alice Dalgliesh
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
1955 Caldecott Honor Book
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$8.99 $5.50 (2 in stock)
Thomas Jefferson
by James Cross Giblin
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Thomas Jefferson
by Cheryl Harness
Reprint from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
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$7.95 $4.50 (1 in stock)
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