United States History

What should we say about the United States of America? So much has already been said, adding our two cents is a bit redundant or presumptuous, depending on your perspective. Certainly, no one needs us to outline the facts, the major events and figures, or to describe our unique written Constitution and democratic-republican system.

We can offer a bit of perspective. It's nothing new, nothing we came up with on our own, but it is different from a lot of the prevailing notions about both history in general and our nation in particular.

For starters, there's no specific reference to the U.S. in the Bible. The principles found in God's Word that apply to all nations certainly apply to the United States as well, but we aren't a Christian nation, we don't hold a special place in biblical prophecy, and Manifest Destiny is the result of Enlightenment rationalist views about the Progress of Mankind rather than being rooted in any kind of Christian attitude.

That said, many of the first settlers of the New World were dedicated Christians seeking the right to worship God without the constraints of political entanglement or government-imposed strictures and doctrine. The Pilgrims came in 1620, just 13 years after the first successful English settlement at Jamestown, and the Puritan settlers followed soon after.

Their arrivals and colonization didn't make America Christian, of course. It was a broad continent, largely unknown, and the initial colonies weren't strictly bound together at first, as they were later to become. By that time, things had become substantially more secular, so that by the 18th century many Americans were just as degenerate as their European counterparts. Fortunately, men like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield were around to preach the true Gospel, and to initiate a revival known as the Great Awakening.

Secular forces were still at work, though. While there were definitely many Christians involved, the American Revolution was largely the result of Enlightenment philosophizing, and men were convinced that America could produce a virtuous and stable population if education and participatory government were enforced. So they rebelled against England, and the United States republic was formed.

Ever since, groups and individuals have tried to call Americans back to their Christian roots. That's the wrong strategy: we don't need to call anyone back to anything, we need to point the way forward to the pursuit of Christ and the bringing of His Gospel and glory to every corner of the earth no matter what our country of origin. That America has been so materially blessed simply means we have more options at our disposal for proclaiming and bringing the Word to the rest of the world.

Our study of United States history is consequently Christ-centered. Not because we think America is more Christian than other countries, but because it (like all other nations) is under Christ's control as King of Heaven and Lord of Time. Of course, you shouldn't abandon study of the facts, people and events, but they only attain true meaning when viewed through the lens of Christ's ultimate plan of redemption and self-glorification.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes 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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Active Filters: Historical Fiction
Aaron and the Green Mountain Boys
by Patricia Lee Gauch, illustrated by Margot Tomes
from Betterway Books
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Across Five Aprils
by Irene Hunt
from Berkley Books
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
1965 Newbery Honor Book
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Across Five Aprils
by Irene Hunt
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1965 Newbery Honor Book
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Addy Learns a Lesson
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Adventures of the American Revolution
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Amos Fortune, Free Man
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America's Children
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Art of Keeping Cool
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Bad News for Outlaws
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North Star Books #38
by F. Van Wyck Mason, illustrated by Victor Mays
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Battle of Seattle
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Land of the Free Series
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Beckoning Road
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Blood on the River: James Town, 1607
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Land of the Free Series
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Blue Birds
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Book of Indians
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by Holling C. Holling
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Boris
by Jaap Ter Haar
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Borrowed House
Bethlehem Books Young Adult Bookshelf
by Hilda Van Stockum
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Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
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Bound for Oregon
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Boy in the Alamo
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Boy in the Alamo
by Margaret Cousins
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Historical fiction for 4th-9th grade
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Boy Sailor with John Paul Jones
by H. C. Thomas
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Boys in the Boat adapted for Young Readers
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by Daniel James Brown, adapted by Gregory Mone
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Boys of '76
by Charles Coffin
from Maranatha Publications
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by Jean Fritz
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by Jean Fritz, illustrated by Lynd Ward
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Brother's Keeper
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Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman, David Frampton (Woodcuts)
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Bull Run
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By Right of Conquest
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By Right of Conquest
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Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$14.00
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
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$9.99
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
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By the Shores of Silver Lake (Pictorial Cover)
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder; illustrated by Garth Williams
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
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Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
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Cabin Faced West
by Jean Fritz
from Puffin Books
Historical fiction for 4th-6th grade
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by Elizabeth George Speare
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Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
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by Elizabeth Speare
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Captain Bayley's Heir
by G. A. Henty
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Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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Captain Bayley's Heir
by G. A. Henty
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Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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Captain Bayley's Heir
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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Captain of the Minute Men
Boys of Liberty Library
by Harrie Irving Hancock
from David McKay Company
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Captain's Dog
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Captain, My Captain
by Deborah Meroff
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Historical Fiction for 8th-10th grade
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Captive
by Scott O'Dell
from HMH Books for Young Readers
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Hans Christian Anderson Award
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Captives of the Senecas
by John Brick
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Caravan to Oregon
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Carolina's Courage
by Elizabeth Yates
from Bob Jones University Press
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Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
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An I Can Read Book Level 3
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Changes for Addy
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Chariot in the Sky
Land of the Free Series
by Arna Bontemps, illustrated by Cyrus Le Roy Baldridge
1st edition from John C. Winston
Historical fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$35.00 (1 in stock)
Child Star
by Lydia Weaver
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by Mary Jane Carr
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
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$16.75
Children of the Longhouse
by Joseph Bruchac
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Cleared for Action!
by Stephen W. Meader
from Bethlehem Books
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