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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149 Items found Print
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ABC Book of Early Americana
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2012 Dover from Dover Publications
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Across America
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Alexander Hamilton: The Outsider
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Amelia Earhart
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America in the Time of Lewis and Clark
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American History: Globalization 1977-2008
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American History: The Civil Rights Movement & Vietnam 1960-1976
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Anne of Jamestown
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Assassination of John F. Kennedy: November 22, 1963
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24 Hour History
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Bill of Rights
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Building the New York Subway
Cornerstones of Freedom Second Series
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Can't You Make Them Behave, King George?
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Chief Joseph: Leader of Destiny
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Chuck Yeager Breaks the Sound Barrier
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Cornerstones of Freedom
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Civil War: An Interactive History Adventure
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Dear Benjamin Banneker
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Declaration of Independence
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DK Smithsonian Space!
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Draw the Titanic
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Early American History for Intermediate Grades - Guide
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Frank Lloyd Wright for Kids
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George Washington You Never Knew
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Great Chicago Fire
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Great Fire
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Hero Over Here
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How and Why Wonder Book of the Civil War
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If You Grew Up With George Washington
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Jackie Robinson Breaks the Color Line
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Jesse Owens: Gold Medal Hero
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John Hancock
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Lady Liberty: A Biography
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Life on a Plantation
Historic Communities
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Louis Armstrong and the Jazz Age
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Magellan and the Exploration of South America
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Marco Polo
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Musical Memories of Laura Ingalls Wilder - with CD
Experience History Through Music
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Hidden History: Spies
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Pioneer Children of Appalachia
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Plymouth Thanksgiving
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Prairie Primer
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Primary Source History of the American Revolution
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Reconstruction and the Aftermath of the Civil War
Understanding the Civil War
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Remember the Alamo
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Remembering John McCrae
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Robert Fulton
by Marguerite Henry; illustrated by Robert Patterson
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Rosa
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2006 Caldecott Honor Book
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Rosa
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2006 Caldecott Honor Book
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Secrets of the American Revolution
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September 11, 2001
Cornerstones of Freedom Second Series
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Settling of Jamestown
Landmark Events in American History
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Sourcebook on Colonial America: Battles in a New Land
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Sourcebook on Colonial America: Governing and Teaching
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Sourcebook on Colonial America: The Arts and Sciences
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Story of Abraham Lincoln
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Story of Fort Sumter
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Story of Harriet Beecher Stowe
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of Marquette and Jolliet
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Alamo
by Norman Richards
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Story of the Battle of Bull Run
by Zachary Kent
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Story of the Battle of Midway
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by Tom McGowen
from Scholastic Inc.
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Story of the Constitution
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by Marilyn Prolman
from Scholastic Inc.
American History Reference for 4th-6th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Constitution
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Marilyn Prolman
from Children's Press
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Story of the Declaration of Independence
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by R. Conrad Stein
from Scholastic Inc.
American History Reference for 4th-6th grade
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$5.95
Story of the Declaration of Independence
by Norman Richards, Tom Dunnington
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Story of the Election of Abraham Lincoln
from Children's Press
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Story of the Erie Canal
by R. Conrad Stein
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
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Story of the Gettysburg Address
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards
from Children's Press
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