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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116 Items found Print
Active Filters: Narrative History, 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Hardcover
Adventures of Lewis and Clark
by Ormonde de Kay, Jr.
from Random House
for 2nd-5th grade
in Step Up Books (Location: VIN-STEP)
America is Born
A History for Peter #1
by Gerald W. Johnson (iilustrations by Leonard Everett Fisher)
from William Morrow & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$45.00 (1 in stock)
America Moves Forward
A History for Peter #3
by Gerald W. Johnson
from William Morrow & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Blizzard!
by Jim Murphy
from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
2001 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in 19th Century America (Location: HISA-19C)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Children of the Wild West
by Russell Freedman
from Clarion Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
If You Sailed On the Mayflower
If You Were There
by Ann McGovern, illustrated by J.B. Handlesman
from Four Winds Press
Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Lewis and Clark and Me
by Laurie Myers
from Henry Holt and Company
Fictionalized Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Lewis & Clark Expedition (1801-1803) (Location: HISA-19L&C)
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Miracle at Philadelphia
by Catherine Drinker Bowen
from Little, Brown & Company
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Orphan Train Rider
by Andrea Warren
from Houghton Mifflin
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Story of Admiral Peary at the North Pole
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Zachary Kent
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Story of Apollo 11
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Story of Child Labor Laws
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Story of Christopher Columbus
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Story of D-Day
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Story of D-Day
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Story of Ellis Island
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Story of Ellis Island
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Story of Ford's Theater & the Death of Lincoln
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of Fort Sumter
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Story of Harriet Beecher Stowe
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Story of Henry Ford & the Automobile
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Story of Hiroshima & Nagasaki
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of Jamestown
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Story of Jamestown
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Story of John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of Lexington and Concord
by Keith Neely, R. Conrad Stein
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Story of Marquette and Jolliet
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Story of Monticello
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Story of Monticello
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Story of Mount Vernon
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Story of Old Ironsides
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Story of the Alamo
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Story of the Alamo
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Story of the Atomic Bomb
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Story of the Barbary Pirates
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Story of the Battle for Iwo Jima
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Story of the Battle of Shiloh
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Story of the Battle of the Bulge
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Story of the Bill of Rights
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Story of the Black Hawk Wars
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Story of the Bonhomme Richard
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of the Bonhomme Richard
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of the Boston Tea Party
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Story of the Burning of Washington
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Story of the Challenger Disaster
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Zachary Kent
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Story of the Chicago Fire
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Chisholm Trail
by Andrew Santella
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Story of the Cold War
by Leila Merrell Foster
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Story of the Conestoga Wagon
by Kenneth Richards
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Story of the Conestoga Wagon
by Kenneth Richards
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Story of the Constitution
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Marilyn Prolman
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Constitution
by Marilyn Prolman
from Children's Press
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Story of the Constitution
by Marilyn Prolman
Revised from Children's Press
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Story of the Crisis in the Gulf
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Leila Merrell Foster
from Children's Press
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Story of the Declaration of Independence
by Norman Richards
from Children's Press
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Story of the Declaration of Independence
by Norman Richards, Tom Dunnington
from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Election of 1860
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Fall of the Soviet Union
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by Miles Harvey
from Scholastic Inc.
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Freedom Riders
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Deborah Kent
from Children's Press
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Story of the Gettysburg Address
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards
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Story of the Gettysburg Address
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards
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Story of the Gettysburg Address
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards & Tom Dunnington
from Children's Press
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Story of the Gold at Sutter's Mill
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Golden Spike
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Stein Conrad
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Story of the Great Depression
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Great Society
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Leila M. Foster
from Children's Press
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Story of the Haymarket Riot
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Charnan Simon
from Children's Press
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Story of the Homestead Act
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Homestead Act
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Iran Hostage Crisis
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Johnstown Flood
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of The Lafayette Escadrille
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Liberty Bell
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natali Miller
from Children's Press
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Story of the Liberty Bell
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller, illustrated by Betsy Warren
from Children's Press
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Story of the Lincoln Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Unknown Publisher
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Little Bighorn
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Lone Star Republic
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Moon Landing
by R. Conrad Stein
2nd edition from Children's Press
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Story of the New England Whalers
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the New York Stock Exchange
by Zachary Kent
from Children's Press
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Story of the Nineteenth Amendment
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Oregon Trail
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Panama Canal
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Peace Corps
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Zachary Kent
from Children's Press
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Story of the Pony Express
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Pullman Strike
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Rough Riders
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of the Saigon Airlift
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Zachary Kent
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Story of the Salem Witch Trials
by Zachary Kent
from Children's Press
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Story of the San Francisco Earthquake
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
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Story of the Spirit of St. Louis
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Spirit of St. Louis
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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Story of the Star-Spangled Banner
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
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Story of the Star-Spangled Banner
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
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