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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1846 - Portrait of the Nation
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Abe Lincoln
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Across Five Aprils
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After the War
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American Made: The Colonial Child of 1740
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And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
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Art of Keeping Cool
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Bud, Not Buddy
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Did Columbus Really Discover America?
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George Washington's Breakfast
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George Washington, Spymaster
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Gods and Generals
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Gonna Sing My Head Off
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Good Night, Mr. Tom
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Great Little Madison
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Guns for General Washington
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Harry Houdini: Master of Magic
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Hidden
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Hiroshima
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House of Dies Drear
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House on Walenska Street
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Hundred Penny Box
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In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
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Indian Captive
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Killer Angels
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Laura
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Letters from Rifka
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Lewis and Clark Expedition - 3-volume Set
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Long Way to a New Land
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Long Way Westward
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Lost Star
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M. C. Higgins, the Great
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1975 Newbery Medal winner
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Making of George Washington
by William H. Wilbur
2nd edition from Unknown Publisher
Biography for 10th-Adult
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Matchlock Gun
by Walter Edmonds
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Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
1942 Newbery Medal winner
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Meet Christopher Columbus
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
by James de Kay
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Meet George Washington
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Meet George Washington
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First Scholastic Printing 2001 from Scholastic Inc.
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Molly Pitcher: Young Patriot
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Molly's Pilgrim
A Bantam First Skylark
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My Brother Sam Is Dead
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Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
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No Promises in the Wind
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Old Yeller
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1957 Newbery Honor Book
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On the Way Home
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Out of the Dust
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Realistic Fiction for 6th-8th grade
1998 Newbery Medal winner
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Parallel Journeys
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Perilous Road
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Pioneers Go West
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Planet of Junior Brown
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Red Badge of Courage
Puffin Classics
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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
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Samuel's Choice
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Sarah Bishop
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Sarah Morton's Day
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Sarah, Plain and Tall
by Patricia MacLachlan
30th Anniversary from HarperCollins
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1986 Newbery Medal winner
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Scarlet Letter
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Serpent Never Sleeps
by Scott O'Dell
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Shades of Gray
by Carolyn Reeder
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Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
Scott O'Dell Award
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