More Than Dates & Dead People

"Remember this and be assured;

Recall it to mind.

Remember the former things long past,

For I am God and there is no other;

I am God and there is no one like Me,

Declaring the end from the beginning

And from ancient times

things which have not yet been done,

Saying, 'My purpose will be established,

And I will accomplish all my good pleasure.'

Truly I have spoken;

truly I will bring it to pass.

I have planned it, surely I will do it."

Isaiah 46:8-11

"Any book that can actually redeem the subject of history from the dust bin of, well, history, is quite a modern marvel and really ought to receive all the attention we can give it. A book that can perform the feat of not just exhuming, but resurrecting all those dry-as-dust fact from the annals of the past, ought to find its way to the top of our must-read list. It is informative. It is short. It is funny. It is short. It is inspiring. Oh, and did I mention? It is short."

The previous paragraph is taken from George Grant's preface to the book named in my post title. Following is an excerpt from the author, Stephen Mansfield:

"I hated history. [History class] was the perfect combination of boredom and terror. Like watching paint dry knowing that the paint could explode at any minute. The reason I hated history class, though, was none other than Miss Ira Wratchet....my high school history teacher. These folks assumed that if they just jammed enough dusty details into the vacuous minds of their students something important would happen. Perhaps they thought that if one memorized and crammed and regurgitated, something like the 'big picture' would appear miraculously on its own.

"The results are in. It didn't work. After a year of this kind of stuff, I concluded that every earthly event of real importance was happening while I was sitting in Miss Wratchet's Chamber of Horrors, not in the distant past."

In this entertaining, but thought-provoking little read, Mr. Mansfield lays out what he believes are the four pillars of a Christian view of history, seven ways history can change our lives, and five definitions which he asserts will enable us to understand any society, past or present. He suggests a number of helpful resources (books, magazines, films, internet and recordings) for getting started in your own study of history.

"History maketh a man old, without either wrinkles or gray hairs; privileging him with the experience of age, without either the infirmities or inconveniences thereof." Thomas Fuller