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Topic: Truth in Culture Weekly Commentaries
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Adrift From Our Past
April 17, 2006
S. Michael Craven
 
Last week my family and I spent four blessed days at my wife's
ancestral farm, a beautiful spot located between Navasota and Brenham
in historic Washington County known as the birthplace of the Republic
of Texas in 1836. The land, possessing rolling hills, tranquil ponds
and a plethora of Bluebonnets has been in my wife's family since the
mid 19th century. It is a wonderful place rich in nostalgia and strong
family roots. I confess that it is one of our favorite places on earth.
It was during this trip that we occasioned to visit the Museum in
nearby Chappell Hill where the region's and much of my wife's family
history are on display. Housed in what used to be the Chappell Hill
Female College established in 1856, one felt immediately transported
into another place and time. There were letters, photographs and
placards all of which offered amazing insight into the lives and
culture of this nearly forgotten community.
I was reminded that history is not merely some abstract record of facts
and events but rather the record of prior human beings made in God's
image and their experiences dealing with the challenges and
opportunities of life within a fallen and yet beautiful world. This
form of history is what connects us to our own personal past in the
case of my wife and children but also our collective cultural past as
Americans. This connection, I would argue, is of profound importance if
for no other reason than it tends to arrest our tendency toward
self-centered individualism which not only disconnects us from our past
but also from enjoying real "community" in the present.
In Scripture, God Himself continually reinforces the importance of the
past as a valid means of knowledge that is helpful in guiding us into
the future through His dealings with the nation of Israel. God was
continually commanding the people of Israel to remember what He had
done for them in prior generations so that they would remain steadfast
in their faith and obedience. In the New Testament, Jesus established
the sacrament of the Lord's Supper as a sacred ceremony of remembrance
so that every subsequent generation of believers would recall and
reflect upon the Lord's ultimate act of grace and mercy.
Every human action, both past and present, is either in accord with or
in contradiction to the truth as revealed in Scripture and confirmed in
nature. History is the record of these acts, both great and small, that
we can examine and hopefully discern from a biblical perspective so
that we too may walk uprightly in our own day.
So what did I learn from my encounter with history in Chappell Hill,
Texas? First and foremost these, and frankly their generation, were a
people with a strong sense of community. Much of their life and
activity was invested in contributing to the establishment and
maintenance of important civic and social institutions that enriched
their community.
In this small rural hamlet the citizenry established two institutions
of higher learning: the Chappell Hill Female College which I mentioned
earlier and Soule University, a Methodist College for men with chairs
in law, medicine and biblical science. My wife's
great-great-grandfather, Terrell Jackson contributed to the founding of
Baylor University prior to its relocation from Independence to Waco.
Community leaders established five churches, thriving industries, a
Masonic Lodge, a railroad line and numerous social organizations such
as the Mandolin Club, Racquet club and Study Club whose subjects
included the Opera. These efforts and activities continued well into
the 20th century.
These "civic virtues" contrast dramatically with the determined
individualism so prevalent in today's culture. In Robert Putnam's
important book, Bowling Alone he points out, "For the first two-thirds
of the twentieth century a powerful tide bore Americans into ever
deeper engagement in the life of their communities, but a few decades
ago - silently, without warning - that tide reversed and we were
overtaken by a treacherous rip current. Without at first noticing, we
have been pulled apart from one another and from our communities over
the last third century."
Letters collected from the women of that era revealed that they were
active in the study of theology and philosophy representing a
generation that pursued education for education's sake and not merely
as a means to an end. There were no college courses, for example, or
interest for that matter, in studying techniques helpful in selling
non-essential consumer goods to people who have to borrow to buy what
they cannot afford. Even in High School as evidenced by a report card
from 1887 the subjects were rooted in the humanities, logic and
elocution. I admit that I had to chuckle at the grading system of that
day. Grades were based on a ten-point scale with ten being perfect and
five failing. However, they were anything but ambivalent about
substandard work. The failing grade of five was described as follows,
"5 = Very bad and a complete failure" - a stark contrast to today's
educational philosophy that often exalts "self-esteem" above personal
responsibility measured by absolute standards.
In addition, to the aforementioned subjects there was also a copy of A
View of the Evidences of Christianity by William Paley on display which
was part of the core curriculum in the local public school. Published
in 1794, Evidences is an extremely scholarly work in which Paley
supplemented human reason with divine revelation as supporting
foundations for the existence of God and miracles over and against the
deistic thinkers of his time, addressing some his arguments
specifically against the notable David Hume. This was not a superficial
course in bible stories that merely satisfied cultural religiosity
typical of "country folk." Here again, we see a society that was very
intentional in its effort to transmit their faith from one generation
to the next.
The loss of community and civic virtue along with all of their
deleterious effects; the inadequate transmission of values and beliefs
from one generation to the next; the reduction of education to mere
utilitarian purposes and the idealization of a superficial existence
are symptomatic of a culture adrift from its past. The solution to
these issues lies within the realm of a renewed Church that endeavors
to recover historic Christianity and press these unchanging biblical
values into contemporary public life and culture.
© S. Michael Craven, 2006
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Responses
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Response from : Mike |
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July 5, 2006 5:54 PM
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Test
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Response from : Colin Cody |
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December 1, 2008 6:55 PM
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Good article. Our culture has indeed been largely destroyed by the loss of civic virtue due to the apostasy of what pretends to be the church. Without a profound spiritual awakening much on the order of that preached by Charles Finney, there cannot be any hope for our culture and thus our nation. God waits for us to get serious about getting right with him. Until then, we will simply have to endure the awful consequences of our stubborn disobedience.
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Response from : jack david |
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December 1, 2008 8:07 PM
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Hello!
One said Having a form of Godliness does not change the inner man and spirital being of the heart.
Also, written that wickedness would increase at the last days and most would have their love grow cold for Christ and each other.
http://www.prophetica.org
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Response from : Ken Baker |
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December 10, 2008 11:24 PM
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Please remember all is not lost. there are still good people out there but you have to look a little harder. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. i too was one of those members of the community, but certain ones did not give up hope and helped me. there are some that would just give up, don't be one of those. Keep the faith my brothers, God Bless, ken
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