I’ve decided to prepare for and pursue a career in teaching history, and I’m learning that this is a subject where my Christian worldview will clash more than in any other.
In mathematics, there is always a formula, and in English, there’s themes, styles, and patterns. Science is chiefly concerned with observations and laws, while even philosophy for all its existential diversity can be broken down into logical structures of premises and conclusion.
History, however, is the narrative of humanity. It urgently demands action, though many are deaf to its voice. It is a story in which we take part, and how we contribute to the unfolding plot will of course be determined by what we believe about our origin, nature, and purpose.
I see this crossroads most clearly in how my college instructor explains racism-- as the result of competition. He supports this by pointing to how racism is not inherited in a biological sense; there is no basis in our human nature which compels us to despise those with a different skin color than our own. His conclusion is that racism only comes about when resources are scarce, which leads to violence as an outlet for stress and a means for survival.
On one hand, this perspective seems charitable, since it is an alternative to condemning bigoted whites. He is sympathizing with the socio-economic motivations of their racism, which also saves face for humanity as a whole if the fault lies in their environment. We are, after all, only highly evolved primates (according to many men of worldly wisdom) and so it is our inevitable compulsion to fight among ourselves when we outgrow our resources.
The call to arms for history-minded students today, then, is to address humanity’s overpopulation and overconsumption of resources… which appears to be in our practical reach when contrasted with a utopia based on moral correction or a theory of perfect government.
That said, is it truly more considerate to racist whites if we explain their actions in terms of competition and outlets, as if they are mere animals helplessly obeying their impulses? I would say this is no different than a parent who claims to be more “understanding” of their teenage child, because they attribute poor decisions to a partially developed, unstable adolescent brain. Teens as well as humans in general need to be held to a higher standard than that of irrational beasts; their reasoning as men and women in God’s image must be affirmed to properly respect them.
Christianity in one way shatters our tower to heaven by identifying a new problem-- a prideful greed that exists within the person’s sin nature. This infiltrator within us intentionally judges competitors as less than human, even when our survival is not threatened and the difference in our resources is trivial.
In an important sense, we are helpless to overcome this sin which divides us, with willpower and even religious systems falling short to mend our brokenness.
In another sense, we are still accountable to live righteously, we should strive to do so as best we can, and grace empowers us to imitate this very thing as Christ pioneered it for all people.
Being good stewards of our resources, while beneficial, is not the root of our problem. The issue is in our hearts, and will only sabotage those who deny its effect. We must acknowledge its internal havoc first, then realize that our only hope against it is found in the work and person of Jesus.
This is a bitter pill for those who reject Jesus, as well as for history teachers who can’t explain the only solution during his or her paid time teaching. I’ve already made up my mind, regardless, that I will stop focusing on the distracting symptoms and instead offer my future students a solemn diagnosis, trusting that it will prepare them for hearing what is truly good news for a severely diseased world.
“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel . . . But he gives more grace. Therefore it says,“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.“
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