More Than Dates and Dead People

Most students hate history classes and this is odd when one considers that people today seem to be more interested in history than ever. People travel to historical sites during family vacations, and best-seller lists are filled with books on history and historical fiction. Furthermore, some of the most popular films of recent years have been about history: Titanic, Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan. More Than Dates and Dead People is an upbeat, edgy look at history as something exciting rather than a boring list of dates to memorise. It views history as something fun to study because it is about people: how they live, what they believe, what they do, ideas that uplift and others that enslave. According to Stephen Mansfield, the difference is in the world-view of the beholder. Materialism, which essentially is the philosophy behind how history is viewed today in many educational settings, believes that the future is blank and that man is pushed forward by the past. Theism, on the other hand, believes that God first decided what the end - the destiny of history - would be. Thus, having decided the future first, beginning with creation, He began to draw manking through the ages to a final destiny. It is God's future that gives history its driving force and its meaning. The difference between these two world-views is everything, and in More Than Dates and Dead People the author works out what this means and why in a biblical world-view. History is no more the story of blind men groping toward a dark and fearful future. Instead, it becomes the unfolding of a future that God decided before creation, providing hope for all and making history a wild ride that never gets out of God's control.