Category: The Historical Muse

Thoughts on history and the historical profession. Clio is the muse of history–this category title is a play on that concept.

Misperceptions of Holiness

  

There’s a perception of some evangelicals, particularly in the media and on the “progressive” side of politics, that they are rigid, unfeeling, unthinking, mean-spirited joy-killers. Anyone who speaks out against licentious behavior and calls abortion and homosexuality sins are akin, in some minds, to those who championed the Inquisition during the Middle Ages or those Puritans who refused to celebrate Christmas [without, of course, studying to find out the reason they opposed the celebration—the way it was carried out in… Read more »

Presidents, Polls, Professors, & the Public

  

Young America’s Foundation is an organization devoted to conservative principles in culture and government. While it doesn’t claim to be openly Christian—other conservatives are welcome—the concepts it promotes are consistent with Biblical principles. In the last few years, it has established the Reagan Ranch Center in Santa Barbara, where it holds a number of significant seminars and conferences. The organization also bought the Reagan Ranch in the mountains outside Santa Barbara, and is keeping it as Ronald Reagan had it… Read more »

Educating a New Generation

  

The Fourth of July used to be one of the premier American holidays. People celebrated it because they understood the principles behind the resistance to taxation without representation and the potential for government overreach. Those were lessons we used to know. Things have changed. But if you were to take a survey of our current knowledge of America’s founding and the principles upon which it was based, you might get a variety of responses, few of them heartening: If some… Read more »

The Inside Story of the Impeachment of President Clinton

  

Last week I talked about two of my books that I encouraged you to read. I have one more, then I’ll go on to more current events again, starting tomorrow. The saga of the Clinton impeachment needed to be told from the inside. That’s why when the impeachment proceedings ended in 1999, I decided to contact the thirteen House Managers who had argued before the Senate for the removal of Bill Clinton from office. They all received me graciously, I… Read more »

Noah Webster: Schoolmaster to America

  

Yesterday I encouraged those of you who need more information on how the Bible views government to purchase a copy of my book If the Foundations Are Destroyed: Biblical Principles and Civil Government. Today, let’s focus more historically. My doctoral dissertation was on a man who was highly influential in America’s formative years: Noah Webster. That dissertation was published as Defining Noah Webster: A Spiritual Biography. I’ve always thought the title was rather clever, given that Webster’s primary work for… Read more »

A Very Unusual Fourth of July

  

As I stated in a previous post, July 2 was the day independence passed in the Continental Congress. It was important, though, to come up with a statement that declared to the world the reasons for the decision. That statement, initially called “A Declaration by the Representatives of the United States of America in General Congress Assembled,” is the document we now simply entitle “The Declaration of Independence.” Since it was approved on July 4, 1776, people began to celebrate… Read more »

John Adams & Independence

  

When Americans think about our independence historically, they most often think of Thomas Jefferson, since he was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence. Yet Jefferson never really participated in the verbal battles at the Continental Congress. He was the quiet guy in the corner. The man who most forcefully forwarded the argument for independence was John Adams. Adams also was part of the committee that was tasked with coming up with a declaration should it become necessary. Since… Read more »