“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
American philosopher George Santayana, The Life of Reason: Reason in Common Sense
Before learning from history, one must share a common understanding of the language that framed that history. What should we do when confronted with revisionist language and history? We must first understand what historical revisionism is and is not, so we are not led astray “tilting at windmills” over innocent changes in culture, language translation principles, etc.
Teach the Children:
- It is important we recognize attempts to change our understanding of history when they occur.
- It is important to know there are innocent ways our understanding of history can change. For example, new ideas, better translation of words, and cultural changes can produce a different view of history.
- Beware of purposeful attempts to change the traditional understanding of historical events to fit new and deceptive narratives.
“They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator.”
Romans 1:25