The Art Of History
"While the past can be conceived of as a series of occurrences, events, figures and movement, this way of thinking of things could hardly be called history. Rather, history is a method of analysis of these events that brings the best resources of all fields of knowledge to bear upon the past. In and of itself, history is the interpretation and translation of the identity and significance of the past, in a meaningful way, to the present. In short, it is not so much the task of the historian to merely describe or simplify the past, rather, the task is one of the translator and interpreter of the thought, social climate and events of the past to a current generation. The historical theologian, therefore, is one who applies these principles of historical inquiry to the theological task--supporting other theological disciplines by means of providing context to enhance these respective tasks."
Timothy Dost
Comments
1. I love the drama of the string of events and personality
2. I love the application of the brillant human brain to the resolution of the same problems. ever coming up with more brillantly stupid reasons to make the same mistakes.
3. I love the variety of prespectives on the same historical string. Humans being limited in their perspectives, unlike God who is omniscient thus able to give us the only truely real presecpive on history, Heilsgeschichte - salvation history. However and unfortunately our read of God's history is also limited by human limitations.
4. i like Dost's paragraph as it reveals the imposition of theologial grid unto our perspective of history. Where is history do we see the work of the Law, humans attemtpint to keep their own law and failing - much more attempting to keep God law in their own strength and demonstrating utter failer. Then in those glorious moments when the heavens open and we see and incident on earth of what is happening all the time in heaven, the Gospel.
5. I love applying Heilsgeschichte to my own history. what a the incidents of law and how have i vanily sought to justify myself. Then to the prasie of God, where is the Gospel - those moments when, of His volition against myself the Gospel was reveal to me and the gift of faith was given to believe, the power of God was given to act on it.
(Could their be a beautiful feeling than, as a frail rebellious human to preach the cross of jesus Christ on behalf. to have this gift of my own historical trail is heavenly.)