History has an impeccable way of communicating to a new generation. There is the natural progress of thought and continuation of thinking. There is the possible example of failures. There is the picture of valiant men and woman who served as our noble icons. More often than not, one of the greatest advantages of history, and knowing history, is the ability to observe a historical line of thinking. Take for example in New Testament studies, it his helpful to enter the conversation with an understanding of “where we’ve been” because it offers systemic structures to the conversation, either good or bad. Observing the trajectory of the past puts “today” into context and why we are here in a certain line of thinking. Something came from somewhere.
An easy, though often abused example, is the presuppositional framework of post-modernity. The very existence of post-modernity depends upon a modernistic framework. Thus, Enlightenment philosophy bred modernity. And you can imagine how the influences of the Enlightenment preceded its rise. Consequently, we live in a world of cause and effect, especially within our thinking.
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