The New Teaching of History: With a reply to some recent criticisms of The Outline of History — John Shaqi
The New Teaching of History: With a reply to some recent criticisms of The Outline of HistoryWells, H. G. (Herbert George)
History
The New Teaching of History: With a reply to some recent criticisms of The Outline of History
Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)
History -- Study and teaching; Wells, H. G. (Herbert George), 1866-1946. Outline of history
I will revert for a moment to my suggestion of an Outline of History for
Catholics from the Catholic point of view. It is, I submit, a very
desirable thing at the present time. I suppose the Church, at its head
and as a whole, has a policy, a definable relationship towards the
States and nations of the world. As an organisation one feels that it
should make for peace and human co-operation—wherever it operates. If
any sort of men can be expected to have the same political ideas
wherever they are found, and to have had something like an identical
historical training, it is surely the priesthood of the Catholic Church.
But the Church does not seem to give its priests any systematic
instruction in the history of mankind, after the period covered by the
Bible story. Much less does it attend to the minds of its laity in this
matter. Everywhere the Catholic priest, instead of restraining the local
and patriotic prejudices of his flock, seems rather to be swayed by
them. In very many centuries the Catholic Church plays a very important
political _rôle_; it is almost inevitable that the facilities offered by
its organisation and solidarity should be used politically. But it does
not seem to be used coherently throughout the world in the cause of
human unity. Its weight is rather on the side of the intenser
Nationalisms. I believe that a Catholic History of Man written for
world-wide use would do much to turn the influence of the Church
throughout the world back towards its former _rôle_ of a
peace-compelling and world-unifying power.
Of course, I cannot pretend to understand how a Catholic Outline of
History would be designed and written. I do not see how any writer can
see history except from his own standpoint, and my conception of how
that Catholic history would be planned, were I to give it here, would
certainly strike any Catholic as at least a grotesque caricature of his
vision.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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