The Past Is More Than A List Of Problems
It’s often said that those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. The unstated assumption in this saying is that the past is full of problems—which is obviously true. Learning from the mistakes of the past is a big job because there are just so many to choose from. Our learning is also complicated by the danger of over-correction—of fixating so intently on avoiding one problem that we fall easily into another. After all, we’re just as susceptible to cultural blind spots, overlooked abuses, and self-serving justifications as anyone who went before us. Have you seen the internet lately? So we must learn from the mistakes of the past, and we must apply our lessons carefully. But I think we sell history, our ancestors, and our own selves short when we only see the past as a litany of problems to avoid. Our forebearers certainly had their issues—plenty of them—but they also had their successes. They were often wrong, but sometimes they were right. And what if we were humble enough to admit this? What if we learned from history not only by critiquing it, but also by letting it critique us?
We live (like everyone before us) on the edge of history, the culmination of the ages. Our tools are better now than they have ever been, thanks to the accumulated knowledge of our ancestors. Better tools, however, do not necessarily make us better people, or guarantee that we have better wisdom in how to use them. The internet may display for us the knowledge of humanity, but it also highlights our foolishness and frivolity. Our heavy machinery may enable us to build skyscrapers with efficient functionality, but they feel cold and soulless compared to the cathedrals and cityscapes created in what we now derisively refer to as the “dark ages”. What did our ancestors know about beauty and humanity that we have forgotten? Or consider my grandparents’ generation, who had the moral clarity and courage to sacrifice their own comfort and security and even their lives to protect the vulnerable, preserve freedom, and end the holocaust. Could we do the same today? Are we using the freedom and democracy, the science and technology, the infrastructure and blood-bought peace and security we have inherited well, or have we let the wealth of the ages make us proud and entitled, selfish and decadent?
We should not assume that just because we are the latest generation on earth, we are the greatest. The ancients believed that the wisdom they needed for living well was most often found with the old, not the young. They assumed that the ages before them knew important truths that they also needed to learn and apply. They were right. If we really want to avoid the selfishness, tyranny, and abuses of the past we must look at more than just the ancient wrongs that continue to plague us. We must also seek out the good and right, the ageless wisdom and courage and faith that have always stood against evil, the virtues that have cultivated our world, the convictions that have built up and beautified it. Our ancestors have shown us many ways to fall and fail, certainly, but they have also at times shown us the path of grace and glory. Let us not only learn from their problems. Let us learn from their wisdom.
“This is what the Lord says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls.”
– Jeremiah 6:16
