The Biblical Philosophy of History
Overview
For the orthodox Christian who grounds his philosophy of history on the doctrine of creation, the wellspring of that history is God. Time rests on the foundations of eternity, on the eternal decree of God. Time and history, therefore, have meaning because they were created in terms of God’s perfect and comprehensive plan. The humanist faces a meaningless world in which he must strive to create and establish meaning. The Christian embraces a world which is meaningful and in which every event moves in terms of God’s purpose. He submits to God’s meaning and finds his life therein. The Biblical Philosophy of History is an excellent introduction to Rushdoony’s work. Once the reader sees Rushdoony’s emphasis on God’s sovereignty over all time and creation, he will understand his application of the presupposition in various spheres of life and thought.
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- Discussion of the philosophy of history
- Emphasis on God’s sovereignty
- Note on socialist poetic justice
Top Highlights
“Evolutionary time emerges out of the past, gropes its way blindly into the present, and moves sightlessly into an unknown future. The movement of time is thus from the past to the present into the future. The movement of time, according to the Bible, is from eternity, since it is created by God and moves out of and in terms of His eternal decree. Because time moves in terms of the eternal decree, when its function is finished there shall be time no more (Rev. 10:6). Because time is predestined, and because its beginning and end are already established, time does not develop in evolutionary fashion from past to present to future. Instead, it unfolds from future to present to past.” (Page 9)
“In this perspective, God is not the Creator; instead, He is another creature, although a greater one, who is leading man in the battle against the forces of chaos. He has not created time and history, but rather appears in time and history to give meaning to it by conquering it and reshaping it to fulfill His hopes. As a result, God is the spearhead of revolution in time and history against the chaos and meaninglessness of time and history.” (Page 5)
“Darwinism destroyed this faith in nature. The process of nature was now portrayed not as a perfect working of law, but as a blind, unconscious energy working profligately to express itself.” (Page 7)
“The destiny of covenant-keeping man is to be God’s vicegerent in Christ, to be God’s priest, prophet, and king over creation, to rule, interpret, understand, and dedicate the world in Christ unto God the Father. Man is not passive in his relationship to nature; rather, nature is passive in relationship to man. Nature was passive in receiving the consequences of man’s fall, and nature is passive today as man’s sin lays nature waste.” (Page 11)
- Title: The Biblical Philosophy of History
- Author: Rousas John Rushdoony
- Publisher: Ross House Books
- Publication Date: 1997
- Pages: 138
Rousas John Rushdoony (1916–2001) was was a well-known American scholar, writer, and author of over thirty books. He earned degrees from the University of California, received theological training at the Pacific School of Religion, and received an honorary Doctorate from Valley Christian University for his book The Philosophy of the Christian Curriculum.
Rushdoony was an ordained minister and served as pastor at two California churches. He served for almost nine years as a missionary to the Shoshone and Paiute Indians in a remote area of Nevada. It was during this time as a missionary that Rushdoony began writing. The Institutes of Biblical Law and Commentary on the Pentateuch are just a few of the titles that Rushdoony has penned.
The Chalcedon Foundation, an educational organization devoted to research, publishing, and cogent communication of a distinctively Christian scholarship to the world at large, was founded by Rushdoony in 1965. He served as the editor of The Chalcedon Report, the monthly magazine of the Chalcedon Foundation.
Rushdoony also published the Journal of Christian Reconstruction and was an early board member of the Rutherford Institute which was founded by John W. Whitehead.
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Donizeti Rodrigues Ladeia
12/12/2017
