Presentism and Apologist Oversight
Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2007 9:36 pm
Many of us are familiar with the FAIR uberscholars who throw around that accusation of "presentism" at anyone who dare question the viability of the Book of Mormon or Smith's prophetic call.
To the extent that "presentism" is a "fallacy" at all, is in the practice of writing history as more or less a corollary to the idea of methodological naturalism. The single greatest influence on presentist historical tendencies might have been Hegel's Philosophy of History which demonstrates how the history of civilization progresses in a dialectic, culminating in absolute truth as would be expressed by history, as it would be, just a wee bit down the road from modern German culture.
If there could ever be a charge of presentism made, it would be to religionists who see the entire play of world history in the (anti)intellectual forms of their favorite, insignificant sect. So here's a post from FAIR by one of their long-time apologists on the twenty most significant events in human history:
Where were Pahoran and Nighthawke to charge Bsix with presentism, the likes of which no critic has ever conceived?
To the extent that "presentism" is a "fallacy" at all, is in the practice of writing history as more or less a corollary to the idea of methodological naturalism. The single greatest influence on presentist historical tendencies might have been Hegel's Philosophy of History which demonstrates how the history of civilization progresses in a dialectic, culminating in absolute truth as would be expressed by history, as it would be, just a wee bit down the road from modern German culture.
If there could ever be a charge of presentism made, it would be to religionists who see the entire play of world history in the (anti)intellectual forms of their favorite, insignificant sect. So here's a post from FAIR by one of their long-time apologists on the twenty most significant events in human history:
1. The atonement of Jesus Christ (Gethsemane, the Cross, the Resurrection.)
2. The Divine Council (The council itself and the war in heaven)
3. The second coming of Jesus Christ (His appearance, the resurrection and the judgement.)
4. The virgin birth of Jesus Christ.
5. The creation of the earth
6. The restoration of the Gospel in 1830
7. The Information Age
8. The publishing of the Book of Mormon
9. The Greek civilization
10. The invention of the printing press
11. The rise and fall of the Roman Empire
12. The great flood
13. The Rennisance
14. The visit of Jesus Christ to his 'other' sheep (including his visit to the Western hemisphere.)
15. The industrial revolution (18-19th centuries)
16. Adam and Eve (The garden and being cast out)
17. Man lands on the Moon
18. Splitting the atom
19. The World Wars (1914-18, 39-45)
20. The world wide temple building program
Where were Pahoran and Nighthawke to charge Bsix with presentism, the likes of which no critic has ever conceived?