When you read through ancient histories, you notice that you
rarely hear the stories of the common people, the peasants and shepherds. Most history is written “from above.” This means the winning general, the king
whose coup succeeded, or the merchant who cornered the market and reaped a
fortune, writes the story. It is
written by the powerful and the wealthy.
The British historian J.H. Plumb, in his book The Death of the Past,
observes that history is written to give sanction to the existing social
institutions, government, and morality.
The writers seek to establish that the right people won and things are
just the way they should be; they want to justify the status quo.
The Bible is different.
Those with power and status do not get to write all the stories.
Here we find many stories written “from below.” Peasants, fishermen, women, exiles, and slaves are prominent in
many of the stories and are the ones who pass them on from generation to
generation.. We get material that
challenges the status quo, rails against the rich and powerful, and praises the
common folk. Jesus and Jeremiah were
particularly pointed in exposing the flimsy claim of the status quo to
legitimacy. We do hear from kings and
generals and landowners, but we also hear about the lives of their subjects,
the victims of their conquest, and tenant farmers crushed by debt. In the scriptures a voice is given to people
who have no voice in other ancient texts.
Modern history is often written “from above” as well. The majority dominant class gets to choose
which stories are told and which stories are buried in obscurity. This is the rational for Black History
Month. It is an effort to make sure
that all the important stories of our nation get told. Did you know that M. B. Rhodes, a black
American, patented the first water closet that paved the way for the
introduction of flush toilets? Having
spent time in places where flush toilets are not available, I appreciate Mr.
Rhodes’ ingenuity. Did you know that Lloyd Hall, another black American,
patented the process that cut the curing time for bacon from several weeks to a
few hours? (Too bad he didn’t invent
the angioplasty at the same time.) Did
you know that Granville Woods, a black American, invented the third rail, a
series of conductors that allow trains to move? He also collaborated with Alexander Graham Bell so often that
Bell frequently sent him to court to testify in patent cases. (The Italians tell us that Antonio Santi
Giuseppe Meucci invented the telephone, but he was too poor to challenge Bell’s
patents; but I do digress.) Matthew
Henson and Admiral Robert E. Perry set out in March of 1907 to reach the North
Pole. They had tried twice before and
failed. On this third try, Perry fell
ill a few miles from their goal.
Henson, a black American, continued to the Pole and planted the American
flag.
During Black history month, we remember that some of the
important stories of our history must sought out and recovered from
obscurity. We believe that all of us
are made in the image God, gifted and precious in God’s eyes. All of us deserve to have our stories told
and our achievements celebrated..
Blessings,
Jim Kelsey
Executive Minister
