“I Cannot Tell A Lie”

We’ve all heard the story demonstrating George Washington’s impeccable honesty when, as a boy, he confessed to his father that he had chopped down a cherry tree. You’ve probably also heard that this story is a complete fabrication, though it has become firmly cemented into American mythology through sheer repetition.

Similarly, there are a plethora of pseudo-quotes attributed to our first President which have nothing supporting them but hundreds of “quote” websites which eagerly repeat the same lines without any form of citation. My “bogus quote detector” began tingling (it works sort of like Spidey-sense) when I saw the following meme show up multiple times on my Facebook feed yesterday:

Upon investigation (which took all of about 3 minutes), my suspicion was confirmed: Washington never said this.

As I’ve tried to show this week, there is ample support in the historical record to demonstrate that many of our Founding Fathers did insist on the right of private citizens to bear arms, and that they were concerned with the ability to keep the government in check as a defense against tyranny. So there is absolutely no reason to resort to fake quotes to “prove” the point!

For the record, here is the actual quote (taken from Washington’s First Annual Message to Congress in 1790) which was mutilated into the form seen above (source):

A free people ought not only to be armed but disciplined; to which end, a uniform and well digested plan is requisite: and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories, as tend to render them independent on others for essential, particularly for military supplies.

If you get a chance, you really ought to read the entire address. I love reading Washington’s speeches; he truly had a way with words! If you read closely, you’ll notice some foreshadowing of the raising of an army to fight the “hostile tribes of Indians”, which I mentioned in my post from a week ago…

It is also important to note that this Address was intended to promote “the general and increasing good will toward the Government of the Union.” Washington’s task as our first President was to unite the formerly independent (and sometimes fiercely so) States under a Federal government, and to instill confidence in that government. Therefore the tone of the bogus quote is completely contrary to the purpose of the original, though the sentiment may be less far off.

This concludes another installment of “Meme-Busters”. Thanks for reading and remember: When using social media, please “share” responsibly. Friends don’t let friends abuse history!

“To be prepared for war, is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.”
~ One of the better (genuine) quotes from Washington’s “First Address”

Post Tenebras Lux

Happy Reformation Day! Check out this great new video from Desiring God Ministries on John Calvin’s legacy, and give thanks to God for raising up a generation of reformers to help bring about Light after centuries of darkness in the Church.

Lewis and Tolkien Debate Myths and Lies

I recently stumbled upon this re-enactment (HT: Theater of the Word) of the fateful conversation in 1931 between J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis which led to the latter’s conversion to Christianity (P.S. – for those who don’t know, Lewis’ nickname among his friends was “Jack”):

Thank the Lord that in His providence he arranged for these two men to become friends! Our world is so much richer for their work.

Their friendship is fascinating to read about. If you’re interested, here is a great article about it, and here is another which is more specifically about the conversation portrayed in the video. Colin Duriez has written a book about their friendship (Tolkien and C.S. Lewis: The Gift of Friendship), and the relationship also plays heavily in The Philosophy of Tolkien: The Worldview Behind the Lord of the Rings by Peter Kreeft (my review).

A feature-length film (“The Lion Awakes”) is now also in the works, which will hopefully bring this story to a broader audience. Here is the trailer:

The Generations of Men

This morning I read one of the most fascinating blog posts I’ve come across in a really long time. I just read it a second time — this time aloud to my wife. I’m still processing and deciding what I think about it, but wanted to share it with you.

The post comes from one of my favorite blogs (The Art of Manliness), and is entitled The Generations of Men: How the Cycles of History Shape Your Values, Your Idea of Manhood, and Your Future.

Basically, the post is a summary of something called the “Strauss-Howe Generational Theory”, laid out in two books published in the 1990′s (Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069 and The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy — What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny) and kept current on Neil Howe’s Lifecourse Blog. Before today I’d never heard of this theory, which provides a framework for viewing history as occurring in a regular cycle, like the changing of the seasons. I will say, though, that it is quite compelling! I don’t know nearly enough to accept or reject the theory, but at the very least found reading it through to be a fascinating thought experiment.

Here’s a quick preview:

Strauss and Howe argue that the last five centuries of Anglo-American history can be explained by the existence of four generational archetypes that repeat sequentially in a fixed pattern every 80-100 years, the length of a long human life, or what the ancients called a “saeculum.” These generational archetypes are: Prophet, Nomad, Hero, and Artist. Each generation consists of those born during a roughly 20 year period. As each generation moves up the ladder of age and takes a different place in society, the mood of the culture greatly changes…

A generation reaches it apex of influence when it moves into midlife and begins to take leadership positions of power within society. Thus every 20 years as a new generation fills the midlife rung of the age ladder, and the generation that previously occupied that rung moves into less influential elderhood, the mood of the culture shifts. As each generation type is born, matures, comes to influence in the culture, and then declines and dies, it plays a role in propeling society through a cycle of growth, maturation, entropy, destruction, and then regrowth. Just as in nature, this cycle of death and rebirth is necessary to maintain the health of the ecosystem or society.

The entire post is well worth your time to read closely, so set aside a half hour or so when you can devote some attention to it, and then let me know what you think. I may have some more reflections on this after I mull it over for a day or two, so stay tuned…

Foyle’s War

I rarely watch TV. In fact, our family hasn’t had television service in our house in over three years, and we haven’t missed it. Ever so often, though, a series catches our fancy, and my wife and I enjoy watching it online.

A few months ago, we stumbled across a British series called Foyle’s War. It’s a detective show set in southern England at the outset of World War II. The stories are interesting by themselves in the classic “whodunit” sense, but there is also a depth to the series that is rare in the genre. Detective Chief Superintendent Foyle and his staff are often faced with situations that provoke tough questions about the nature and ethics of war.

One of the biggest recurring questions is: Why bother investigating crimes when we could be invaded at any moment? When an entire nation is singularly focused on defense, does the objective of the “greater good” justify unlawful acts? Does the answer to the previous question change if it is the government breaking the law?

Christopher Foyle’s integrity and consistency in adhering to the law and upholding what is right is a refreshing change to the situational ethics so common in many TV shows today (He’s sort of an anti-Jack Bauer). Yet he’s no mindless stickler for the law; he wrestles with the hard questions, and is a thoroughly complex and fascinating man. The supporting characters are similarly well-developed, matched only by the sense of history and realism in the show’s portrayal of England (almost a character itself). In fact, many of the show’s episodes are based on true stories (detailed in this book), and the entire series gives a unique perspective on a war that’s been shown from countless angles already.

Here is how the show’s creator described the initial idea behind the show:

Having written for a great many murder mystery series over the years, I had come to realize that to spend three months of my life — and to invite audiences to spend two hours of theirs — in a drama which simply boiled down to “the doctor did it” or “the butler did it” was — not exactly a waste of time — but a missed opportunity. And I began to think of ways of using the genre to tell different sorts of stories. As it happens, I’ve always had a strong and keen interest in the war, particularly the early years of it, and it suddenly occurred to me that if one started looking at murder at a time when murder was at its lowest currency, when it was at its least important, then that would be something quite interesting. How can you investigate one dead body in a library in Hastings, when on the same day five thousand people are being killed fifty miles away? That’s what interested me, to take the genre and to use it to tell different sorts of stories and to look at a world that was so unique — the home front.

My wife and I have enjoyed the costuming and (especially) the music as much as anything else. It’s just a delightful show to watch! Best of all, if you have Amazon Prime, the first three seasons can be seen for free here. We’re hoping the other three will be made Prime-eligible soon, as we have already watched all the available freebies!

Here’s a trailer for the series:

If you do decide to check out this series, be advised that each “episode” is actually a 2-hr feature-length production, so you’ll need to set aside some time for it. It’s worth it, though!