The Ten Commandments of Historiography, I-V

A few years ago a friend and I decided to come up with a memorable way to teach our students how to think historically and then do responsible historiography. Thus was born the Ten Commandments of historiography.
1. Thou shalt have no other gods before the God of history.

The point is that earthly heroes, no matter how inspiring, make disappointing gods. This means we should have the courage to tell history warts and all. This is compatible with a Christian view of history defined as the record of man’s dominion over creation under the providence of a sovereign and all wise God and God’s redemptive actions for his glory and the salvation of his people (I am indebted to Rev. and Headmaster Chris Baker for this definition).

2. Thou shalt not make any graven historical image by idolizing periods or people.

This leads to our working definition of historiography: the reconstruction of history based upon trace evidence recovered from the study of historical sources. It also leads to the distinction of historiography from hagiography, which refers to idolizing and idealizing history and historical figures.

3. Thou shalt not take the primary sources name in vain by using only secondary sources to interpret them.

A primary source is an original source of information about an historical subject, and a secondary source is not original, but based upon research of primary sources. The primacy should be given to primary sources, while not reglecting secondary sources as insightful guides or foils.

4. Remember the historical Sabbath by refreshing yourself with God’s great victories, godly heroes, and historical fiction.

This brings us to the now neglected discipline of moral philosophy, which means learning wisdom from history. Moderns considered themselves too sophisticated to stoop to this and committed themselves to scientific objectivity. But we are undeniably moral creatures who draw moral or immoral conclusions.

The historical imagination plays a role in historiography. History cannot be reduced to a science because it is also an art that requires a good imagination.

5. Honor your historical fathers and mothers by emulating their virtues and abandoning their vices.

A few classic quotes: Cicero, “Not to know what happened before you were born is to remain forever a child.”

George Santayana, “Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.”

Karl Jaspers, “Who I am and where I belong I first learned to know from the mirror of history.”