CHAPLAIN
THE DANGER OF BEING STUCK IN THE PRESENT
REV DOUG CAMPBELL SCHOOL CHAPLAIN
GEORGE SANTAYANA : ‘ THOSE WHO CANNOT REMEMBER THE PAST ARE CONDEMNED TO REPEAT IT .’
We are living in interesting times where the past seems less like a different country and more like an altogether alternative universe . Sadly , it appears that many more people today deny the importance and relevance of history . Others want to rewrite it for their own political or ideological agendas . The sins and faults of the great historical figures lead to their modern day cancellation while offending statues are toppled in an attempt to reflect the values of the present .
While it is important to critically reflect on our history , the danger of unthinking revisionism is that the past , warts and all , is eradicated in an attempt to create an acceptable paradise on earth . In this anti-historical age , history , probably more than any other area of research , is vitally important , as it provides individuals and societies with a framework to understand the past , the present , and the future .
At our innermost being , we are all historical beings . We exist in particular places and times . Moreover , we are profoundly shaped by the world into which we are born , which is in itself a product of time and history . While our shared biology with a first century Roman citizen binds us together in our humanity , the way a 21st century Australian thinks will naturally differ . The question remains – why are we different to our forefathers ? The answer is in large part the historical processes that have led to the making of modern Australia , and that have moulded the thinking of all Australians .
We are all historical beings . However , we may , following the attitude of Henry Ford , simply dismiss history as ‘ more or less bunk ’ and resort to living only in the present and being interested in just what we do today . Or , perhaps more seriously , we may go further and dismiss out of hand all those who have come before us and consider only our own age . Those who adopt this particular attitude believe that the way they think about the world is the way the world must be thought about .
Those who look down on the past and the people of history are unwittingly blinded by their own hubris and oblivious to the fact that they and their opinions
will soon be scrutinised and deconstructed by the next ‘ enlightened ’ generation . In short , having torn down the past , the achievements and the progress they extol will in turn be sneered at and dismissed out of hand . If this is the future , we will be left with nations of empty stone plinths .
The lack of a historical perspective severely limits our formation as individuals and as a society . While the ahistorical may still note what is transpiring in the world around them in the present , their approach will not help in evaluating what is actually transpiring in the present . We all need this longer perspective that sees beyond ourselves and our situations in order to truly understand and make sense of our world and its events , and our place in it .
To understand why these historical figures thought the way they did and why they acted in a particular way – their shared human experience – will help us live wisely in our own time .
In 2021 , Scotch has acknowledged our 170th year as a school . That is a long and distinguished past . The portraits of our founder , the Rev James Forbes , and our Principals look down on the students of today . The names of past students adorn the walls of Memorial Hall and the Lithgow Building , acknowledging their achievements and their ultimate sacrifice , which helped mould Australia and its story .
Yet history is not simply the preserve of the classroom or the Archives , nor is it limited to the buildings and its adornments . History is more than a subject but should be a lifelong pursuit : a quest that offers those who embark on this road of discovery a deeper wisdom about our ancestors and about ourselves . With this perspective we will be less prone to dismiss those who have gone before us and be less quick to elevate ourselves or our ideologies . It will open our eyes to appreciate the culture which has moulded not only society , or our School , but also us as individuals .
At Scotch we are a Christian school that stands in a tradition that goes back even further than 1851 . It stands in the Presbyterian tradition of Scotland that believed passionately in the importance of education .
6 Great Scot Issue 164 – December 2021