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Brianna Nunnally

Kimberly Lark

History 134 Section 142735

08 December 2019

The Value of History: A reflection

The question that is posed for this reflection is “What can I, as an historian of the ancient

world, learn and apply from the history of my ancient ancestors to my own role in contributing to

and acting responsibly for the betterment of society?” this is a question that has many answers

and has the ability to be evaluated from many different points. The point that I chose to evaluate

this question was religion/morals. I chose religion and morals because it is a subject that has

strong and lengthy effects. I will discuss historical figures who introduced the 3 religions

mentioned and the impact it had on society at the time. The impacts from all of them are ones

that are still prevalent today

The first religion we will be looking at will be Christianity. Christianity was formed from

a Judaist basis. Jesus was Jewish and was raised with Judaism. Jesus was thought to be the

messiah, the son of God. (Green "Christianity from Judaism to Constantine: Crash Course World

History #11" 2012) Out of those who worked to spread Christianity we will be looking at

Constantine. Constantine was the west Roman emperor during his rule. He tried to also orient

Christianity toward East Rome, and notably he held the first church council in 325. This was

huge because it’s one of the first marks of the emperor having more power over the church.

(Green "Fall of The Roman Empire...in the 15th Century: Crash Course World History #12"

2012) During his reign Constantine accomplished a lot and was referred to as Constantine the

great. His work on spreading Christianity played a big part. It also provided hope during the fall
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of Rome when roman religion offered no mention or hope of an afterlife. “Constantine ascribed

his success to his conversion to Christianity and the support of the Christian God.” (Nicol &

Matthews "Constantine I" 2019) Constantine accomplished a lot he became a singular ruler of

Rome, spread Christianity which did bring some unity with it. As he said himself Christianity

was a contributing factor to that success.

The second religion we will cover is Islam. “In less than 200 years Islam went from being

nonexistent to the religious and political organizing principle of one of the largest empires in the

world.” (Green "Islam, the Quran, and the Five Pillars All Without a Flamewar: Crash Course

World History #13" 2012) For Islam we will look to Muhammad who was considered the

prophet of Allah. “The Prophet’s message jeopardized the social and economic standing of the

elite members of society, who accused the Muslims of serving as agents of unwelcome change.”

("Muhammad and Islam ") Though the rise of Islam would lead its followers to be pushed out of

their home that did not dampen the advantages it brought. Islam was threating because it

“radically increased the rights of women and orphans” (Green "Islam, the Quran, and the Five

Pillars All Without a Flamewar: Crash Course World History #13" 2012) these revelations

threated Muhammad’s tribal leaders and the power they held. Islam and its founding were

something so powerful that it is still a huge religion in the world today.

Buddhism will be the third religion that we will look at. During the time in India

Hinduism was the primary religion. Hinduism and Buddhism share some common factors such

as samsara and karma. Ashoka was the one that worked to spread Buddhism throughout India.

Buddhism was attractive to those who were low in the Hindu caste system because Buddhism

had no castes. Each person had the ability to elevate themselves from suffering and reach

nirvana/enlightenment, possibly even reach it in their individual lifetime. This offered the
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alternative to being reborn with only a small chance of having improvement or a change in

status. (Green "Buddha and Ashoka: Crash Course World History #6") Ashoka attempted to lead

with qusai-buddhist prinicples. He began to spread the word of Buddhism after witnessing a

devastating battle, the acceptance and non-violence of Buddhism had a lot to offer. Even though

Buddhism itself faded some the buddha was later thought of as a prophet of the Hindu God and

his image was absorbed into Hinduism. Buddhism did, however, make its way into China.

Buddhism made a large impression that can be seen mention constantly today, as well as, its

fusion into Hinduism like the other religions talked about is still prevalent today.

Religions carry a set or morals though most religions share a base of main morals, there

are differences. Morals have an impact on history because it affects how notions and societies

approach and respond to different situations. Mentioned in the article of how history can predict

the next pope its mentioned how voting itself is medieval but also mentions how history can

affect voting. This is not only specific to religion but government as well. Religion has impacted

history and in turn history can also give insight to reactions to religious events. Most importantly

the history allows us to avoid religious tension, wars, and crucifixions.

“How will he celebrate differences, rectify injustices, discuss divisions, or build alliances

without an understanding of the story of human existence?” (Ascd "What Can History Teach Us

Today?") The quote is asking how someone will be able to know themselves without knowing

where they come from and the history that has brought them to where they are. A person’s

history is part of their identity in the same way that religion is. Knowing the history of your

religion good or bad is necessary to truly understand it.

“Isn't there quite enough to learn about the world today? Why add to the burden by

looking at the past?” ("Why Study History? (1985): AHA") rather than thinking of the past as a
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burden it should be looked at as a guidebook. It is the natural guide of what works and what

doesn’t. how can anything be fixed or accomplished if the past failures are not taken into

account. For example the fact that Ashoka’s teaching of Buddhism differed slightly form the

teaching of Siddhartha himself may be why it did not last on its own, or it may not have been a

lasting fit for India, but without knowing of it in the first place we never stand the chance of

knowing. Without looking in the past we risk making the same possibly damming mistakes that

have already been made.

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Works Cited

Ascd. “What Can History Teach Us Today?” ASCD Express 6.22 - What Can History Teach Us

Today?, http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol6/622-postma.aspx

“Buddha and Ashoka: Crash Course World History #6.” YouTube, 1 Mar. 2012, Buddha and

Ashoka: Crash Course World History #6

“Christianity from Judaism to Constantine: Crash Course World History #11.” YouTube, 5 Apr.

2012, https://youtu.be/TG55ErfdaeY.

“Fall of The Roman Empire...in the 15th Century: Crash Course World History #12.” YouTube,

12 Apr. 2012, https://youtu.be/3PszVWZNWVA

“Islam, the Quran, and the Five Pillars All Without a Flamewar: Crash Course World History

#13.” YouTube, 19 Apr. 2012, https://youtu.be/TpcbfxtdoI8.

“Muhammad and Islam.” HIST 134, https://bbaddins.schoolcraft.edu/addins/HIST134/etext/c13-

islam.html

Nicol, Donald MacGillivray, and J.F. Matthews. “Constantine I.” Encyclopædia Britannica,

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 15 Oct. 2019,

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constantine-I-Roman-emperor.

Perry, David M. “How History Can Help Us Predict the Next Pope.” The Atlantic, Atlantic

Media Company, 12 Mar. 2013,

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/03/how-history-can-help-us-

predict-the-next-pope/273945/.

“Why Study History? (1985): AHA.” Why Study History? (1985) | AHA,

https://www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-and-

archives/historical-archives/why-study-history-(1985).