History is the becoming.

History can be also be defined as the compilation of “relevant” events wherein the said events provided the tipping point for one era to shift to the next. As for whose relevance history serves its purpose was previously discussed in earlier articles. Moving on, history is said to highlight all the “important” events that caused a disturbance in the space & time continuum. Scholastic philosophy provided the theory of history with its earliest material. St. Augustine of Hippo who lived in 354 AD called history as the unfolding of the grand plan of God for the human species and for all Creation. Not until the Industrial Revolution would this philosophy weaken and be replaced with another theory.

Flash-forward to the 18^th century, the people of Europe has now shifted their focus from a spiritual stance to a more materialistic culture. With the Industrial Revolution, the people of Europe preoccupied themselves with the rigorous building of canals, roads, and railways as well as the mechanization of the previous labour-intensive industries. For the first time, buildings, factories, and machines were being built instead of churches. Coupled with these drastic changes of time, the question of primacy was born. Questions such as Where did history start from?, Did the universe start from an materialistic beginning?, and If not, is it possible that a supreme being did indeed create the universe that we know? brewed in the imaginations of philosophers of that era. One such philosopher was Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel who theorized the Dialectical Idealism. Dialectical Idealism simply states that there is a universal history and that the consciousness of human beings reigned supreme. His Idealism is a reiteration of the Greek’s dialectics.

The overlying theme for this discussion can be summed into this simple question. Which of the two best represents the true state of being, Rationality or Religion? This question has long been a source of arguments and countless wars. Indeed, this conflict would lead us to a number of practical realizations. First, the monarchic system has always been beset with the irrationality that is associated with the transfer of administrative power from one generation to the next with the illogical explanation hinged supposedly on divine providence. Even at the dawn of mankind (as in the version of the Creation story), rationality is at war with religion. The concept of original sin is the epitome of this conflict. At its most basic idea, knowledge or possession thereof is not necessarily wrong, but as the creation story would later point out, it is indeed a sin to bear knowledge and a virtue to be ignorant. Scholastic philosophy is best characterized by its simplistic and most often, belittling attitude towards the truth. The church, in its search for its own truth, puts so much virtue in moral obedience and completely neglects man’s liberty.

Rationality is the best answer to the supposed lies of religion. If history is indeed the becoming, then it should move past the imperfections of scholastic philosophy and evolve, much like it did with the advent of Hegel’s Dialectical Idealism. Though still rough around the edges, Hegel’s Idealism should become a crucial stepping stone for future theories. History is the becoming, a slice in the time and space continuum. It should not be laced with bias based on hokum and religious fanaticism, but rather with an open mind and a critical thought. History is the becoming since it is the progressive movement of people towards their historic goal of freedom and a better form of life. So much for St. Augustine and his City of God. (11/18/2010)