In the past, the term Anglo-American Empire was commonly associated with the British Empire. Today, it is known as the US Superpower. Now, these two worlds seem to have great differences. However, it also seems that they are guided by the same underlying world view but more than just a common language.
So, has the Anglo-American Empire been a blessing or a curse on the world?
A very gifted speaker in the person of Tony Campolo addressed all good Christian preachers and challenged everyone to have more than what they have. Tony Campolo's ideas could be uncomfortable at times but very rewarding. He is also very entertaining, insightful and challenging.
Tony spoke on the topic of loving one's neighbor. He used an anecdote that he speaks on several times before. No doubt it affected him deeply and was formative in his passion to love the poor. He spoke of a time he had been approached in a third world country by three underage girls, earning a living as child street prostitutes. Instead, he paid the money, and allowed them to fall asleep in his hotel room eating ice cream and watching Disney movies. But his cry to God was always that he had only alleviated their suffering for a night. And this has obviously stayed with him for many years.
He was pushed for World Vision child sponsorship, no doubt for its worthy goal.
Some people living in the US or UK would say that they are not that rich or wealthy enough. But when compared to other countries where child prostitution is existent, they can be considered lucky and must be contented. Simply by giving money from spare change, it's a great thing to extend their help to create change in the lives of people in the third world countries.
Where did this money come from? And where did the will to use it to make the world a better place come from?
It is very fashionable in politically correct circles these days to knock the British Empire, and to criticize all US attempts at interventionist foreign policy.
Yet it remains an historical fact that the average man in the street has never been better educated, better fed, wealthier, healthier or freer in the history of the world, than right now, in an English speaking nation.
Society and humanity will climb higher and higher with every passing generation. This is the mythical force of social evolution which most people believe in. This can be seen in the writings of the likes of Nietsche. And it was as false when G.K.Chesterton and C.S.Lewis debunked it in the 1900s and 1950s as it is now. Empires rise and empires fall.
We have lost much of what made us great. Today, we could not achieve today what our ancestors achieved in, for example, the settling of the west (USA), the industrial revolution (China), or the Second World War. But if people rediscover and re-embrace what made the Anglo-American Empire great, it may yet rise to new heights of greatness as yet undreamed of. The empire would not be teetering on the edge after all. If it does, this empire, like every other empire before it, and there were many, will decline to be a footnote in history.
That is why, it is very important to identify some of the beliefs that shaped our ancestors lives, where most of them are lost by now.
So, has the Anglo-American Empire been a blessing or a curse on the world?
A very gifted speaker in the person of Tony Campolo addressed all good Christian preachers and challenged everyone to have more than what they have. Tony Campolo's ideas could be uncomfortable at times but very rewarding. He is also very entertaining, insightful and challenging.
Tony spoke on the topic of loving one's neighbor. He used an anecdote that he speaks on several times before. No doubt it affected him deeply and was formative in his passion to love the poor. He spoke of a time he had been approached in a third world country by three underage girls, earning a living as child street prostitutes. Instead, he paid the money, and allowed them to fall asleep in his hotel room eating ice cream and watching Disney movies. But his cry to God was always that he had only alleviated their suffering for a night. And this has obviously stayed with him for many years.
He was pushed for World Vision child sponsorship, no doubt for its worthy goal.
Some people living in the US or UK would say that they are not that rich or wealthy enough. But when compared to other countries where child prostitution is existent, they can be considered lucky and must be contented. Simply by giving money from spare change, it's a great thing to extend their help to create change in the lives of people in the third world countries.
Where did this money come from? And where did the will to use it to make the world a better place come from?
It is very fashionable in politically correct circles these days to knock the British Empire, and to criticize all US attempts at interventionist foreign policy.
Yet it remains an historical fact that the average man in the street has never been better educated, better fed, wealthier, healthier or freer in the history of the world, than right now, in an English speaking nation.
Society and humanity will climb higher and higher with every passing generation. This is the mythical force of social evolution which most people believe in. This can be seen in the writings of the likes of Nietsche. And it was as false when G.K.Chesterton and C.S.Lewis debunked it in the 1900s and 1950s as it is now. Empires rise and empires fall.
We have lost much of what made us great. Today, we could not achieve today what our ancestors achieved in, for example, the settling of the west (USA), the industrial revolution (China), or the Second World War. But if people rediscover and re-embrace what made the Anglo-American Empire great, it may yet rise to new heights of greatness as yet undreamed of. The empire would not be teetering on the edge after all. If it does, this empire, like every other empire before it, and there were many, will decline to be a footnote in history.
That is why, it is very important to identify some of the beliefs that shaped our ancestors lives, where most of them are lost by now.
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Interested in hunting and social issues? Why not try David Greentree's new book, 'Tom Grafton Vs The Environmentalists'.
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