Teaching and Learning America’s Christian History : American Revolution Bicentennial Edition

Islam is one of the two greatest external threats to Christianity in the twenty-first century. Statism is the other. Though not as old as statism, Islam has been at war with Christianity since its inception by Mohammad in the seventh century. This booklet provides a brief overview of the history of Islam and its teachings in order to give proper context to this very grave danger that the free world and the Christian faith faces. The historical overview of Islam presented here—which includes the Crusades, important battles stopping Islam’s spread throughout Europe, and Muslims’ influence in American history—reveals that its aggressive expansion and conflict with Christianity are normal. The ideological and worldview comparison of Christianity and Islam shows that Christianity produces liberty, while Islam brings oppression. Many questions are also answered, such as: Is Islam a religion of peace? How should America deal with Islamic terrorists? What can we do regarding the threat of Islam to the Christian faith? Finally, there is good news: God is moving among many Muslims to bring them to Christ.

Marcus Whitman, a medical missionary and Christian patriot, was the man who saved the Oregon Territory and assured it would be a part of the United States. Called to the Northwest by a desire to see the Indians taught the liberating principles of the Bible, the daring action of this “man of destiny” paved the way for the establishment of the states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The tragic and sad end of the story of Marcus and Narcissa Whitman reminds us that “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” Their story clearly reveals the providence of God in the march of history — that nations do not, in the words of historian George Bancroft, “float darkling down the stream of the ages without hope or consolation, swaying with every wind and ignorant whither they are drifting” but that “there is a superior intelligence and love, which is moved by justice and shapes their courses.” The Whitman’s story will also inspire us to practice “heroic, patriotic, and Christian virtues.”