For the story of Joseph Smith and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints we are studying Jan Shipps' Mormonism: The Story of a New Religious Tradition. She argues that like the earliest Christians who saw themselves as a distinct Hebrew tradition which eventually morphed into a new religion, Christianity, that, “Mormonism is a … Continue reading Class Notes
Author: James Finck
Dr. James W. Finck was raised in the shadows of history in the great state of Virginia. Growing up it was difficult to travel too far without running into a monument or battlefield from the Revolutionary or Civil War. In this environment, Finck developed a love for studying the past and from his youth knew that he wanted to make it his life’s work. Finck received a B.A. from the College of William and Mary in Virginia. He then studied under James I. Robertson and William C. Davis at Virginia Tech, while earning a Master’s degree. Finally, he received his Ph.D. at the University of Arkansas, under the direction of Daniel Sutherland. For five years, Finck taught at the University of Texas-Pan American before accepting his current position as American Historian at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma in 2011. At a small liberal arts institution, Finck considers himself a generalist in history, but his specialties are the Civil War and American Politics. Finck has established himself in Oklahoma with the creation of the Oklahoma Civil War Symposium, which has brought in leading Civil War scholars for the past eight years, and he has spoken at many venues around Oklahoma, especially working with the Honey Spring Battlefield. Finck is the author of Divided Loyalties: Kentucky’s Struggle for Armed Neutrality in the Civil War, as well as Images of America: Chickasha. Finck is also the author of the syndicated newspaper column “Historically Speaking.”
Class Notes
Alexander Campbell is one of the most important American religious figures of the 19th Century. The Stone/Campbell movement is the foundational movement for the creation of the Church of Christ and the Disciples of Christ. Yet today Campbell is relatively unknown even by members of the Churches he founded. There are a few reasons for … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
While Russia was our ally during WWII, things turned sour quickly after the war ended. The first major issue was Poland. Russia had liberated Poland from the Nazis but now instead of allowing free elections as Truman insisted, the Russians decided to keep Poland under their control. While this was clearly an act of aggression, … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
The Campbellite movement grew out the Baptist theology. Though Alexander Campbell began as a Presbyterian he saw more similarity with the Baptists, especially as Douglas Foster pointed out here, “commitment to the Scripture; the emphasis at the local church and rejection of hierarchical structures; the practice of believers’ immersion.” However, Baptist leaders soon saw too … Continue reading Class Notes
New Cold War
This semester as I am teaching a class on the Cold War, it seems as if the major comparison we are discussing is the war in Ukraine. I am grateful this war is still on students’ minds, as often with tragedies like Ukraine there is a great deal of emotion at first that wanes over … Continue reading New Cold War
Class Notes
For a couple of years scientists were trying to convince FDR of the need to work on an atomic bomb. FDR and his scientists did not think it possible and so deemed it not necessary for funding. Finally in 1939 Albert Einstein sent a letter, hoping his name would lend some weight, which it did. … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
As soon as Campbell started to distinguish his theology from other mainstream theology he came under attack. In this way Campbell is like most of the leaders that started new religions in the Americas, they came under attack from the established religions. The attack against Campbell came because he claimed the established religions had perverted … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
At 7:02 am on December 7, 1941, an Army mobile radar unit picked up a blip of something approaching. Radar was new and it was being staffed by two privates. When they reported what they were seeing they were told it was a squad of B-17 they were expecting in from California. Instead, it was … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
During the 1920s and 1930s Congress was able to take back some control away from the president as the Progressive movement faded away. This was seen in the way they passed neutrality laws during the 1930s to keep the U.S. out of war with Germany. FDR felt the U.S. would probably be needed to stop … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
Alexander Campbell belied in a Christianity that could bring all followers together. This would be accomplished by the restoration of the true gospel created by the apostles. While he did not believe all sects would end, he understood people would always have opinions. Different sects were fine as long as they did not interfere with … Continue reading Class Notes
Historically Speaking 