There is a flow to history and culture. This flow is rooted and has its wellspring in the thoughts of people. People are unique in the inner life of the mind -- what they are in their thought-world determines how they act. This is true of their value systems and it is true of their creativity. It is true of their corporate actions, such as political decisions, and it is true of their personal lives. The results of their thought-world flow through their fingers or from their tongues into the external world. This is true of Michelangelo's chisel, and it is true of a dictator’s sword.
Francis Schaeffer explains the flow of our thought process and how it determines "history and culture" in his book, How Should We Then Live. Our thought process (aka, philosophy) determines the personal, that is private, life, but also the life of society. When we infringe on the lives of others with our philosophy we can be considered revolutionaries or radicals. Sometimes that is a good label, as in Michelangelo's case. Sometimes not so good, as in the case of "a dictator's sword."
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