In
our first part, we looked at the unique and powerful contribution Great Britain
has made on civilisation. Areas of parliamentary democracy, constitutional
monarchy, and even technology, were cited.
One
article is not enough, thus we continue to explore this important topic.
Cause
of Freedom:
Britain has made 2 major contributions to the cause of freedom. First was the
abolition of the slave trade by committed Christian William Wilberforce.
Through immense perseverance, Wilberforce was able to turn the tide on this
lucrative but iniquitous practice. Yet there is more - twice in the 20th
century Britain played a key role in the defeat of euro-fascism, during the
first and second world wars. History would have been greatly altered had they
lost!
The
Commonwealth of Nations: This 52 nation association, mostly from
former British colonies, cooperates in trade, defence and fraternity. The Queen
is the symbolic head and the Secretary-General has executive power. The
commonwealth is a unique concept in post-colonial history.
Economic
contributions: These include free-trade, free-market, mercantilism,
capitalism London was and still is a great global financial hub. The British
Empire in the 19th Century started the process we now know as globalisation,
or more accurately, ‘Anglo-globalisation,’ which sought the free
movement of goods, services, capital, people, and ideas worldwide. Britain’s
contribution to the luxury car market include Aston Martin, Bentley, Rolls
Royce, Jaguar, developed by British engineers.
Sport: Yes, the
British gave the world cricket, bridge, and snooker. Yet it can also be argued
that many of the sports involving kicking a ball around the field also came out
of Britain. It helped to standardised the structure and rules of many famous
sports, like with football, rugby, and tennis, giving it an oversized role in
modern sport. It is fascinating how former British colonies, now independent
nation-states, are addicted to British-derived sports like cricket.
Newton’s
laws:
Sir Isaac Newton was a famous British mathematician and physicist. In the field
of physics, he documented and outlined 3 important laws of motion: Law One:
A ‘resting’ inanimate object remains so unless provoked or prompted by an
external force; likewise, an object in motion will remain so unless interfered
by an external object. Law Two: An applied force on a given object
equals the rate of change at its momentum. Law Three: For every action
there is an equal and opposite reaction. He also documented the phenomena of universal
gravitation. Newton is arguably one of the greatest scientists in history,
along with Albert Einstein.
The
English language: This is one of the greatest of exports of Britain. Though
it is the mother tongue of 450 million, it is spoken fluently by over 2 billion
worldwide. English is the true modern-day lingua franca, the
international language, as Greek was in the ancient world.
English
literature: Along with English language is world-shaping English
literature. The most famous, of course, is William Shakespeare, but don’t
forget Britons Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, John Milton.Charlotte Bronte,
Emily Bronte, Agatha Christie, Geoffrey Chaucer, John Donne, Samuel Johnson,
Joseph Conrad, Christopher Marlowe, Jonathan Swift, and John Keats. This is
only a partial list.
In
this department, it needs to be said that the single-greatest contribution to
English language and literature is not the Oxford English Dictionary,
valuable as it is. It is the King James Bible, which, more than any
other literary piece, has helped to shape the English language as we know it.
KJV is replete with idioms that we used on a regular basis. Here is a partial
list
• A bird in
the hand is worth two in the bush;
• A drop in
the bucket;
• A fly in the
ointment
• A house
divided against itself cannot stand
• A leopard
cannot change its spots
• A man after
his own heart;
• A multitude
of sins;
• A sign of
the times
• A two-edged
sword;
• A voice
crying in the wilderness;
• A wolf in
sheep’s clothing;
• All things
must pass;
• All things
to all men
• Am I my
brother’s keeper?
• An eye for
an eye, a tooth for a tooth;
• As old as
Methuselah;
• As old as
the hills;
• As white as
snow;
• As you sow
so shall you reap;
• Ashes to
ashes, dust to dust
• At his wits
end;
• Baptism of
fire;
• Beat swords
into ploughshares;
• Bite the
dust;
• Blessed are
the peacemakers;
• Born again;
• Breath of
Life;
• By the skin
of your teeth;
• Can a
leopard change his spots;
• Cast the
first stone;
Even
famous atheists sing high praises of the King James Bible and its role in
forming modern English. One commented that ‘Not to know the King James Bible
is to be, in some small way, barbarian.’
Though
there are at least two dozen other English translations in the modern
vernacular, two-thirds of all Americans who own a Bible (89%) have a King
James. In addition, of those who actually read their Bibles, a whooping 82%
read KJV. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/2011-04-21-king-james-bible.htm#
In
the developing world, especially those which were part of the British Empire,
KJV is the beloved version of choice. It’s role in literature and church life
has been incalculable.
Protestant
Christianity and Mission
Being
initially a reluctant leader of the reformation, Britain gave the world
Anglicanism, Methodism, and Scottish Presbyterianism. It hosted the
world-impacting Welsh Revival in 1904. Men and women of God from Britain
include Charles Spurgeon, Rees Howell, George Mueller, Thomas Beckett, John
Wycliffe, William Tyndale, John Wesley, Charles Wesley, William Wilberforce,
Florence Nightingale, Elizabeth Fry, JRR Tolkein, CS Lewis, Eric Liddell, John
Stott, famous British missionaries Hudson Taylor, William Carey, Dr. David
Livingstone, Jackie Pullinger, and Gladys Aylward. All these, and more, have
left a God-size legacy to the nation and the world.
TO
BE CONTINUED:
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