Why are “progressives” called “progressive”? We’ve looked at some historical background, and let’s review and continue. This is critical to understanding our modern world.
We all say we believe in “progress.” “I want things to get better, help people, be free,” yada yada yada. Everybody claims to want that. Even Hitler did. Given that definition, all of us are “progressives,” wanting “things” to get “better.” But that’s not Leftist, Democratic Party, historical “Progressivism.” Not even close. “Progressivism” is an entire philosophy of life—an ideology which, interestingly, has become a subject of very heated discord in Leftist circles—as we shall see in a subsequent article.
Where did they get that name—“progressive”? Why do they call themselves that (implying, of course—and they definitely mean this—that “conservatives” are NOT “progressive”)? Well, as always, the answer lies in history, and in this case, it is an exceedingly important historical study because it underlies the entire “zeitgeist” of much of modern world thought, and is responsible for most of the horrors, butcheries, and crimes that have been committed the past century—all in the name of “progress.” And most people, even conservatives, have swallowed way too much of this garbage without even realizing it. The story goes like this. It is, indeed, fascinating.
To review from my earlier articles, “Progress” became one of the leading philosophies of the 19th century. In previous articles, I discussed some of its roots—the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution. The 19th century, in Western Civilization, was indeed, compared to the previous millennium+, a very peaceful, “progressive” century. Things were improving for more and more people, at least in Western Civilization, and the idea of “progress” took hold. It became almost unchallenged in intellectual circles. Charles Darwin was an absolute devotee of the ideology; he was a member of the most favored class of people, in the most favored nation in the world, and he based much of his evolutionary theory on the 19th century idea of “progress”—ever onward and upwards towards perfection. He wrote, “Man in the distant future will be a far more perfect creature than he now is.” “All corporeal and mental endowments will tend to progress towards perfection.” “Progress” has been the underlying philosophy in Western Civilization for over 200 years. And, crucially, to Leftist “progressives,” MAN can (MUST) lead that “progress” with his own intellect, divorced from God and religion. That is essential to understand.
Darwin helped spur that thinking because, if “naturalism” and “materialism” are true, then there is no God. Pure Darwinians have argued that “God is unnecessary” (Julian Huxley). Since there is no “God” to save us, humans must save themselves. Pure Leftism.
Karl Marx gave “progressivism” its greatest political and economic boost. His “scientific socialism” postulated that mankind would continually advance to a higher, more utopian state. Now, Marx was concerned more with economics, and so that discipline lay at the root of his ideas. The world has “evolved” through various economic “stages”—from slavery, to feudalism, to pre-capitalism, to capitalism, and then to socialism and finally the golden age of equality under communism. Ever “progressing” (“evolving”) till perfection is attained. Leon Trotsky, in the Russian Revolution, described this “progress” of man: “Man will become immeasurably stronger, wiser, and subtler. His body will become more harmonized, his movements more rhythmic, his voice more musical, the forms of life will become dynamically dramatic. The average human type will rise to the heights of an Aristotle, a Goethe, or a Marx. And above these heights, new peaks will rise.” So, in the future, the “average” human will be an Aristotle or Einstein, and the geniuses will have “evolved” to currently unimaginable summits. Heady stuff, indeed.
Never forget that Darwin and Marx were creatures of the 19th century “Progressive” philosophy. They didn’t invent it. It was the European “zeitgeist” they grew up in. The self-anointed “intellectual” class fully accepted it. But frankly, except in material and technological matters, one struggles to see much “progress” in the 20th century.
Again, a very crucial aspect of this “progress” is its total abandonment of Christianity, God, and religion. Marx was a committed atheist: “My object is to dethrone God and destroy capitalism.” “Communism begins where atheism begins.” Darwin “evolved” on God’s existence, but those who have swallowed his theory whole-hog are committed naturalists and materialists, which are the basic underlying philosophies of atheism. Oxford evolutionary professor Richard Dawkins wrote, “Darwin made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.” The whole purpose of Darwin’s theory was to get the world here without God: again, “God is unnecessary.” Darwin “proved” how everything arrived without Him. Theists have tried to harmonize God and Darwinism, but pure evolutionists want none of that. God, miracles, SUPERnaturalism dilute their naturalistic, materialistic ideal.
There are actually many scientists—evolutionary scientists, not just “creationists”—who are beginning to notice serious conundrums in Darwinism. But Darwin lets them hang on to their materialism, and that is more critical to them than facts (as we know, ideology means more to Leftists than facts do). They canNOT abide a God. Harvard professor Richard Lewontin explained, and was refreshingly honest: “We take the side of science in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs, in spite of its failure to fulfill many of its extravagant promises of health and life, in spite of the tolerance of the scientific community for unsubstantiated just-so stories, because we have a prior commitment...to materialism. It’s not that the methods and institutions of science somehow compel us to accept [materialism]...but we are forced by our a priori adherence to material causes to create...a material explanation...Moreover, that materialism is absolute. For we cannot allow a divine foot in the door.”
Ideology before science. Very common nowadays. Climate change, anyone?
But how does this relate to modern American Leftism? Patience, dear reader. History is a process, not an event.
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