Our ignorance of the past is not the result of a lack of information, but of ind ifference.

We do not believe that history matters. But history does matter. It has been said that he who controls the past controls the future. Our view of history shapes the way we view the present, and therefo re it dictates what answers we offer for existing problems. In the mid-First Century, Peter (Simon Ben-Yonah) and Paul (Saul of Tarsus) led the Christian Apostles in their use of many persuasive techniques, such as speec hes, staged events, letters, and oral teaching. Their aim was to increase intere st in Jesus and his message, to increase participation in the new religious move ment, and to maintain morale and order among church members. Paul of Tarsus (right) and the gospel writers Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John used the strategies of interpretation and audience segmentation, each presenting ess entially the same story, as it developed through a process of telling and re-tel ling, writing four different versions to appeal to the interests, experiences, a nd needs of four different audiences. Scholars conclude that Matthew wrote for a n audience of Jewish Christians, Mark for non-Jewish Greeks, Luke for non-Jewish Christians, and John for nonbelievers and/or the network of Christian communiti es spreading throughout the Eastern Mediterranean. The Roman Emperor Nero (left) used the strategy of orchestrating events when he blamed the burning of Rome on the Christians, already the social scapegoats. It is an example of framing telling your side of the story first so that any other versions are received as being different from what people already have heard. The early Christian Church preserved and enhanced the concepts of rhetoric. In R oman Africa, the 5th Century philosopher-bishop Augustine of Hippo (right) devel oped the art of preaching, insisting that truth is the ultimate goal of such pub lic speaking. Later in Northern Europe, the 8th Century Saxon theologian Alcuin reinterpreted Roman rhetorical teachings for the Emperor Charlemagne and the med ieval court. In the Middle Ages, the church applied principles of persuasive communication in an effort to recapture the lands of Christian origin. Pope Urban II (right) in 1095 sent his message throughout Europe using the efficient communication system of monasteries, dioceses, and parishes. He used a sustained approach that invol ved all the communication tactics of the times, including writing, public speaki ng, word of mouth, slogans, and symbols. His persuasion to influence public opin ion was effective, as he attracted thousands of volunteers for the first of a se ries of Holy Crusades. In 1215 the archbishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton, used tactics of lobbying and government relations as he persuaded the influential English barons to join him in demanding that King John recognize the rights of both the barons and the church. The result of this successful persuasion was the Magna Carta (left), the document that laid the foundation for constitutional government not only in Eng land but eventually around the world. Later in the 13th Century, the philosopher-monk Thomas Aquinas (right) revisited Aristotle to study the persuasive nature of religious communication. Throughout the centuries, the various branches of the Christian Church developed the apolo getics, the systematic attempt to assert the reasonableness of faith and to refu te opposing arguments. Modern-day preachers and evangelists continue this tradit ion in persuasive communication for religious purposes. Pope Gregory XV (right) popularized the word "propaganda" in 1622 when he establ ished the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide (Congregation of the Propagation of the Faith) to spread the church's message into non-Christian lands. The term then w as an honorable one. It did not take on negative connotations until three hundre d years later, when the Nazis used it with a monumental disregard for honesty an d ethics and later when it became associated with the 20th Century Cold War betw een communist and democratic nations. Now, at the beginning of the 21st Century, religious organizations continue to u se public relations strategies and tactics. Groups translate the Bible and other religious books into the language of the people, often paraphrasing the message or revising it with contemporary experiences. Churches and synagogues, as well as religious organizations such as dioceses and districts, employ their own publ

ic relations people, have interactive websites, and function at a very high leve l of professionalism. The Religion Communicators Council (formerly the Religious Public Relations Council) is the oldest professional association of public rela tions practitioners in North America, older even than the Public Relations Socie ty of America. Ivy Lee and Edward Bernays, who are both referred to as the father of public rel ations. Gutenberg was the first European to use movable type printing, in around 1439. A mong his many contributions to printing are: the invention of a process for mass -producing movable type; the use of oil-based ink; and the use of a wooden print ing press similar to the agricultural screw presses of the period. His truly epo chal invention was the combination of these elements into a practical system whi ch allowed the mass production of printed books and was economically viable for printers and readers alike. Gutenberg's method for making type is traditionally considered to have included a type metal alloy and a hand mould for casting type .