“A shared day of rest, at a minimum, might slow the pace of consumption, curb emissions or ease the burden of so many people working weary weekends. But slowing down, even for a day, may also be at the heart of a cultural change convincing society that a more sustainable way of life is not only good for the planet, but also good for them.” So stated a recent article in The Washington Post, in which a journalist advocates for a secular rest day.
Michael J. Coren says, “Every Friday around sunset, I close my laptop. For 24 hours, my work is done. No email. No news. No social media. If it’s work-related, it waits. What I try to do is—nothing at all. Or, rather, I spend time with people I love, usually outdoors. I swim or surf. I share a meal with friends and family. Sometimes, I just lie on my back in the park enjoying the sun.” That will sound attractive to many!
To show how a weekly green sabbath “may be the right idea for one’s soul, and the world,” Coran cites Pope Francis and a Jewish rabbi, both of whom advocate keeping a sabbath to reduce emissions and consumption for a day. He goes into the history of a day of rest in different countries and the decline and recent revival of the idea. He also highlights how it leads to personal and communal benefits.
Momentum is quietly building for the “green sabbath” concept. Right now, advocates are saying that any day or part of a day is fine, according to what suits us personally. Yet notice that the concept is “a shared day,” which implies coordination. As global weather becomes more threatening, we’re likely to see stronger persuasion and a mandated day, in line with Bible prophecy. That time may not be too far away.
“Why reviving a 2,600-year-old spiritual practice made my life better,” The Washington Post, Jan. 23, 2024.
When Americans are asked to check a box indicating their religious affiliation, 28 percent now check “None.” A new study from Pew Research finds that the religiously unaffiliated are now the largest cohort in the US. Researchers refer to this group as the “Nones.” They're more prevalent among American adults than Catholics (23 percent) or evangelical Protestants (24 percent).
Back in 2007, Nones made up just 16 percent of Americans, but Pew’s new survey of more than 3,300 US adults shows that number has now risen dramatically. Demographically, Nones stand out from the religiously affiliated. Nones are young—69 percent are under the age of fifty. They’re also less racially diverse—63 percent of Nones are white.
Pew asked respondents what, if anything, they believe. They found that Nones are composed of three distinct groups—atheists, agnostics, and those who describe themselves as “nothing in particular.” Men are significantly more likely to identify as an atheist or agnostic, whereas women are more likely to describe their religion as “nothing in particular.” Most Nones believe in God or another higher power, but very few attend any kind of religious service.
Pew found that Nones say they’re guided by logic or reason when making moral decisions. Many say the desire to avoid hurting other people factors prominently in how they think about right and wrong. People of faith also say they use logic and the avoidance of harm to make decisions, but those factors are in concert with religious tradition and Scripture.
Politically, Nones are among the most strongly and consistently liberal and Democratic constituencies in the United States. That could influence electoral politics in the coming years, especially since their numbers are growing.
“Religious ‘Nones’ are now the largest single group in the U.S.,” NPR, Jan. 24, 2024.
Thanks to Bible translators who risk their lives for the work, Christians who live under Iran’s hostile Islamic regime are now able to read the New Testament in 12 more of their nation’s 62 languages.
Home to the world’s fastest-growing church with an estimated one million Christians, Iran has many underground fellowships that had previously worshiped in the Farsi language. But in a 1991 survey of new mothers in Iran, only 46 percent reported Farsi as their mother tongue.
Now, Iranian Christians both in Iran and around the world are translating the gospel into an increasing number of native languages. Yashgin, an Iranian exegete-in-training, says, “Translating the Bible is God’s way not simply to save people but to return glory to humiliated minority peoples. No one cares for us more than our mother. God showed us He cares also, by speaking her language.”
Having New Testaments in minority languages is helping the spread of the gospel in Iran. “When you speak of Christianity in Iran, people’s first thought is that it’s a Western religion. Hearing the Bible in one’s mother tongue proves this is a false idea,” Yashgin comments. She says that one of her friends believed after hearing the gospel in Qashqai, having rejected it years earlier in Farsi.
Feridoon Mokhof, director of Korpu, an Iranian Bible translation agency, said that Iranian leaders wrongly see the spirit of nationalism behind ethnic desires to use their native speech. The logic goes like this: a language implies a people, a people implies a nation, a nation implies land, and a land implies separatism. Language activists in Iran have been imprisoned or exiled in the past.
When Korpu translators are arrested, Mokhof says, it’s often due to their being seen as a threat to national security. Korpu employs 58 translators, two-thirds of whom work from inside Iran. Let’s pray earnestly for the Iranian Bible translators and others working in hostile countries around the world.
“Iranians Gain 12 New Ways to Read the Bible,” Christianity Today, Jan. 24, 2024.
The Doomsday Clock, which shows how symbolically close the world is to nuclear Armageddon, is to remain at 90 seconds to midnight in 2024.
Scientists have listed reasons for keeping its hands the closest they have ever been to “Doomsday,” but they’ve stopped short of nudging it further forward.
The clock is set annually by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Since 2007, members have considered the impact of new man-made risks such as artificial intelligence (AI) and climate change, as well as the greatest threat—nuclear war.
In its 2024 announcement, the Bulletin said that China, Russia, and the US were all spending huge sums to “expand or modernize their nuclear arsenals,” which adds to the “ever-present danger of nuclear war through mistake or miscalculation.”
The war in Ukraine has also created a risk of nuclear escalation, it said. A lack of action on climate change and risks linked to “misusing” emerging biological technologies and AI tools were also cited.
We know from the Bible that the world will end with the second coming of Christ. However, the signs of His coming include increasingly intense natural disasters and warfare between and within nations. As we look around, it’s clear we’re getting closer.
“Doomsday Clock stays at 90 seconds to midnight,” BBC, Jan. 23, 2024.
© Shutterstock.com
