Page 139 - Racing Toward Judgement
P. 139
shake the confidence and faith of the trusting Jesus per -
son.
It used to be that only fundamentalists were preach-
ing the doomsday messages. Today you can hardly pick
up a pater or tune in a news program without hearing
the trumpet of disaster. Historian Geoffrey Barraclaugh
screams out a warning about total collapse in The Great
World Crisis. The New York Times has been docu-
menting scary series about worldwide famine. Maga-
zines and commentaries warn about military interven-
tion in the Middle East. Scientists warn that exhaust
from superjets and aerosol sprays may deplete the
ozone layer that protects human life from cancer-
producing ultraviolet rays. Climatologists speculate the
earth may be nearing another ice age. Alvin Toffler, the
author of Future Shock, predicts our nation is suffering
ecospasms that will lead to an apocalypse. Even the
movie producers are joining the fright parade, with
films like The Towering Inferno, Earthquake, and other
horrifiers.
Recently, Robert Heilbroner, a famous economist,
suggested man's greatest problem now is "how to sum-
mon up the will to survive." In his new book, The End
of Affluence, Paul Ehrlich advises would-be survivors
to head for the hills or return to the bomb shelters. Bi-
ble scholars warn that society is overripe for a major
breakdown.
Rod MacLeish recently coined the term "bleak
chic"—suggesting how fashionable it has now become
to dwell on depression news. A wave of disaster warn-
ings is sweeping the world.
6. Bad News That Is Really Good News
Now there appears to be a revolt against bad news.
People turn off news programs and attempt to shut out
all pessimistic reports. The world seems ripe for encour-
agement and good news. Yet that is exactly what Chris-
137
son.
It used to be that only fundamentalists were preach-
ing the doomsday messages. Today you can hardly pick
up a pater or tune in a news program without hearing
the trumpet of disaster. Historian Geoffrey Barraclaugh
screams out a warning about total collapse in The Great
World Crisis. The New York Times has been docu-
menting scary series about worldwide famine. Maga-
zines and commentaries warn about military interven-
tion in the Middle East. Scientists warn that exhaust
from superjets and aerosol sprays may deplete the
ozone layer that protects human life from cancer-
producing ultraviolet rays. Climatologists speculate the
earth may be nearing another ice age. Alvin Toffler, the
author of Future Shock, predicts our nation is suffering
ecospasms that will lead to an apocalypse. Even the
movie producers are joining the fright parade, with
films like The Towering Inferno, Earthquake, and other
horrifiers.
Recently, Robert Heilbroner, a famous economist,
suggested man's greatest problem now is "how to sum-
mon up the will to survive." In his new book, The End
of Affluence, Paul Ehrlich advises would-be survivors
to head for the hills or return to the bomb shelters. Bi-
ble scholars warn that society is overripe for a major
breakdown.
Rod MacLeish recently coined the term "bleak
chic"—suggesting how fashionable it has now become
to dwell on depression news. A wave of disaster warn-
ings is sweeping the world.
6. Bad News That Is Really Good News
Now there appears to be a revolt against bad news.
People turn off news programs and attempt to shut out
all pessimistic reports. The world seems ripe for encour-
agement and good news. Yet that is exactly what Chris-
137