Many people think Islam is the fastest-growing religion in the world. Not true. Islam is growing fast, but Christianity is growing faster. Indeed there are twice as many Christians as Muslims in the world today and the gap is becoming larger. Moreover, Christianity has become the world's only religion that is truly universal.
Islam too has a wide reach, but Islam has only a small presence in the United States, Canada, Central and South America, and Australia. Christianity, by contrast, is strong everywhere in the world except the Middle East. Islam is growing mainly through reproduction, which is to say by Muslims having large families. Christianity is growing both through reproduction and through conversion.
So if Christianity is growing so fast, why don't we see it? Because the growth is occuring mainly in Asia and Africa. The full story is told in What's So Great About Christianity but here are some examples. In 1900 less than 10 percent of Africa was Christian. Now it's around 50 percent. That's an increase from 10 million Christians in 1900 to more than 350 million today. The story is pretty much the same in Asia. China now has an underground church numbering in the tens of millions. In Korea, Christians outnumber Buddhists and, in a remarkable historical reversal, now send missionaries to Europe to convert the natives. Some Asian and African churches have so many members that pastors have to tell people not to come very Sunday, because there is not enough room in the pews.
In a way the new atheism in the West can be understood as an angry backlash against these developments. The new atheists once expected that with modernity religion would simply wither away. It hasn't happened. In fact, the most rapidly-modernizing countries like India and China are ones where religion is booming the most. Consequently the atheists have mobilized a ferocious attack against religion and specifically Christianity, attempting to stop its alarming growth.
The atheist campaign is aggressively and intelligently mounted, but it's not likely to succeed. Mainly this is because atheists have forgotten how to reproduce. What I mean is that the typical secular couple has one child while the typical religious couple in the West has two children and the typical religious couple outside the West has 3-5 children. Guess who is going to own the twenty-first century!
Reader Comments ( Page 6 of 11)
76. Mainly this is because atheists have forgotten how to reproduce. What I mean is that the typical secular couple has one child
And there are excellent reasons for not having more than one child.
Our planet has 6 billion people. Life would be much more pleasant for everyone if we could get it down below 4 billion.
Atheists are working toward a beneficial goal.
The typical religious couple in the West has 2 children because they don't care about the future of this planet.
Nhellberg at 6:29PM on Oct 29th 2007
77. D'Souza says, ".. but Christianity is growing faster."
I'm sure that Fitz(comment 40) knows the reason... DD's stunning "triumphant" when a "questioner in the audience was a Pacific Islander who reminded Hitchins that before Christianity his people were OK with eating each other."
When blind-sided by this red herring, we hear, "Hitches had no answer to the obvious civilizing influences of Christianity….
He could only sputter out something about Christianity coming with colonialism."
Poor Hitchens could only answer that Western Civilization brought something to those cannibals...something.. oh.. what was that thing that Western Civilization brought...it's on the tip of my tongue... rhymes with 'Schmivilization'.
And D'Souza's "triumph"? Well, it was actually that Hitchens had no time to respond as DD pounded home the idea that the Christians even managed to give the Hindu untouchables an 'out'... by subjegating those 'pricks' too.
What a "triumph" for D'Souza and Christianity... ex-atheists must be lined up at the bookstores hailing him for his great insight... Christianity is indeed better than cannibalism and Hinduism(for the untouchables at least).
Picture the scene... a missionary armed with nothing but the TRUTH shows up on the shores of the island... for years later, the natives are seen slapping their own foreheads mumbling, "We didn't HAVE to eat Uncle Bill...I 'get it' now.. we didn't HAVE to..."
pboyfloyd at 6:35PM on Oct 29th 2007
78. Revelation is indeed quite revealing. If you want to understand through metaphor and hyperbole how a particular persecuted individual felt about Nero and fantasied revenge. More revealing to the christian argument, however, is Matthew 24:29-35. Here, Jesus clearly says to his disciples when asked when will come the 'end of the age' that (among other things) "the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will FALL FROM THE SKY, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken...I tell you the TRUTH, THIS GENERATION will CERTAINLY NOT PASS AWAY until all these things have happened..."
Quite clearly, all his disciples (that generation) have passed away. And yet NONE of these things have happened and obviously could not happen (obvious unless you know nothing of cosmology). This passage, Jesus' own words, makes it clear that he was an apocalypticist, and, more importantly, that he was mistaken. And, if he was in fact mistaken, which HE WAS, then how could he be God?
dave at 7:10PM on Oct 29th 2007
79. I read that communist China had 5 million Christians in 1948, now it is 110 millions and
by the year 2050, it will be over 250 millions.
Through persecution, Christianity is spreading like an inferno in India. Only Jesus can give
fulfill the empty heart of every person. I have a friend who is a movie music producer in Bombay, he had everything but had no peace and joy. Somebody gave him a Bible and he read once " I am the way the truth and life". One night, he was so desperate and got the Bible from the shelf and read
that verse again, and was totally changed. He and
and his wife with the whole family is serving the
Lord through music ministry around the world. Only
Jesus can give eternal joy which costs nothing because it is a free gift from God.
A. S. Mathew at 6:54PM on Oct 29th 2007
80. Just when you thought you missed Rush Limbaugh, Pat Robertson because their arguments/logic has become stale, because they have worn out on you, GOD sent us DD (Dinesh D'Souza). This time HE sent one person instead of two, GOD is learning optimization, so we dont have to tune to two channels or two radio stations etc.
People Dinesh have their amusement value. While Jerry Sinefield/Larry David etc. are commedians by profession, Dinesh is a light weight comedian, some one to tune to once in a while to forget the tedium of life. It is wathcing adult movie after a heavy dose of Robert Redford/Sundance movies.
I see some of the people getting up on arms about Dinesh. I think they dont see the medicanal value in his articles.
Keep up the good work Dinesh. Hope some day you will see light. I will pray to GOD to give you wisdom, he has given you intelligence, ambition and articulation but looks like skipped wisdom.
Cheers
Have a blessed day.
steve smith at 7:19PM on Oct 29th 2007
81. LOL, Mohammed was a slave-owner (historical fact) and Jesus was not (historical fact). In addition, Mohammed was a Warlord, a Murderer, a Mass-Murderer, a Rapist, a Thief (raided caravans and stole their goods), a Polygamist, and a Pedophile. ALL HISTORICAL FACT, YOU STUPID NIMRODS, BOTH MUSLIM AND NON. Jesus, on the other hand, was NONE of those horrendous, evil things. NONE. Jesus is the Son of God. Mohammed is 100% HUMAN. Also historical fact. Jesus, a TRUE PROPHET, prophesied Mohammed when he said, "Beware of false prophets that come after me. You shall know them by their fruits." UH HUH. Conversely, Mohammed, the FALSE prophet, never prophesied a damn thing! That's because he's a FALSE prophet, you stupid, uninformed, undereducated dingbats! And, of course, you've never bothered to read the Qur'an, you ignoramuses! Hey - you pitiful excuses for Americans - why don't you just move to Islamabad, 'k? Good Riddance, and Good Luck living under Shariah Law, you imbeciles! Esp. you female imbeciles!
Stephanie at 7:11PM on Oct 29th 2007
82. Stephanie:
"LOL, Mohammed was a slave-owner (historical fact) and Jesus was not (historical fact). In addition, Mohammed was a Warlord, a Murderer, a Mass-Murderer, a Rapist, a Thief (raided caravans and stole their goods), a Polygamist, and a Pedophile. ALL HISTORICAL FACT, YOU STUPID NIMRODS, BOTH MUSLIM AND NON."
Where do you get your information on this? I'm honestly curious.
Also, calling people "stupid nimrods" (in caps, no less) isn't very useful in getting your point across.
"Jesus, on the other hand, was NONE of those horrendous, evil things. NONE. Jesus is the Son of God. Mohammed is 100% HUMAN. Also historical fact."
I don't think that Jesus being the Son of God is a historical fact. I'm not sure, were you just adding the fact label to Mohammed being 100% human?
"[...] you stupid, uninformed, undereducated dingbats!"
Since you apparently are a Christian, what kind of example are you trying to set?
"And, of course, you've never bothered to read the Qur'an, you ignoramuses!"
I've read three translations. I don't speak Arabic yet, unfortunately, so I haven't read it in its original form. Have you?
"Hey - you pitiful excuses for Americans - why don't you just move to Islamabad, 'k? Good Riddance, and Good Luck living under Shariah Law, you imbeciles! Esp. you female imbeciles!"
Again, setting a poor example. Also, why would someone need to leave the US because they believe differently than you? There were people here before you that believed differently than you, and you're still here.
Tem at 7:27PM on Oct 29th 2007
83. I am GOD. End of debate!
mac65 at 8:03PM on Oct 29th 2007
84. The empirical evidence shows that religion has dramatically declined around the world in recent decades. Refer to "Why the Gods Are Not Winning":
http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/paul07/paul07_index.html
The French demographer Emmanuel Todd argues that religion has even started to decline in many traditionally Muslim societies based on the evidence for rapidly declining birthrates:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/9/22/10244/7805
Mark Plus at 8:39PM on Oct 29th 2007
85. "The atheist campaign is aggressively and intelligently mounted, but it's not likely to succeed. Mainly this is because atheists have forgotten how to reproduce. What I mean is that the typical secular couple has one child while the typical religious couple in the West has two children and the typical religious couple outside the West has 3-5 children. Guess who is going to own the twenty-first century!"
Where did the nearly billion or so nonbelievers alive today come from -- the cabbage patch? Nonbelief has tremendous demographic momentum behind it, especially when you consider all the new nonbelievers coming from large religious families. For example, Latino immigrants to the U.S. tend to lose interest in religion compared with their relatives who stay behind:
For Some Hispanics, Coming to America Also Means Abandoning Religion
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/15/us/15hispanic.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin
Mark Plus at 8:51PM on Oct 29th 2007
86. Islam is growing in africa because it allows polygamy. And its growing in Europe because MUSLIMS are moving into Europe.
herirous at 9:12PM on Oct 29th 2007
87. I am appaled that so few even know what a Christian is? To understand what Christianity is you have got to know the gospel, thr good news.
What is the Gospel? (In a nutshell)
Firstly, we need to understand that the gospel is not a religion, a sect, church, organisation or institution. It is definitely not any dogma of any particular church whether it is Baptist, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist, Anglican or Assembly of God etc. In fact there are many churches that distort, deny or otherwise simply ignore the gospel.
So what is the Gospel?
The gospel is God’s way of salvation to redeem (save) a person from everlasting hell and damnation.
We need to understand what the Bible says about ourselves. The Bible clearly declares that we are all sinners.
“Who can say, "I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin"? Proverbs 20:9
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23.
“For in Your (God’s) sight no man living is righteous.” Psalm 143:2
“As it is written, ‘THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE;’” Romans 3:10
So we see that all, every single one of us, is a sinner. So what does that mean?
The consequence of SIN is death (to spend all eternity in hell ).
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—“ Romans 5:12
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23
Thus not a single person can claim to be good or righteous.
But the good news (gospel) is “that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world (you), that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever (you) believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world (you) might be saved through Him .He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:14-20
So what must our response be to be saved?
1. Repent:
After admitting that we are hopelessly lost sinners God calls us to repent. Repentance is to confess our sins to God and turn from our sinful ways.
“If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:6-9
2. Believe:
Believe that Christ died for our sins; He shed His precious blood to pay the penalty for our sins; He died the death we should have died; He was our substitute on the cross. But death could not keep Him because He is the holy sinless Son of God and He rose triumphant over death and hell. By His death and resurrection we are justified (just as if we had never sinned).
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins, according to the riches of His grace.” Ephesians 1:7
“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21
"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.” John 6:47
"God raised Him up on the third day … that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins." Acts 10: 40-43
3. Be Baptized:
We are not talking about baptism as taught by religion but believer’s baptism, which is by full immersion in water in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, publicly declaring unashamedly that we have become believers, having been born again by the Spirit of God.
Jesus answered… "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God... "Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' John 3:3-7
“When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” Acts 2:37-39
4. Obedience
Obedience to God’s Word the Bible is what follows being “born again”.
Jesus said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'” Matthew 22:37-39
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” John 13:34
“For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’” Galatians 5:14
“Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him”. John 14:23
5. Consequences of not accepting the Gospel
“But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each person according to his deeds: to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life; but to those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation.” Romans 2:5-8
“The Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution (wrath) to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.” 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8
‘" And he said to me, "These are true words of God." And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.
… and His name is called The Word of God and the armies which are in heaven… were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." Revelations 19
"The King will reply, "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Matthew 25:40-41
Those who have chosen to reject Jesus Christ as Saviour and LORD will tragically never know the glorious unimaginable wonders of living in heaven with God Himself.
“But just as it is written, ‘THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.’"
1 Corinthians 2:9
If you want to know more and are not sure where to start reading the Bible I suggest you read John’s Gospel and also the Psalms.
“Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6
"And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:11-12
“This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time”.
1 Timothy 2:3-6
These are just some of the main Scriptures. All quotes are from the New American Standard Bible.
Prepared by Ron Hume ronhume@xtra.co.nz
Olive Shoot at 9:44PM on Oct 29th 2007
88. To those atheists out there here is something to think about.
The Fool Has Said
“There is no God”, the speaker cries.
“Don’t let your thoughts be chained.
This universe evolved itself,
This world is self contained.”
Just then an urchin in the crowd
A skilful pebble throws
Which accurately lands upon an atheistic nose.
“Who threw that stone?” the speaker roars.
At which the cockney elf, intuitively keen, retorts,
“No one! It threw itself.”
So a pathetic casualty, discomfited and worse,
Goes home to meditate upon this causeless universe.
Unknown author
Psalm 10:4
“In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.”
Psalm 53:1
The fool says in his heart, "There is no God."
Note, “the fool says”, what the atheist really is saying “no God for me” because it’s impossible to deny an Almighty Living God.
1 Samuel 2:1-3
Then Hannah prayed and said:
"My heart rejoices in the LORD; in the LORD my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. 2 "There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. 3 "Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed.
Footnotes:
1 Samuel 2:1 Horn here symbolizes strength; also in verse 10.
2 Chronicles 6:14
"O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.”
I know that God is “and He is a re-warder of those who earnestly seek Him”; I know that Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for the sins of the world and that “whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life” .
If I’m wrong about this, although I’m absolutely sure I’m right, I’ve lost nothing when I die. However those who live life ignoring God’s call to repent, believe in the atoning blood of Christ and accept His free gift of salvation; imagine their dilemma when their life is over and they have to face the Eternal Almighty God and declare that they did not believe and receive His gift of salvation.
“The god of this age (Satan) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,“ made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
2 Corinthians 4:4-6
Olive Shoot at 9:56PM on Oct 29th 2007
89. But the secularists -
what do they OFFER that is GOOD which has NOT been borrowed/modified from their past religious training, or other influences of religion (particularly Judaism/Christianity) on our society's values in general?
Three of my agnostic or atheistic friends are good & kind (and exhibit other noble characteristics ---from their childhood parochial school training).
And you who are "secularists". Are you indignant over child abuse? Angry over poverty of young women sold into sexual slavery? Angry when the hungry are not fed?
If you CARE about the oppressed human - congrats - you (in the US at least )have been INFLUENCED by Judaism/Christianity.
vaness at 10:03PM on Oct 29th 2007
90. If the "new atheism" is a backlash to anything, it is a backlash to attempts by the Religious Right to dismantle the separation of church and state enshrined in our Constitution and establish a theocracy in the United States. However, the Religious Right is now in shambles thanks to their idenfication with the thoroughly discredited George W. Bush administration--so much in shambles that they will probably wind up suffering the humiliation of having to endorse pro-choice, pro-gay, drag-dressing, thrice-married Rudy Giulani for president!
emelpe at 10:00PM on Oct 29th 2007