Why don't we have peace on Earth, according to Billy Graham it's because we don't have enough God...
DEAR BILLY GRAHAM: Why can’t nations get along with each other? Is it because some people don’t have enough? If we could eliminate all the poverty in the world, then maybe we’d be able to get along. — E.N.
While eliminating poverty would be overwhelmingly positive, it wouldn't solve every problem. That's because world peace is a difficult and many faceted issue.DEAR E.N.: We certainly should be concerned about the hundreds of millions of people who live in crushing poverty today. Most of them live on the edge of starvation every day and face disease and hopelessness that most of us can barely imagine.Well, I can't argue with that. Carry on....
God’s Word is clear: “I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor, and your needy’” (Deuteronomy 15:11).Wait... Then why is it that the most religious politicians in the USA are usually the once fighting for the rich and against the needy?
Tragically, however, even if all poverty were somehow eliminated we’d still have conflicts and wars. This is because our real problem is deeper than economic inequality or any other social or economic problem.Sad but true.
Our real problem is within ourselves, within our own hearts and minds. The Bible puts it this way: “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?” (James 4:1).
Even if we have enough, we always want more. Even if we are taught to respect others, someone will always want to control them or even enslave them. Even if all our needs are met, jealousy and greed capture our souls.
Why are we this way? The reason is because we’ve left God out of our lives. As a result, we all have a deadly spiritual disease, a disease the Bible calls “sin.” That’s why we need Christ, for only he can change our hearts and replace our selfishness and greed with his love.Wait, wait, wait... So the reason that Billy thinks that there are bad people and greedy people is because they don't have enough God? If that were true, then the least Christian countries should also be the most terrible.
So lets look at the world's happiest countries...
1) Denmark: A 2010 poll found that only 28% believe there is a God, and 25% that Jesus is the son of God.
2) Norway: The same 2010 poll found that 22% of Norwegians believe in God.
3) Switzerland: A 2000 poll found that only 16% consider religion 'very important' to them.
4) Netherlands: Only 5.6% of the Dutch attend church at least once a month, and 21% have no doubts that God exists.
5) Sweden: A 2010 poll found that only 18% of Swedes believe in God.
6) Canada: 67% Christian and 24% nonreligious. Yet only 42% claimed religion to be an important part of their daily life.
7) Finland: The 2010 poll found that 33% of Finns believe in God. Down from 41% in 2005.
8) Austria: 44% responded that they believe in God in the 2010 poll.
9) Iceland: The 2010 poll found that 31% of Icelanders believe in God, and very few attend church.
10) Australia: 37% claim to be active worshipers, and 40% say they belong to a religious denomination.
Looking at this, it doesn't seem that religion makes countries happy. But what about crime?
4.3% in Japan believe in God, yet boasts a crime index of 15.27 and murder rate of 0.3 out of 100,000.
Denmark has a crime rate of 27.15 and homicide rate of 0.8 out of 100,000
Norway has a crime rate of 32.96 and homicide rate of 2.2 out of 100,000
Switzerland has a crime rate of 28.2 and homicide rate of 0.6 out of 100,000
Netherlands has a crime rate of 36.43 and homicide rate of 0.9 out of 100,000
Sweden has a crime rate of 41.98 and homicide rate of 0.7 out of 100,000
Canada has a crime rate of 37.16 and homicide rate of 1.6 out of 100,000
Finland has a crime rate of 29.22 and homicide rate of 1.6 out of 100,000
Austria has a crime rate of 28.19 and homicide rate of 0.9 out of 100,000
Iceland has a crime rate of 25.85 and homicide rate of 0.3 out of 100,000
Australia has a crime rate of 41.65 and homicide rate of 1.1 out of 100,000
What about the United States? A country that is 78% Christian... The US has a crime rate of 50.16 and homicide rate of 4.7 out of 100,000
Then lets consider the most Christian countries...
Vatican City (100% Christian) has the highest crime rate in the world!
Ethiopia (63% Christian) has a crime rate of 40.98 and homicide rate of 12.0 out of 100,000
Democratic Republic of Congo (95% Christian) has a homicide rate of 28.3 out of 100,000
Nigeria (largest Christian population in Africa) has a crime rate of 78.17 and homicide rate of 20.0 out of 100,000
Philippines (92% Christian) has a crime rate of 42.02 and homicide rate of 8.8 out of 100,000
Russia (73.3% Christian) has a crime rate of 52.29 and homicide rate of 9.2 out of 100,000
Mexico (5% of the world Christian population) has a crime rate of 52.80 and homicide rate of 21.5 out of 100,000
Brazil (88.9% Christian) has a crime rate of 69.65 and homicide rate of 25.2 out of 100,000
What we see by all these results is actually the opposite of what Billy is claiming we should see. Rather than seeing the least religious countries being the most lawless and dangerous, it is actually those countries that are the safest. Meanwhile, it is the highly religious nations that show the most discord.
-Brain Hulk
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