It’s good for Christians to know what’s going on in the world, and intentional efforts should be made to understand what prevelant beliefs are in secular society.
When asking people on the street the question, “What’s the biggest problem in the world?” you’re going to get a bunch of different answers.
As I mentioned in earlier posts, I’ve recently done a bit of research on this, and in honor of David Letterman I’d like to share with you the top ten biggest problems in the world according to secular society along with a brief explanation of each.
Here we go:
10. Species Extinction
Today, human activities are causing a massive extinction of species, the full implications of which are barely understood. Rising ocean temperatures reduce the ability of plankton to reproduce, thereby undermining the entire oceanic ecosystem.
Commercial fishing’s increasing size and scope threaten to empty of the ocean of fish within several decades.
Modern agricultural practices strip the Earth of its thin layer of topsoil through water and wind erosion, destroying this precious micro ecosystem that takes centuries to form and supports all life on land.
Furthermore, bee populations are plummeting, and over 70% of our food is pollinated by bees; if bee populations fall too far, our food supplies will be seriously threatened. . .
9. Radical Islam/Terrorism
The destabilization of modern civilization by terroristic attacks carried out upon civilian populations.
This modern day problem is an assault upon the ideals and expression of freedom, and has the potential to convert free societies into police states.
8. War
Civil wars in small, poor countries cause untold suffering, and half of them are renewed flare-ups of recent conflicts. A single conflict can cost $250 billion or more, takes many years to recover from and can block all other humanitarian interventions.
A large scale war in current times has the potential to destroy modern civilization as we know it.
7. Nuclear Proliferation
The acquisition or development of nuclear weapons by governments or groups intent on using them has the potential to lead to all out nuclear war thereby threatening the existence of all living things.
6. Malnutrition and Hunger
Despite significant reductions in income poverty in recent years, undernutrition remains widespread. Recent estimates from UNICEF (2006) are that “one out of every four children under five – or 146 million children in the developing world – is underweight for his or her age”, and that “each year, …undernutrition contributes to the deaths of about 5.6 million children under the age of five”.
5. Global Water Crisis
Water – the essential ingredient for life on this planet – is becoming an increasingly scarce resource. According to the World Bank and World Health Organization, 2 billion people lack access to clean water and 1 billion people do not have enough to even meet their daily needs.
Every day an increasing amount of pollution seeps into rivers and lakes making them toxic to humans, and underground aquifers – our most significant sources of water – are being depleted at an alarming rate.
If current trends continue more and more useable water will be lost while the world population continues to grow larger and larger.
4. Global Population Growth
The world is currently growing at a rate of 79,000,000 people per year – more than ever before – and as more time passes that number will rapidly increase. The world population is predicted to be over 10 billion in 40 years, and will become greater and greater as the ever-growing human species continues to breed.
Here’s a graph to illustrate current growth trends:
As this graph illustrates, the growth isn’t expected to stop. Many believe the earth’s resources will be depleted to the point that mass starvation and disease epidemics will plague mankind unless this growth is curbed.
3. Peak Oil/Energy Consumption
Petroleum powers 96% of the transportation on the planet and is the key ingredient in plastics and fertilizers. Its integral role in human civilization cannot be overestimated – without it modern life would be impossible. Over the last century, the global petroleum supply could be counted on to meet demand; today however, the situation appears to be changing.
The developing world – led by China and India – is modernizing at a blistering pace, and their appetite for oil is driving up demand all over the globe. At the same time, production is declining in all but a few countries.
For decades, scientists, government officials, and business leaders have warned of Peak Oil, the point at which global petroleum production reaches its maximum level and begins to drop.
2. Global Economic Collapse
The global economy binds together the fate of the international community and all its member nations. It precludes the possibility of a third World War, and exposes individuals all over the world to new ideas, products, and information. Today, the world economy is facing two looming crises.
The U.S., by far the world’s largest and most powerful economy, is completely in debt at the individual, institutional, and governmental levels. The Dollar is at its lowest rate in years, and the fundamental driver of the US economy – the housing market – appears to be coming undone.
Many experts believe we’re on the brink of global economic depression, and if the markets fail the infrastructure of modern civilization will collapse causing modern ways of living to drastically change.
1. Global Warming
Due to the steady stream of attention this issue has gotten in the last few years, many believe global warming is the preeminent danger to human civilization today.
- “Global warming is the most dangerous crisis we have ever faced by far …” – Al Gore
It is believed that the rising global temperature threatens to create catastrophic weather systems, crop failures, disease outbreaks, and water shortages worldwide.
Global warming advocates say emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane are trapping heat within the Earths’ atmosphere, slowly increasing the overall temperature. These emissions are the byproduct of our modern way of life, and to halt them would require a voluntary shift in the very structure of our society, a move unprecedented in human history.
Advocates also believe to take no action against global warming would be to alter the very chemical composition of our planet.
They believe life on Earth evolved over hundreds of millions of years to survive within very specific conditions, and any change in those conditions will breed a myriad of disasters.
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So what do you think?
While most of these represent an actual problem (I’m convinced one or two aren’t problems at all), I don’t believe any represent the biggest problem in the world.
Not even close.
The world is lost.
I think that would be number one on my list. So many see these different problems. Yet, refuse to see the reality of their own need for a savior. I appreciate you sharing topics that matter.
Keep up the great work you do with your blog.
I concur with the preacherman that the world is lost. The Christian Bible addresses this problem well when it outlines very well in the book of Mathew 24: 1ff that in the last day there will many great dangers. such dangers are like the ten biggest dangers and many others that are not addressed. The only way out according to my opinion is that one accepts Jesus Christ and walk with Him in everywhere in his life. Jesus is the answer to all human and nature problems- Joseph Mwilu
None of those things are a problem. God is in control. God said He was going to destroy the world. It’s is mans arrogance that thinks we will.
The Biggest problem the world faces? Eternal Life without God.
It’s our job to tell the world that God sent His Son so they don’t have to be seperate from God. And it starts right next to you.
I strongly agree, it must happen for the Word of God to be fulfilled….
And surely for us to share the good news when you do not when all this will end…
Be blessed
I believe that Jesus Christ is just a something used to give people hope. In the end, God is not real. You have no real proof. Just a thought. The only thing we can do is try our best to preserve the Earth.
You are right about God being in control, however, He’s only in control of our daily lives if we let Him. Otherwise, Satan is in control because God gave man dominion over this earth and we’re destroying it with unwise choices—-Satan dominating.
“The biggest problem the world faces? Eternal life without God”. That’s absolutely correct and that is a personal choice for all. That’s the real problem—God giving us free-will to choose His ways or Satan’s. There’s more non-believers following Satan and destroying God’s precious world He made for us.
Spreading the good news about salvation security does not “start right next to you”. It starts in self first and continues without ceasing in hopes others’ will remove their blinders so they can see Jesus in you. That’s the problem. People will look at others through the eyes of God or through the eye of Satan. And all those PROFESSING Christians—not PRACTICING Christians would scare me to death if I didn’t love God more than life. They are the “sheep in wolves clothing and they are as dangerous as Satan because Satan is working through them. NO ANY OF THEM? God says Satan is perfect, intelligent, very handsome and can recite the Bible—deceives by posing as Jesus. I know more PROFESSING Christians who can pull that off better than the practicing ones.
Consequently, God, through my Holy Spirit, is doing a mighty work in my life that I didn’t see coming. He’s answering my prayers to put practicing Christians in my life and without warning took the professing ones out teaching me another definition of being evenly yoked.
First of all, how is Eternal Life without God a problem the world faces? Wouldn’t this be a problem of the spiritual realm? The problems listed above are very real problems we face in our physical world during our short time here in this universe.
I know Christians and religious minded people alike often clash with atheists/agnostics on what one should focus on in his life but being a person of faith shouldn’t mean that you ignore all legitimate problems on Earth and simply proclaim that God will take care of it or that God means for it to be so. God helps those who help themselves. Those of you who ignore these issues, that are in fact created by men, are ignorant and lazy. It’s not man’s arrogance that thinks we have the ability to destroy our world, evidence has made it quite clear that we definitely can and probably are. Don’t use your religion as a convenient and poor excuse not to act. Understanding that we are creating these problems and also have the abilities to solve them is far more empowering than chalking everything up to your deity. I believe God has far more respect for those who choose to use their mind and body to recognize and clean up messes as opposed to those who lazily declare they have no role to play because it is all in “God’s will.”
Wake up and realize that today’s problems are not those depicted in a text written thousands of years ago.
I believe you are stupid. Amen.
[...] a series discussing the biggest problem in the world today. Here the discussion was started, here I looked at what secular society says the biggest problem in the world is, and here I looked at [...]
I have a question. I know people will probably laugh at me, but…how did we know that there were only a billion people on earth in 1750?
We know because each country’s religion kept note on marriages and how many people were christianed by years(in christian societes, anyway…). An approximate number was taken from each civilization, and we have aproximately come up we the population number in 1750 of a billion inhabiatnts
We live in a tiny little radioactive world we call earth. We blossom in this ancient world like little mayflies trying to bend it to our silly purposes. Oh the quibbles and narrow minded acts from the hobgoblins of little minds causes nearly all the above problems. The real root problem is that we don’t have harmony together. If we all got along together we could build harmony and along the way achieve amazing things like eliminate war, disease, crime, etc..
according to me biggest problem for the world is greed present inside human.greed of being richest,greatest etc.it is the main cause due to which problem like terrorism,hunger etc are happening.
[...] 4_ http://outoftheoverflow.com/2008/10/06/the-top-ten-biggest-problems-on-earth-according-to-secular-so… [...]
i think the biggest problem on earth is man not having empathy anymore. that’s my opinion.
For me there are two things that bring out the worst in people and they can be linked to the 10 problems you mention on here. They are money and religion.
what you say has some truth, but then can we live without the two? when a huge tsunami hits you, i m sure atleast 99 out of 100 thinks of God. they either shout at him or love him for his power. Tell me how we can overcome money? this is so confusing.
Protestantism / reformation is the biggest problem. You might notice most of these problems didn’t exist before that.
I agree what is wrong with the governments brain these days
You are all ignorant, psuedominds who turn to myth and legend in order to attempt to understand the world. Get an A level in any science and you will see that there is no denying the things humans do can effect the earth.
We could so easily end life on earth. There are so many nuclear weapons, ozone depleting chemicals, and intelligent enough minds to end this world.
How can you believe that not enough people sharing your faith, which you have no rational reason for, is the biggest problem facing earth? People die everyday because they don’t have clean water or food. You are so ignorant and poorly educated.
If there is a hell. Scum like you will occupy it.
Peace out.
The solution of any problem is hidden in the problem,so all try to solve the problems.
I believe this should change many peoples perspectives on what we do in our every day lives to damage earth. But the sad thing is people will read this and say, “Oh, that’s awful”, then go on eating their dinners. People know what is going on but they choose to sit there and do nothing. And I believe if people don’t wake up life will cease to exist on earth. If people actually cared and did something about this maybe we might find a solution. I appreciate you posting this. But, whatever happens on Earth I am not afraid because I know God is with me. May I meantion in Revelation in the bible it says that in the last days there will be wars and rumors of wars. People are spreading rumors of a world war 3. We must be ready for the coming of our savior. I agree with preacherman the world is lost.
Even in the prehistoric times the earth suffered enormous amount of catastrophes, in my humble opinion it has nothing to do with religious belief or the existence of hell. why dinosaurs are completely wiped out in his world is simply they can’t cope up with the abrupt change then. There is no such thing as permanent in this world, even the greatest kingdom collapses in the crores of time. Problems are imminent but solutions are at hand what we are lacking is true wisdom and not just crude science. True spirituality for understanding the mysteries embedded in your so called problems of the earth.
I believe you should revise #9 on the list to Radical Extremist which include many more groups than Islam.
I disagree with all the above 10 points. In my view,the world greatest problem is”man”because all the above are caused by man,
being war, terrorism,and even global warming is increased by man’s activities.
Looking into it broadly,I also see that the solution is man himself.
I disagree with with all the people saying god will do everything. If God is real he wouldn’t want us to see everything onto him we have to change no one will do it for us. We can not look to god to solve all of our problems and well to say so myself I love life and I will do anything in my power to make the world a better place for my kid. I am open minded with religion but you can’t just say well god is going to wipe us out so let us not even try to survive and make the world a better place for anyone else. I agree with the top ten problems in the world but there should be an eleventh problem well us as humans we are the only species to wipe another off the face of the earth.
Some how i think none of are capable of understanding the reason God does things. Its like wrecking ones brains to figure out “What happens after death?” etc. no one knows for sure. no one will ever know. the dead don’t comeback.
1. Global Warming!!
and who are the biggest culprits of this? The rich developed nations. They bully the poor and ruin the world.
People it’s not like we don’t have a god to make it the worlds greatest issue. Some of those problems can be solved very easily if people cooperate with each other(e.g. war, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and hunger). But others like global warming and global population growth might require us to leave our planet the Earth which is a very dangerous step to accomplish. We may not have time to solve those two because we don’t have enough ships to carry us, humans, and food resources.