Optimist, Pessimist? (letter to a friend)

Hi John,

It was great talking with you recently. Afterwards I had some reflections – here they are. You said you were a short-term pessimist and a long-term optimist. I understand why you said this. However, my views ae different. I am a short-term optimist and a long-term pessimist.

The coming Great Remorse

The antics of Extinction Rebellion (XR) worldwide seem to be getting more frantic and desperate. Recently, 15 bare-chested women linked themselves outside of the British Parliament. One may well ask, why does XR do such things?

To find the answer, let us go back to science. 

Apocalyptic Times

I have read the New Testament many times, but somehow one obvious fact has eluded me. Jesus and the early Christians strongly believed that the end of the world was near. They were eagerly waiting and working for a new world to come – the kingdom of God on earth.

How did I miss this? I simply tried to spiritualize the records assuming that the references were describing the need for my own spiritual renewal.

Facts and Emotions

The world is heading into a climate crisis. The overwhelming majority of the world’s scientists have warned us that as fossil fuels heat up the environment, global temperatures will rise – and then extreme weather events ( wildfires, hurricanes, droughts and floods ) will soar. It is already happening.

Reflections on the pandemic

We live in a world of terrifying possibilities. All kinds of stories are swirling about. If ever we needed clear logical thinking, based on facts it is now.

I am especially intrigued by the tendency of identity thinking. That is, if our group (whatever it may be; racial or gender-based, or any other of our primary organizations ) says something - we then tend to think it is true. If the other group puts forward something , we tend to be very suspicious. So if someone says something negative about my group, I immediately get defensive.

In this context it is very difficult to accept criticisms about our group. As I am thinking about this, I am very moved about the role of prophets who critique their own communities. That is probably one reason the words of the Old Testament prophets still reverberate with us today. Ancient Israel had a very nationalistic, chauvinistic view of themselves . One could even say that they still do. Along came their own prophets a spoke about their own flaws.

Today, we still need honest, faithful, fearless prophets.

COVID-19: A prelude of what is coming

The global crisis is upon us. We need to act early enough to avoid extreme peaks that are coming. OK, this is stated in response to the coronavirus outbreak. But there is an even bigger crisis coming – a global environmental breakdown. The same warning applies. We need to act early (now!) to avoid (or at east mitigate) the coming disaster.

Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance is a strange phenomenon. It tells us a lot about human nature. We have ideas in our head. We are sure they are correct. But we carry on as usual as if these facts did not exist. So, there is a disconnect or “dissonance” between what we think or believe and what we do in our daily lives. Why does this occur?