Of all the challenges Christians face in defending their faith, the existence of evil is one of the most formidable. We claim that God is good, yet there is suffering, pain and monstrous acts of barbarity. Add to that the existence of mass murderers, serial killers and the monotonous regularity of murder in our cities. Evil has a deep, penetrating darkness to it and, when it comes to personal motivation of those who do evil, there is an almost impenetrable wall that defies investigation

For the first time since the European settlement of North America in the early 1600s, according to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, Protestants are in a minority. The Pew report shows that where 53% of respondents identified themselves as Protestant in 2007, in 2012 only 48% do so. This decline comes primarily from white evangelical and mainline Protestant Christians, but is especially pronounced among mainline churches. Entitled ??Nones? on the Rise,? the report is an important indicator on the state of American religion in 2012. Here is a salient summary of the report:

Together with Psalm 1, Psalm 2 introduces the major themes of the book of Psalms, the hymnbook of ancient Israel. Psalm 1 teaches that the blessed human being is the one who enjoys the ?sumptuous meal? of God?s Word each day?and then meditates on it throughout the day. Psalm 2 helped the ancient Israelites to understand how they fit into God?s big picture. It is about worldview issues. Together, these two Psalms give focus to what is really important to God. . . Finally, Psalm 19 is the perfect introduction to thinking about science, for it argues for the complementarity of God?s two revelations?His world and His Word.

Human effort marks the world’s religion, not faith in a God who solved the fundamental problem of the human condition in Christ. Yet, religion, as I am defining it in this essay, continues to dominate the world scene. In fact, religion seems to be growing – and with it a growing hostility and intolerance. When one combines meritorious religion with political, military and financial power, you have a lethal combination. This has been much of the narrative through human history – and it continues today. Let’s consider modern Islam as an example. Several thoughts.