In a press conference on 24 January, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced that the Doomsday Clock had been set at 90 seconds to midnight.
The clock supposedly represents our proximity to a global catastrophe – midnight. The scientists behind the calculation take into account the risk from nuclear war and other conflicts, environmental disasters, misuse and abuse of technology, and the potential for widespread disease.
At 90 seconds to midnight, the clock is now set closer to midnight than ever before in its 76-year history.
Christians in Chad suffer from food insecurity, Islamist violence, and environmental disasters such as floods. Hundreds of thousands of believers are afflicted with such overlapping causes of suffering
We may have doubts about the usefulness of the Doomsday Clock as an illustration, or about the methodology behind it.
Certainly, as Christians, we know that this world will come to an end only when our Lord returns (2 Peter 3:10; Hebrews 1:10-12) – and, furthermore, nobody can know when that day will come (Matthew 24:36).
Nevertheless, the Doomsday Clock scientists raise matters of significance – conflict, disease, natural disasters, famine – that affect all humanity, including our suffering Christian family worldwide.
We continue to trust the Lord’s sovereign care and control. Yet we must also continue to work hard to give aid and practical support to our brothers and sisters wherever they are facing hardship and suffering.
