Signs of the Times - April 2021

APRIL 2021

FINDING TRUTH IN

THE AGE OF DEEPFAKES THE FOSSIL RECORD AND THE BIBLE

WHY SHALL WE "NEVER FORGET THEM"?

A CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE WORLD TODAY

IN THIS ISSUE

APRIL 2021

FINDING TRUTH IN THE AGE OF DEEPFAKES

Distinguishing a deception PAGE 32

6 CURRENT

WHY SHALL WE "NEVER FORGET THEM"?

The truth behind Anzac Day 12 LIVE TO FORGIVE Why Jesus' death matters 6

WELLBEING

18 SEVEN STEPS TO

APOLOGISING . . .

PROPERLY AND EFFECTIVELY More than just "I'm sorry" 24 BETTER HEALTH FOR EVERY BODY Health news that makes a difference

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54

60 SUPPLEMENTS OR

FOOD? HOW TO GET NUTRIENTS

FAITH

40 THE POWER OF BROKEN

BREAD Symbolically representing Jesus' sacrifice 46 "THE WINNER TAKES IT ALL" What ABBA taught me about idols

BIG QUESTIONS

26 THE FOSSIL RECORD AND

THE BIBLE Does Creation explain million year-old buried artifacts? /SIGNSMAG

SCIENCE & TECH

52 CUTTING EDGE Engineering, science

and technology news

CULTURE

54 THE UNSPOKEN

EPIDEMIC Review: The Girl on the Bridge

FUN

62 CROSSWORD AND

SUDOKU

FORGIVENESS IS NOT FUN

Forgiveness is something I've always struggled with.

Not the concept—I know it's the right thing, the needed thing, in any given situation. Not with the science.

There are countless research pieces that show how important forgivness is, as well as the physical dangers of unforgiveness. No. I'm talking about the practical flesh and blood encounter of one person forgiving another.

It's just so complicated. It doesn't feel right, especially if that person is undeserving. Is it even worth it?

I'll be honest, as I write this I can probably give you a list of four or five people who I really need to forgive. I know that forgiveness is an important virtue. But it's so hard.

I made a breakthrough some years ago when I was taking part in a health course for work. One of the lessons was on forgiveness and at that time something clicked. I realised one of the people I needed to forgive most was myself. I was hard on myself. I had internalised criticisms people had made of me as a child and through my life and, rather than loving myself and accepting myself, I was allowing those voices to continue to speak. I had to do some work to learn to forgive myself. And yet here I am, a few years later, and I haven't fully learned the lessons. That's why this month's Signs is so helpful.

There is a powerful lesson on forgiveness (p12), practical steps for apologising (p18) and an article on the reality of what Jesus did for us to be forgiven (p40). We also cover Easter and Anzac Day, two significant events this month.

It is an honour and a privilege to be editor of this wonderful magazine and I look forward to sharing the journey with you.

Jarrod

JARROD STACKELROTH Editor

VOL 136 NO 4 ISSN 1038-9733 EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Brad Kemp EDITOR Jarrod Stackelroth ASSISTANT EDITOR Daniel Kuberek COPYEDITOR Tracey Bridcutt GRAPHIC DESIGN Theodora Pau'u Talia Valderrama PHONE +61 2 9847 2222 EMAIL info@signsofthetimes.org.au WEBSITE signsofthetimes.org.au ADDRESS Adventist Media PO Box 1115, Wahroonga New South Wales 2076 SUBSCRIPTIONS Kelli Geelan PHONE +61 3 5965 6300 Australia/New Zealand, $A26; South Pacific countries, $A41; Other countries $A51 Published since 1886, Signs of the Times is printed 11 times a year by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and is registered as a periodical.

Seventh-day Adventist Church (SPD) Limited ABN 59 093 117 689 NOTE The inclusion of a person or their image within does not imply their endorsement of the Seventh-day Adventist Church or its beliefs.

Unless otherwise stated, Bible verses are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, Anglicised. Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc®. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton. All rights reserved worldwide.

COVER PHOTO: recep-bg, Suebsiri —Getty Images

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WHAT IN THE WORLD SMALLEST WAGE INCREASE New research from Deloitte Access Economics has found Australia has one of the lowest wage growth rates in the world at just over two per cent. The lowest rates since the Global Financial Crisis, financial experts warn rates won't recover until 2025 or 2026 at the earliest. Despite this, the report says that Australia was one of the better countries in the world to face the 2020 pandemic in terms of its economy.

—The Guardian

SEXUAL VIOLENCE EDUCATION NEW ZEALAND

Rates of sexual violence against women have remained steady for 80 years, according to Social Science and Medicine. The research also found that one in five children face sexual abuse, while another study in the New Zealand Medical Journal found 28 per cent of surveyed university students had faced sexual assault. The findings have policy makers concerned about the lack of preventative measures.—RNZ 4

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MELISSA WALKER HORN—UNSPLASH, M—UNSPLASH, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, JONATHAN BORBA—UNSPLASH

AUSTRALIA

WAR AND MENTAL HEALTH 1 in 5 men who served in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) reported

mental health conditions, including

DEATH PENALTY FOR MINORS SAUDI ARABIA

A royal decree by King Salman in March 2020 to stop executions of minors has been ignored in the case of at least five people on death row.

The changes were promised to come into effect in October 2020, when the death penalty was meant to be replaced by 10 years in juvenile detention. Humans rights groups have cited concerns about legal loopholes allowing continuation of the practice.—Reuters

anxiety, mood disorders and problems with alcohol. ­­ —NHS

Rates of suicide among ex-servicemen were also found to be 18

per cent higher in 2017 than 2002.

—AIHW

37 per cent of men who served in the ADF also reported suffering from a disability in 2017/18.

EVERYONE'S AN ORGAN DONOR

CANADA

Nova Scotia has become the first jurisdiction in Canada to assume every adult is an organ donor. The opt-out system does not apply to children, and family can still make a final decision. Sceptics of the move claim the government may have overstepped boundaries by claiming entitlement to people's bodies.

Supporters have stated the move will help support growing demand for organ transplants.—CBC News.

—ABS

A NZDF review found high rates of moral injury; including struggles with conscience.

—RANZCP

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Why shall we

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"NEVER FORG

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RGET THEM"?

Does remembering the Anzacs include accepting all the death, destruction, war crimes and racism that have been a part of Australia and New Zealand’s war involvement?

BY DANIEL REYNAUD

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nzac Day is now Australia’s most popular national public holiday, bringing Australians together where other memorial days seem to stir up controversy. It is odd that Anzac Day seems to have become a unifying national day compared to others similar days, however several once-popular days have either become contentious or have had their original significance watered down.

Australia Day, marking the anniversary of the beginning of European settlement, is becoming increasingly controversial. Should it really be a celebration marking the start of a new country or a sombre day marking the invasion of an old one?

Christmas and Easter, at one time universally respected, have worked to divest themselves of their strongly Christian associations in a nation that is increasingly secular and conscious of other faiths among us.

Queen’s birthday reminds us of our continuing ties to Britain and prompts debate as to whether we

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should abandon formal ties now that there is little relevance in a British queen reigning over far-flung Commonwealth nations.

New Zealanders have gone down a different path. While Anzac Day is important in New Zealand, it does not dominate the national conversation about identity in the way that it does in Australia, and far more attention is given to Waitangi Day, though it too remains controversial.

By default, Anzac Day has become the celebration of all that is good and noble in Australia. Yet it has the potential to be as divisive, if not more so, than our other national days. In fact, until the 1980s, Anzac Day was divisive.

As a national day, Anzac Day began in 1916, commemorating the landing at Gallipoli the previous year, with various groups around New Zealand and Australia organising dawn services and memorial activities. Many leading figures in establishing the traditions of Anzac

Day were clergymen, eager to give a spiritual significance to the sacrifice of Australian lives halfway around the world, yet conscious of the religious divisions existing at the time.

Catholics were technically forbidden to attend Protestant services, and there were also deep divisions between Protestants, especially between evangelical groups and the more conservative High Church Anglicans.

Putting too much religion into Anzac Day would merely inflame sectarian disagreements and make it impossible for men and women of different faiths to be together at Anzac services.

Between the two World Wars, Anzac Day continued to be contested. The war had fractured Australian society along political, social and religious lines, and these bitter divisions continued into peacetime society. Returned servicemen set up competing organisations, some in favour of creating an independent republican Australia, and others

supporting a conservative, pro-Imperial British agenda. Backed by the government, the conservatives won out, though not after street battles between the rival groups and assaults on the infrastructure of the republican veterans. For many other former Anzacs, memories of war were too traumatic and bitter, and they refused to participate in Anzac Day services at all.

While World War II created another cohort of Anzacs, Australia’s much lower profile in the war resulted in a diminishing of the “glory of Anzac”. But it also led to a broadening of Anzac Day services to include World War II veterans, a trend that has continued as Australians and New Zealanders have participated in other wars around the world.

After World War Two, the day gradually slipped in popularity, reaching its lowest point during the anti-war sentiment of the 1960s and the unpopular Vietnam War. Many

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believed that Anzac Day would disappear entirely, as it represented a conservative, militaristic legacy in a modernising society.

However, during the 1980s, Anzac Day began to grow in popularity again, peaking perhaps in 2015, the centenary of Anzac. With the rise of an aggressively Australian nationalism, eager to cut the umbilical cord with Britain in the 1980s, came a changing understanding of Anzac Day. Gone were the associations with militarism and Britain; instead it came to represent Australian sacrifice in the face of British stupidity and a demonstration of the ultimate Aussie virtues of mateship, resourcefulness and independence.

Prime ministers rush to lead services and attendance at Anzac Cove dawn services has become a rite-of-passage pilgrimage for many Australians.

Yet, Anzac Day still holds the seeds of division. In multicultural Australia it is not unusual to see Anzac Day parade school bands that reflect the ethnic diversity of Australia. The original Anzacs would probably be horrified at the sight, given that they openly fought to keep non-Whites out of Australia.

Fortunately, racism is one of the legacies that has been erased from the meaning of Anzac. Similarly, its militaristic qualities have been toned down, substituting an emphasis on individual sacrifice rather than participation in sometimes morally dubious wars around the world.

and hate. After World War I, the vicPerhaps a greater challenge is found in recent reports of war crime tors pursued revenge, which directly atrocities committed by Australian led to the Second World War. After special forces in Afghanistan. If World War II, the US pursued the upheld, these reports have the poten- Marshall Plan—rebuilding some of the devastated regions of Europe and tial to tarnish the Anzac reputation.

Asia, seeking to make friends of the Of course, wartime atrocities against former enemies—a move that helped civilians are not merely a feature to consolidate Germany and Japan as of recent events. They have been happening as long as there have been loyal American allies to this day.

The ultimate model for such wars, perpetrated by forces of every nation. It’s just that the Anzacs, until behaviour is Jesus. Finding His recently, have not had that behaviour universe split by conflict, instead of launching an attack on the devil, He in the public spotlight. chose to become So what the sacrifice that does it mean to could reconcile commemorate the warring Anzac Day? Are parties—taking we upholding the blame and war, violence, Anzac Day still punishment of war crimes and rebel humanity the contentious holds the seeds of on Himself, policies of govinstead of exercisernments that division have resorted to ing His rights to conflict in unjust punish us. circumstances?

Like Christ, let Or do we honour the willingness of us use Anzac Day to reach out as recindividuals to protect our rights and oncilers in a society that has plenty freedoms in the face of dictatorship of divisions and conflicts. Can we and terror, and also their willingness make Anzac Day an opportunity to to fight to free others from those patch up broken relationships; seek same oppressors? to heal divisions over race and class; We need to remember that while reach out to those within our nation, wars are sometimes necessary to and outside it, in ways that promote prevent or end a greater evil, wars can peace; and absorb without retaliation only stop wars; they cannot create those whose hurt and pride cause peace. Peace is created when former them to lash out at us? foes choose to walk the difficult Daniel Reynaud is a Professor at the Avondale post-war path of forgiveness and University College School of Arts and Business. He has published multiple books on the Anzac legend. reconciliation instead of vengeance

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LIVE TO

e v i g For

With Easter-time often comes hot cross buns, chocolate eggs and bunnies; but behind it all is the tragic love story of Jesus' death, and how it represents forgiveness.

BY DAVE EDGREN

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n my primary school days, I recall a teacher saying that when people are old they stay in bed for most of the time before they die. When I got home, I ran into my mother’s room and threw myself onto her bed and cried into her arms. “What’s wrong, Davy?” she asked.

“I don’t want you to die!” I blurted.

My mother cradled me in her arms and told me she wasn’t dying. She just had a stomach ulcer and had to stay in bed until she healed. But she was wrong. She was dying.

My mother had left home the day she turned 18 and didn’t look back.

She didn’t talk about it until decades later, but she’d been abused by her father and had to get away from him.

After she left, her sister began hating her father.

The feelings of hate my mum felt tore her to pieces. For years after her

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sister died in a house fire, my mum kept the hatred alive. The story of her abusive father was untold and remained unforgiven.

A few months after my tearful outburst, my parents attended a series of lectures on healing. The very first session was on forgiveness. The presenter said many people he treated who reported long-term gut pain and headaches were bearing a burden that wasn’t theirs. He said they began healing once they forgave.

By forgiving, we remove the weight from our own shoulders and place it on the shoulders of the person who created the burden. When I choose to forgive someone, I say to myself: “I’m not the one at fault and I’m aware of this.” Then, by physically saying aloud to the other person, “I forgive you”, we are in fact saying, “This is yours again. I forgive you for sending it my way. But, I’m going

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to let you own it, because it really is yours to own.”

Not long after the lectures on healing, my mum drove three hours to her parents’ house and expressed her forgiveness to her father. It wasn’t easy. She’d held the abuse inside for so many years—putting it into words seemed like a betrayal of herself. But she did it.

“Dad,” she said, “you know what you did to me was wrong. I forgive you. You can do what you want with my forgiveness, but the pain isn’t mine anymore. It’s yours.”

Then she left.

Typically, she never did receive a sorry or an apology of any sort; he never changed, he never admitted to anything. But for my mum, she stopped “dying” and her ulcers healed. The length of a person’s life as well as their general happiness can be predicted by asking one question: Are you living alone? You see, positive relationships keep us healthy.

According to the 80 year Harvard Study of Adult Development, relationships shape our resilience and provide our joy.

The joy of togetherness you see in the faces of some elderly couples is well deserved. They are happy, because when their relationship got rough, they took time to patch the potholes rather than pulling off at the nearest exit.

Resilience is the ability to face hard times and bounce back. Keeping relationships alive develops resilience because relationships aren’t easy.

The aforementioned Harvard study showed healthy life-long relationships are the number one predictor of both longevity and personal happiness.

And in contrast, isolation and loneliness kills. Even though, sometimes it feels safer to be alone, it actually lowers your overall health and wellbeing, according to the Harvard study. And as it’s safe to assume that we all want to live long and happy lives, we need to develop strong relationship skills. And without a doubt, the most important practice is forgiveness. And what better time to learn about forgiveness than at Easter.

healthy relationships

Forgiveness is a requirement of all relationships. People will hurt you. They will let you down. They will say one thing and do another.

They may even do the unthinkable.

And you will be left with a decision: Should I forgive them?

Often, it can feel safer to protect yourself emotionally. But consider the cost—the loss of happiness and a long life—and recognise that forgiveness is the default option for people who maintain healthy relationships.

Note, forgiveness doesn’t necessarily mean staying. In abusive situations, you must protect yourself.

Even when the best choice is to move on, forgiveness from afar will still save you a short lifetime of hurt and grant you a long lifetime of joy.

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learning to be humble

On the other side of forgiveness, sometimes we are the wrong-doer who must hear the words, “I forgive you.” Most of the things that’ll be forgiven aren’t like the story on the previous page. Usually they’re less consequential, like forgetting a birthday, using words unkindly, ignoring someone or laughing at a joke told at someone else’s expense. But little things have a habit of becoming big things when left unrequited.

When someone tells us they forgive us for something, it can be hard to know what to say. Especially in festering situations (because, to us, it was small and happened a long time ago) we need to recognise this has been eating at them for that entire time. Saying they forgive us is actually huge! We need to validate their feelings and say, “I understand what I did must have hurt you. Thanks for valuing our relationship enough to forgive me.”

But there are big things: abuse, years of hurtful comments, an affair and the lying it entails. How we arrive at the forgiveness moment will look different each time. Sometimes, it’s an unexpected situation, when, as with my mother, we’re suddenly held accountable for something desperately evil we’ve lied about to ourselves for years. My grandfather could have burst into tears and said he’d been 16

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suffering inside all these years and fallen to his knees and apologised, but he didn’t. As a consequence, he died lonely and consumed by his guilt.

To accept forgiveness, we first must admit we are part of the problem.

This takes humility and a desire to make things right.

While offering forgiveness is difficult, it can be even harder to truly accept forgiveness.

why forgive?

Every year at Easter, the world stops to consider the God who forgives. The key focus of this three-day weekend is how God forgives. God had planned how to forgive us, long before we even knew we needed it.

God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to provide forgiveness for our sin in an overwhelming way, by taking our place: “For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. . . . God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6–8).

And, no, you can’t make comparisons here to how we forgive. We don’t die for each other literally. We humble ourselves to offer and receive forgiveness, but that’s a far cry from death on a cross. But that is what Jesus did. He suffered and died on a Roman cross to save you from eternal death. You are that important to God. God loves you!

Jesus died willingly in order to say, “I accept your apology and forgive

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cannot have a long-term relationship without being willing to offer and accept forgiveness.

all you’ve done wrong.” In the myriad of world religions, no other god offers anything like this. All gods imagined by humankind want to see wrong-doers punished. But the true God, the One who created us in His image, restores relationships through forgiveness.

God forgave us. But why?

To make things right between us and Himself. And to call us to do the same—like the Lord’s Prayer says, to forgive as we have been forgiven.

Jesus knew the result of “unforgiveness”. It kills. The ultimate result of sin is death. My death. Your death. He knew that when we refuse to forgive someone, we risk the death of a friendship or relationship.

But He also knew the results when we do forgive: life, a new life, a renewed life.

After He died and was buried, Jesus showed us what new life looks like. On the third day of that long weekend, the God who died for you and me

came back to life. He defeated death.

Why? To bring new life. And to call us to do the same. Our relationships come back to life when we forgive others.

Like Jesus, we experience “resurrection” life whenever we are called upon to forgive!

God wants us to have healthy relationships with both Him and each other. Every time we forgive, we demonstrate God’s love. And every time we accept forgiveness, we welcome new life.

Dave Edgren is a writer and school chaplain. He lives in Victoria.

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SEVEN STEPS TO AP

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properly and effectively

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POLOGISE

Communicating "I'm sorry"—from basketballer Latrell Sprewell to former US president Barack Obama

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S

orry seems to be the hardest word—Elton John Apologies play a vital role in society. A well-delivered apology can restore a strained relationship, reclaim trust, heal a wound and provide an opening to forgiveness.

It is a powerful way to affirm your humanity and that of the offended party. When you offer an apology, you are conveying this compelling message: “I see you were harmed by my action, and that matters to me.”

An apology well worth the effort.

That’s why the Bible advises: “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone” (Hebrews 12:14). Here are some effective guidelines for making a proper and effective apology.

don’t trivialise the offence

During a practice session a few years ago, Latrell Sprewell, an American professional basketball player, became angry with his coach, PJ Carlesimo. After an initial verbal confrontation, Sprewell grabbed Carlesimo by the neck and began choking him until he was pulled away by several other players. Ordered to leave the practice, Sprewell returned a few minutes later and threw a punch at the coach before he was again pulled away. Sprewell was suspended and later traded to another team.

When he finally apologised, he said: “I think it’s fair to say, I had a bad day. That’s not me!” An example of how not to apologise.

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punched. Sprewell’s statement merely minimised his highly inappropriate behaviour. Commenting on Sprewell’s vain words, psychiatrist Dr Aaron Lazare, author of On Apology, concluded that Sprewell’s “explanation compounds the original offence . . . and trivialises the gravity of the offence. We all have bad days but do not go around choking people as a result.”

avoid these two words

An apology is weakened to the point of having no redeeming effect when the words but and if are included. For example: If what I said offended you, I am sorry.

I’m sorry I was rude, but I was in a bad mood.

If you knew me better, you’d know I didn’t mean to cause offence.

I'm sorry I shouted at your child, but she was misbehaving.

If I was unkind to you, it was unintentional.

I'm sorry about embarrassing you, but I felt I had to say something.

If you took it that way, I’m sorry.

I’m sorry, but it could have been much worse.

Those two small words, “if ” and “but” diminish and negate the purpose and power of an apology.

do it like a fourth grader

Writer and teacher Joelleen Poon offers her fourth-grade students a simple but highly effective formula

for apologising. It involves four sentences: I’m sorry for . . . . This is wrong because . . . . In the future I will . . . . Concluding with, Will you forgive me? When those four components are put together, it can look like this response from one of her students: “I’m sorry for cutting you in line. This is wrong because you were here first, and it was selfish of me. In the future, I will go to the back of the line. Will you forgive me?” Poon follows up with this observation: “It seems like quite a mouthful for such a small matter, but here’s the important thing: that kid stopped cutting in line.

For a perpetual cutter and general troublemaker, four sentences is not a very big investment.

It doesn’t get much simpler than that.” She adds that this technique isn’t merely for elementary school children, but works well for adults seeking to correct a wrong.

write a note

Etiquette authority Letitia Baldrige, who served as Jacqueline Kennedy’s social secretary, advises it’s generally best to apologise face to face, but “if you absolutely cannot face someone to whom you

have done an injustice, take pen to paper and humbly ask forgiveness”.

Baldrige also provides an example of such a letter: “Dear . . . . There is no way I can erase the tragic error of my bumbling tongue this morning.

I never would consciously offend you in any way, because I respect you and treasure your friendship. I hope that along with all the other good qualities you possess, forgiveness is among them. For I need your forgiveness now very much.

Sincerely, . . . .”

Another reason to apologise in writing is that a written note can be re-read several times and can be shared with others.

The effect of the apology rings louder and longer when written. Consider this insight from former US president Barack Obama. While visiting a manufacturing plant in 2014, he gave a speech encouraging young people to see manufacturing and trade jobs as viable career options. “Not all of today’s good jobs need a four-year degree”, Obama said. “I promise you, folks make a lot more—potentially—with the skilled trades and manufacturing than with an art history degree.” He then quickly added: “Nothing wrong APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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with an art history degree. I love art history. I don’t want to get a bunch of emails from everybody.” However, art historians and art lovers objected to his comment. One art historian, Professor Ann Collins Johns from the University of Texas at Austin, wrote to Obama via the White House website. To her surprise, she received a letter of apology from Obama, which was mailed to her office. It read: “Ann, Let me apologise for my off-the-cuff remarks. I was making a point about the jobs market, not the value of art history. As it so happens, art history was one of my favourite subjects in high school, and it has helped me take in a great deal of joy in my life that I might otherwise have missed. So please pass on my apology for the glib remark to the entire department, and understand that I was trying to encourage young people who may not be predisposed to a four-year college experience to be open to technical training that can lead them to an honourable career.

Sincerely, Barack Obama."

An advice columnist received a letter from a woman haunted by her behaviour toward a man she dated years earlier. “Is it ever too late to apologise to an ex-boyfriend?” she asked, explaining: “I’m in my mid-40s now, and over the last three years, I have gone through a significant change. It has helped me to face myself, let go of useless hate 22

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remind yourself, it’s never too late for an apology

and anger and forgive the people who hurt me. It’s made me a much happier person. One of the results of this change is realising how much I dislike who I was when I was younger. I’m ashamed of my previous behaviour and have been thinking about reaching out to him to apologise for the horrible things I did while we were together.” The writer added that she was currently in a solid and happy relationship and had “no ulterior motives for reaching out. The person I am today just wants very much to apologise for the person I used to be, but I don’t want to cause any problems. What is your neutral advice?”

Here's the wise response offered from the advice columnist: “I don't think it is ever too late to say ‘I’m sorry,’ and I seriously doubt that an overdue apology for your past behaviour would cause problems.

Because you feel compelled to offer one, go ahead and do it. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that your former flame recovered from whatever you did and went on with his life as you have with yours. And if that’s not the case, he may need to receive your apology as much as you need to give it.”

learn your lesson and then apply it

Many times we feel uncomfortable and unhappy about our conduct even after we’ve apologised and tried to make amends. An effective way to ease those feelings is to learn from the experience and apply the lesson

to future behaviour. Author and rabbi, Joseph Telushkin, offers this insightful way to do that when he recommends using the “very limbs or faculty” with which you caused harm to become a better person. “If your feet ran to evil, let them now run to do good. If your tongue lied, be exceedingly careful to be truthful, and use your mouth to speak words of loving kindness. Violent hands should be opened to charity and the troublemaker should become a peacemaker. If you used your brain to deceive others, apply it now to find ways to help others.”

finally, let go of any attachment to results

Certainly, you can hope that a sincere apology will restore a relationship and often it does. However, sometimes that just doesn’t happen.

Perhaps the offended party isn’t ready or willing to forgive and re-connect.

Or the person may, in fact, accept the apology, forgive you but remain guarded and distant. Come to terms with the reality­—you cannot control another person’s response to your apology.

And once you’ve done everything you can, simply let it go and move on. Cease dwelling on it.

Victor Parachin is an ordained minister, bereavement educator and author of several books about grief. He lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.

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BETTER HEALTH for every body WITH

DR SIMONE KOOKE

KNOW YOUR CHOLESTEROL

It’s one thing to be given treatment for high cholesterol, but Australian researchers have found that almost 50 per cent of people at high risk of heart attack and stroke were not meeting their cholesterol targets. With the potential for thousands of lives to be saved, keeping ahead of cholesterol targets and avoiding “treatment fatigue” are important factors in keeping healthy.

—Baker Institute

DEPRESSION AFTER COVID-19

We are still understanding the long-term effects of Covid-19 infection. American researchers have identified 20 per cent of those diagnosed with coronavirus go on to develop mental health issues for the first time. Depression, anxiety, insomnia and higher risk of dementia were most common. It has also been attributed to a combination of Covid-19's effects and the psychological stressors associated with the pandemic. —The Lancet Psychiatry 24

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“Sitting is the new smoking” is a common phrase as the numbers of workers engaged in sedentary work rises. While sitting for more than 10 hours was identified as “high risk”, 30-40 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity brought this risk back into the low zone.

Exercise is the antidote!

—BMJ Journals

ENGIN AKYURT, HUSH NAID00, YUISSA TANGLE, JOSEPH GONZALEZ BRUCE MARS, PIRON GUILLAUME—UNSPLASH

EXERCISE COUNTERACTS SITTING

BETTER SLEEP = LOWER HEART DISEASE RISK

A “good night's sleep” can help with more than just your disposition the next day. UK research has identified those with better sleep quality have the lowest risk of heart failure compared to those whose sleep was interrupted or poor. With physical activity and healthy eating both contributing to better sleep quality, there's more incentive to count those sheep. —Circulation

DADDY CUDDLES COUNT Much is said of the importance of “skin to skin” contact immediately after birth. Swedish researchers have found that the benefits persist, whether it is the mother or father providing it. After a caesarean delivery, skin to skin contact with the father resulted in improved heart rate and wakefulness measures for the newborn babies, compared with being cuddled while clothed. —Acta Paediatrica

INCREASED HEART DISEASE RISK

Japanese researchers have found that elevated blood pressure at night increased the risk of narrowed coronary arteries and heart failure, even in people who hadn’t previously exhibited any heart disease symptoms. Blood pressure follows a similar rhythm to sleep, and where this is disturbed, risk of disease increases.

—Circulation

Dr Simone Kooke is a Sydney general practitioner and mum of two who loves to help her patients and family make simple, practical lifestyle improvements that will increase their longevity and quality of life.

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E S TI O N S

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tion and want an Puzzled by a "big picture" ques s magazine answer? In 2021, Signs of the Time life’s most on ives pect pers h fres ing shar will be each ors auth new with s, terie contentious mys ence to present a month examining objective evid case for Christianity.

THE FOSSIL RECORD THE BIBLE the earth's surface are often used Flora and fauna artifacts from beneath Palaentologist Raul Esperante as arguments for the theory evolution. idea of Creation. explains how they actually support the

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hen I first meet people, most are surprised to discover that I am a palaeontologist.

A palaeontologist is someone who studies fossils. Palaeontologists are a somewhat rare species of professional, and especially within the Christian community. Many falsely believe that fossils and the fossil record are evidence that runs counter to the biblical narrative of Creation and a short history of Earth and a worldwide Flood, because they point to an

“

I find that my biblical worldview allows more insight—more angles of enquiry

evolutionary history of millions of years.

There are two reasons given for a long history of life on Earth. First, various groups of organisms appear in an ascending order of complexity within the geological strata, with “simpler” organisms occurring in lower strata and more “complex” organisms in higher strata. This appears to contradict the biblical record of Creation. Second, some dating techniques give long ages for 28

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those strata in the order of hundreds of thousands to hundreds of millions of years. So the argument is made that the earth and fossils must be cast as much older than the few thousand years of the biblical chronology.

Fossils record organisms—plants, animals and microorganisms—that lived in the past and are now preserved in the rocks. Common fossils are bones of animals, mollusc shells, exoskeletons of marine and terrestrial animals, wood and leaves of plants, and microorganisms such as diatoms (algae). But there are also trace fossils, like trackways and burrows that record the activities of organisms.

Studying fossils gives us information about organisms of the past—where they lived and how they behaved. The work of a palaeontologist is to discern, interpret and weigh the evidence in a process similar to that of a detective looking to solve a murder. The questions we ask include: What are they? How did they die? When did they die? How were they buried and preserved? As a Christian and Bible believer, I find that my biblical worldview allows more insight—more angles of enquiry, in detective speak—than more inhibited enquirers and can come up with answers that account for the facts and biblical view of a world that is much younger than scientific orthodoxy allows for.

So with this in mind, let’s consider some aspects of the fossil record and evaluate if fossils can be reasonably interpreted in a way compatible with

the biblical record of a short earth age.

To begin, come with me to a motor museum. As we walk the halls, we view more advanced models of the 1920s, 1930s, and so on up to the highly complex cars of the twenty-first century, with their electronic gear shifting, anti-lock braking systems, and Bluetooth communication devices. Note, besides an increase in complexity, we also find an increase in diversity along with specialisation—passenger, cargo carrying, racing etc—a gradual evolution of automobiles from less complex, diverse and specialised into diverse highly complex engineering marvels over time. We might even pinpoint the common “ancestor” of all autos, though there would be some hot discussion as to where it was developed. The first autos were made in France and Germany, later in the United States and Britain, Italy, Russia, Spain, Japan and Korea. That means that the first car was made in one country, then production began in other geographic places, all using similar ideas but developing diverse designs, technologies and exclusive components.

Now, let’s compare that with the fossil record. We begin at the Cambrian layers—the lowest geological strata containing abundant fossils and considered among the “oldest” fossils of many organisms. Palaeontologists call the appearance of diverse fossils that are not present in lower rocks the Cambrian Explosion.

According to Simon Conway Morris’ Darwin's Dilemma: The Realities of the Cambrian 'Explosion’, most major forms of animal life we’re familiar with appear suddenly in those strata, fully formed, highly specialised and diversified. In The Ecology of the Cambrian Radiation, Andrey Zhuravlev states the Cambrian fossils also appear simultaneously in multiple locations in the world. But that is not what would be expected in a model of gradual appearance of life with increasing complexity and diversity over a long period. It’s as if in the automobile museum, the room displaying the first automobile has 23 “firsts” instead of just one, and all of them already quite complex and diverse, and none clearly the model ancestor of the others. Moreover, those “firsts” would have appeared in multiple geographic places simultaneously. If this were the case in the museum, we would be tempted to think that the belief that automobiles were invented in Western Europe is wrong.

The biblical view of the creation of all life forms and a sudden burial that turned them into fossils during a global flood actually fits better with the sudden appearance of diverse fossils as apparent in the Cambrian Explosion. During the biblical Creation week, God created multiple groups of organisms (diversity), all of them very complex. According to Genesis 3, the environment Adam and Eve encountered outside Eden was rather different from the one APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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Also, the different groups of plants appear without gradual variation or connections among them. Sudden appearance is better explained in the biblical model of Creation in which multiple forms of animals and plants were created “according to their kind,” without intermediate or transitional forms.

Television documentaries, academia and textbooks assert that fossil formation takes millions of years.

In fact, the opposite must be true in order for fossils to even exist.

Three conditions are needed for fossil formation: first, the possession of hard parts (although there are exceptional cases of soft tissue preservation), second, rapid burial in sediment, and third, mineral exchange within the sediment facilitated by percolating water.

Given those conditions, fossilisation may occur in a span of time between a few hours and a few years, but however long it takes must be less than the time that an organism’s body lasts after death. Thus, millions of animals and plants could have been buried during the worldwide Genesis flood and rapidly fossilised in the wet sediment.

In the past two decades, there have been numerous reports of soft tissue occurring in fossilised bones and other fossils, many of them thought to be millions of years old.

This is puzzling because soft tissue doesn’t last long after an organism dies. Some resistant organic mole-

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inside the garden, suggesting that God had placed animals and plants in many parts of the world. Based on the type of sediment that makes up the Cambrian strata, the type of organisms and the trace fossils like burrows and trail marks, palaeontologists interpret the Cambrian fossils as representing fauna that lived on the bottom of ancient seas. This is compatible with a worldwide flood washing sediment into the pre-flood oceans and burying organisms living on the bottom.

Marine animals appear in the lower layers of the fossil record. Such include sponges, trilobites and other arthropods, molluscs and many kinds of sea worm among others. Those organisms are called invertebrates because they lack a backbone. Fossils of vertebrates (animals with a backbone) like fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals occur in layers above in a succession that—according to palaeontology—suggests a gradual appearance over many millions of years. However, a closer look at both the fossils and the characteristics of the layers where they are found suggests an interpretation that doesn’t invoke millions of years may better explain how they were formed.

The different groups of vertebrate appear in succession but each group appears abruptly, not gradually. A gradual appearance would show intermediate forms between, for example, fish and amphibians, or reptiles and mammals, and between different groups of invertebrates.

cules, like collagen, may last a few hundred or even a thousand years under ideal conditions, but not 65 million years, as have blood vessels and cells found in some dinosaur bones, some even with preserved elasticity and colour. A better explanation is that those fossils are not that old, as the biblical chronology implies.

Granted, certain aspects of the geological record are problematic for a short chronology, such as the biblical Creation and flood narrative.

For example, radiometric dating suggests that rocks associated with fossils are millions of years old. Coral reefs and other biological constructions that require thousands of years to form occur at various levels in the geological

column, and they are hard to interpret in a worldwide flood model.

Both fossils and the rocks give a dual set of features that lead to opposite interpretation: hundreds of millions of years during which various groups of organisms appear successively, versus thousands of years at the beginning of which different groups of organisms were created that were later buried during the great flood of the Bible. There are problems with a short-age chronology, but the long-age chronology also faces significant drawbacks. No-one has all the answers, but the biblical model of Creation and the Flood is not incompatible with many features observed in the geological and fossil record. In fact, many features suggest the biblical model is superior to other models.

Raul Esperante is a research professor at the Geoscience Research Institute.

He has led palaentology research teams in the United States, Peru, Bolivia and Spain.

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UTH F

FAKES New technology is allowing ultra-realistic renderings of people’s faces and voices into videos where they are not present. What was once a harmless joke now has the potential to unsettle the world.

By Nathan Tasker APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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he camera never lies”. Or does it?

About 160 years ago, a popular yet controversial play called The Octoroon hit the stage in New York and London. Filled with romance, crime and plot twists, it showed the villain attempting to frame someone else for a crime for which he was responsible. He would have succeeded in his treachery but for

pioneer Charles Lindbergh’s son, the use of photographs by the prosecution was key to the defendant’s conviction. Although manipulation of photos was possible and even occasionally employed in these early years, the level of effort and skill required and the sterile results were not enough to discredit the notion that a camera is generally a reliable witness.

“

the invention of a new apparatus: the camera. Caught in the act by its tell-all lens, the villain was convicted due to evidence that was considered irrefutable.

It wasn’t long before photographic evidence had firmly established itself in court cases. In one of the most famous trials of the 1930s, involving the kidnapping of aviation 34

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The invention of Adobe Photoshop in 1988 was a game-changer.

Using this software, anybody could modify a photograph without a massive budget, specialised skills or weeks of effort. Suddenly an old adage came into question, as it quickly became obvious that a photograph could lie all too easily.

However, up until recently,

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Holograms of individuals can now be created with artificial intelligence

most people felt fairly safe trusting video footage. Although video manipulation technology had been steadily developing during the 20th century, only big budget film visual effects companies could painstakingly create illusions that were realistic and believable.

Enter deepfakes, also known as “synthetic media”. This new approach to doctoring footage enables computerised algorithms to swap the face of an actor with the face of someone being impersonated.

Footage is shot of the actor doing or saying whatever the creator would like to communicate, and then the other person’s face and mannerisms are superimposed over this footage.

A computer algorithm then manipulates the footage of the actor to match with the appearance and mannerisms of the person being faked. In a matter of hours, a fake video can be produced which is essentially indistinguishable from a genuine one.

Voice-sampling technology is a similar issue which allows recorded audio to be learned and then mimicked. In a 2020 TEDx Toronto talk, Joseph Palermo explained that an editor can type any desired text and have a computer play it back realistically in the tones and inflections of the person being mimicked.

Combining both audio and video fakes, political leaders, celebrities and even you can be mimicked to such a realistic degree that even close family and friends would be fooled. In fact, holograms of individuals can now

be created with artificial intelligence (AI), based upon the actual mannerisms and also the beliefs (either real or imagined) of a person so that we can have eerily authentic “interactive” conversations with them. Hypothetically, a modern-day interview with Napoleon about the battle of Waterloo is impossible because he passed away 200 years ago, but modern technology could make talking to his AI hologram possible. These interactions can even take place in other languages originally unknown to the person being faked.

The possibilities are exciting, but also terrifying. Imagine receiving a telephone call from someone who sounds exactly like your spouse, best friend or family member. She explains that she has been in an emergency and requires financial assistance. Or imagine a well-known politician appearing in a video news conference, complete with live question-and-answer session, putting forward an agenda which could create significant national or international upheaval. It’s easy to see the potential for this technology to be misused. Wikipedia contributors lament, “The primary pitfall is that humanity could fall into an age in which it can no longer be determined whether a medium's content corresponds to the truth.”

what’s at stake?

Being unable to detect a fake is unnerving. How will we ever be able to tell what is true anymore? How APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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had much to say about forces who would deceive humanity. In one of his letters, Paul warned his readers about the “man of lawlessness”. This being would:  Oppose God and attempt to usurp His authority (2 Thessalonians 2:4).  Be at work in the time of Paul, but intensify his efforts later (2 Thessalonians 2:5-7).  Be revealed and overthrown at the second coming of Jesus (2 Thessalonians 2:8).  Perform false signs and wonders.

(2 Thessalonians 2:9).  Be inspired by Satan and deceive many, causing them to perish.

(2 Thessalonians 2:9,10).

Paul suggests that the “man of lawlessness” and those on his side are actually trying to deceive humanity to believe a lie and therefore be confused and even condemned. That’s pretty scary stuff! And evidently pretty serious too, for in another passage, Paul laments, “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:1315). Clearly, deception has a long history with big implications.

Whatever our differing worldviews, the emergence of deepfakes forces us to take a hard look at the importance of truth and the risks of deception. Is it possible that deepfake technology is more than just a laugh or an opportunity for blackmail and extortion at an individual level?

Could it be part of a larger landscape in which the forces of evil are actively

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can we protect ourselves from misuse of this technology? Does deception at this level merely threaten our personal or national interests, or could our situation be even more precarious?

When Israel was in ruins around 500 BC, Sun Tzu—a respected Chinese military strategist—is credited with writing what is widely considered the most authoritative and informative manual on military conflict, entitled The Art of War. This volume is required reading for military intelligence officers even today. A single sentence encapsulates its thirteen chapters: “War is the way of deception.”

The Bible describes just that: a war whose way is deception. From Genesis to Revelation, it’s easy to see deception as a theme in which the forces of good battle the forces of evil. Satan, in the form of a serpent, deceived Eve into rejecting God’s authority, resulting in death and misery for all humanity (Genesis 3).

Daniel warned of a coming usurper who would attempt to take God’s place while hurting His people (Daniel 7,8). Jesus Himself warned His disciples, “Beware that you are not deceived” and “beware of false prophets” who “will perform signs and wonders to deceive if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:4-27).

Revelation, the final book of the Bible, describes Satan as “the deceiver of the whole world” (Revelation 12:9).

One of the early apostles, Paul,

waging war on God and the inhabitants of earth, trying to confuse us, manipulate our global politics and perhaps even impact our eternal destiny? In this age when we can no longer trust our eyes and ears, what can we rely on?

the good news

Paul ends his passage about the man of lawlessness with the promise that his readers are chosen by God, and with encouragement to “stand firm and hold fast” (2 Thessalonians 2:15). Today, Paul’s writings offer hope that even the most hardened of us can take courage from. If Paul’s own life is anything to go by: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1:15). That’s the good news: the evil one may try to deceive us, but Jesus is able to save us from his grasp when we put our trust in Him. Paul’s friend James put it this way: “So, my very dear friends, don’t get thrown off course. Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light. There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle” (James 1:17, The Message).

The camera may lie, but God has always been—and will always be— trustworthy.

A qualified pilot and keen student of philosophy, theology and science, Nathan Tasker lives with his family in Maryborough, Queensland.

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Dear Readers, How are you enjoying your journey so far? I hope you’re finding value and interest in the selection of stories we are presenting here.

At Signs we care about our readers and we understand, especially during these uncertain times, life can be a struggle. Maybe you’ve related to some of the articles about forgiveness in this issue and you’d like to learn more. Maybe you’re spending Easter or Anzac Day alone this year and you’d like to find a church service to attend.

If you have questions about anything you’ve read in this magazine, would like to connect with a local church community or be put in contact with a pastor in your area, scan our QR code and fill out your details or you can email us at info@signsofthetimes.org.au.

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the power of

HECTOR FARAHANI—UNSPLASH

BROKEN BREAD

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On the traditional Passover Feast table there are many food dishes. It’s not about a good meal, however, but about how they represent the loving sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

BY ADELINA ALEXE

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hen it comes to power, God holds the golden cup. At least, that’s what Christians believe.

But if God is all-powerful, then all things should be perfect, because God would be lacking power if He could not ensure the excellence of everything. At least that's what one common argument suggests.

In practice, this means there should be no suffering, pain or death.

But suffering and death exist, which lead some to conclude that God must not be so powerful after all.

Actually, there is a strong and fascinating link between suffering and power. To explain it, I’ll reference a Bible story in which Jesus eats an important meal with His closest followers (see Matthew 26:17–19, 26–29; Luke 22:14–20).

meaning of the Passover feast

The Jewish people had observed a festival called Passover since the time of Moses. An important part of celebrating the Passover was a ritual meal, where the family shared the meat of a sacrificial lamb along with herbs and a special bread (Exodus 12). Sounds tasty (unless you're a vegetarian)!

But the meal's value wasn’t as much in the taste as in what it represented. Being a ritual, this meal was symbolic of something else, something larger: it commemorated the liberation of the Jewish nation from Egyptian slavery and also freedom from destruction, as the blood of the lamb “covered” the people, saving 42

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them from death. In this sense, the lamb pointed forward to Jesus (the Messiah or Anointed One), who would die to free humanity from the slavery of evil and death.

why death to begin with?

Christians believe the human race was created perfect and immortal, in close relationship with the Creator God, the Source of life.

Death entered as a natural result of Adam and Eve's choice to remove themselves from that Source (Genesis 1–3). Ironically, death was a loving punishment, for an immortal sinful life would be an atrocious existence rather than a desirable one. But God’s love went beyond appointing an end to a miserable existence. God provided a way for humans to be reconciled with their Creator and to once again live painless and immortal lives—the kind worth living forever.

That way was Jesus. By offering His life, He chose to take our wrongdoing upon Himself and suffer the punishment of death. When we

“

Being a ritual, this meal was symbolic for something else, something larger

Jesus celebrates Passover

Sometime in the first century, after the Passover ritual had been observed for hundreds of years, Jesus Himself celebrated the feast with a few of His chosen followers. According to the Bible, Jesus was God who became human and came into this world by a miracle birth. He performed many healings, preached often about the coming kingdom of God, and taught the key principles of this kingdom to His students who were to continue proclaiming the good news.

But Jesus knew His life on earth was coming to a close. He knew that He would soon die, and He knew that His death was going to be the bridge back to God, to reconnect humans with their Creator. In other words, His death was the most important event to ever occur on this planet. Importance, though, doesn’t always manifest itself in ostentatious

displays.

a humble sharing of the self

In the privacy of a small room, Jesus and His 12 students shared a simple meal, and, “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to His disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body’” (Matthew 26:26). By symbolically breaking the bread, Jesus pointed to the fact that His own body would be broken. By inviting the students to eat this bread, Jesus was bidding them to partake in the rescue that His death would procure.

Jesus also took a cup and, after giving thanks, “gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you.

This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins’” (Matthew 26:27,28). Just as that broken bread represented Jesus’ broken body, the wine symbolises Jesus’ blood spilled in His sacrificial death for the sake of humankind.

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accept His sacrifice as substitute for our own death, we don’t have to suffer eternal oblivion.

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Have you ever heard someone say, “She will exist forever in our memory”? This phrase is understood as an emotional declaration of enduring love for a deceased person.

But I think there is more to it than an emotive expression of love.

While our embodied life is a unique existence, this embodied life occurs at the junction of interactions with others. Because of this, our memory holds unique moments, events and experiences that we share with fellow humans. In other words, our life is shared not only in our actual everyday interactions, but also in the way these interactions become engraved in our memory, shaping who we are.

In short, our memory partly accounts for our identity. Indeed, to lose one’s memory is to partly lose one’s identity. So, “living” in someone’s memory is not something that occurs after death only: it is a constant sharing of ourselves during our actual embodied life. The idea 44

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of living in someone’s memory after death reflects a unique aspect of our shared existence where the living person carries someone deceased in their memory in a real but not embodied sense.

Jesus’ odd request

Back to the story. After sharing the wine and the broken bread, Jesus instructed His student friends to “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19; see also 1 Corinthians 11:23–26). And to safeguard this remembrance, Jesus actually instituted a new ritual that replaced the Passover meal. Once He had fulfilled the Passover by becoming the sacrificed lamb, people no longer needed to symbolically recreate the Passover meal. Instead, Jesus asked them to remember His sacrifice in a ritual of sharing bread and grape juice (or unfermented wine), which represented His broken body and spilt blood.

But this request seems just a bit odd. Let me put it this way: if

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memory and shared life

someone died in your place, how likely are you to ever forget that person? Quite unlikely, I should think. Such a life-giving event would be deeply engraved in your memory with immense gratitude. So why did Jesus ask His followers to remember His death?

external salvation, internal choice

Jesus’ request was not a selfish act of benefit to Himself. Instead, remembering His death was going to be a constant life-changing experience for His followers because of the implications of this death.

But the fact that Jesus provides a substitutionary death for every human doesn’t mean that every human will automatically be saved.

Because we’ve been created with freewill, we need to choose to accept His sacrificial death as a way back to connection with God. Because of this, it’s crucial that we keep this event at the forefront of our mind. The alternatives are quite grim: we could reject Jesus’ death outright and lose the chance to live forever with God. We could try to earn our salvation through living a good life, but even the most selfless human life is still tainted by wrongdoing and can never fully bridge the gap to God. Or we could accept Christ’s sacrifice but neglect to realise its importance for our day-to-day living. This neglect can eventually become outright rejection, in that it loses its effectiveness.

Of equal importance is to keep

Jesus’ sacrificial death in the foreground, constantly recognising the power of God’s love in saving and transforming us according to His selfless character.

suffering and the power of love

God’s power is indeed infinite and surpasses the power of any other being in the universe. This superiority is warranted by the fact that God alone is an uncreated Creator, and thus precedes all other life-forms.

But the supremacy of God’s power stems from one central thing: the power of love. In other words, God is all-powerful, because He is all-loving.

It is love that secured our rescue. By taking upon Himself all the wrongdoing of the world, and enduring the most excruciating suffering and death ever possible, Jesus’ infinite love was the most powerful act possible.

In this way, suffering and power were both present in Jesus’ life, thereby answering the issue of pain both logically and personally. This is not a complete answer, for the existence of evil and pain is ultimately inexplicable. But it is sufficient to elicit a good choice with eternal consequences.

Adelina Alexe is a systematic theology student at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan, USA. She loves God and enjoys nature, arts and meaningful conversations.

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ANDREW EBRAHIM—UNSPLASH

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ABBA, weight loss and meaning—and discovering the truth about idols.

BY JESSICA KRAUSE

Winner The TAKES IT ALL APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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to live for as we go throughout life.

These idols provide us with a sense of security and direction, and the knowledge that we “have” something to hold onto when times get hard.

But there’s a problem with idols: they let us down.

At the end of Year 10, I decided I wanted to lose weight. I had always been the bigger one out of my group of friends, and my size was a cause of

“

I could not understand why after successfully doing something I had set out to achieve, I still felt so empty insecurity for me. I hated getting piggybacks or being picked up (for fear of being viewed as too heavy or being dropped), and swimsuits were something I didn’t like wearing in front of others. I figured that in losing weight, I would become happier, my sense of identity would improve and all my previously mentioned fears would be eradicated.

NATHAN DUMLAO—UNSPLASH

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had an obsession with ABBA as a child. When “Dancing Queen” came on the radio, my world would transform as I sang into my hairbrush mic, inviting my toys to join in with my uncoordinated dance party.

At my peak ABBA fervour period (insert eight-year-old me), I entered a competition where I had to “finish the ABBA lyric” to win the prize.

Not to gloat, but I incinerated the competition, clinching my success with the song “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme (A Man After Midnight)”.

To celebrate, I victoriously took home a Finding Nemo lunchbox, mortifying my parents (one a church minister), who had to explain to their friends why I knew those song lyrics (yet was blissfully unaware as to their meaning).

I could say I am embarrassed by my ABBA history, but even now, I take great joy in belting out “Mamma Mia” when it comes through my car stereo, and if you challenge me to a “finish the ABBA lyric” battle, I’ll undertake it with the same gusto and competitiveness as I did in 2005.

We all have idols—people we look to who provide us with inspiration, hope, happiness and (in the case of my very important competition), purpose. These idols inspire us to action, affect our decisions and can impact our relationships with others.

As we get older, these idols often shift from people to things. We begin to look to our families, our careers or our financial status, to provide us with meaning, and something

So, I did it. Over the summer I exercised, ate smaller portions, cried while eating kale and lost nearly 10 kilograms. I had achieved what I had set out to do, had a healthy BMI and I lived for when people would make comments about my weight loss or how good I looked.

But something strange happened.

I still hated being picked up. I didn’t enjoy wearing swimsuits and I never

felt like I’d lost enough weight to be considered “thin”. My weight loss, while doing wonders for my health, had done very little for my self-esteem. I could not understand why after successfully doing something I had set out to achieve, I still felt so empty. I had placed my identity and happiness in my weight loss, and it had failed to deliver.

idols: a biblical perspective

When we look in the Bible, idols don’t get a positive review. In Exodus 20, when God provides the Ten Commandments to His people, the Israelites, He tells them that they are to have no other gods—idols—ahead of Him. At another time, God commands a man called Gideon to smash his family’s cherished idol (see Judges 6). God has a very clear perspective of idols, but why?

Author Timothy Keller, in his book Romans for You, offers one reason: “We must worship something.

We were created to worship the Creator, so if we reject him, we will worship something else . . . .

There has to be something which captures our imagination and our allegiance, which is the resting place of our deepest hopes and which we look to to calm our deepest fears.

Whatever that thing is, we worship it, and so we serve it. It becomes our bottom line, the thing we cannot live without, defining and validating everything we do . . . the human heart loves to make a good thing into its god thing. This exchange in our worship and service undoes the creative order.”

God tells us to not have anything else before Him because He knows that any other god or idol, no matter how wonderful, that we place as our first love will ultimately let us down.

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drama can make life unbearable.

When we rely on our health, ageing, weight gain/loss and injury can all leave us feeling worthless. That is not to say that we shouldn’t value these things—indeed our families are of great importance, our careers are often necessary and can provide great feelings of accomplishment, and our health allows us to have an abundant, meaningful life. But when we start to look at these things as our primary source of meaning, we are setting ourselves up to fail.

“I the Lord do not change,” God says in Malachi 3:6. In a world of confusion, where nothing is certain, God promises a constant purpose and love that we don’t have to do anything to earn. He tells us constantly of our value in the Bible, and describes us as “fearfully, and wonderfully made”, designed for a life that is abundant. When we have that promise upon which to lay our foundation, it changes our lives. It means that we don’t have to fear the future, because we know God is for us, even if everything else is against us. It means that we can love our families and our jobs, and look after our health, without letting any of them define us.

But it’s also much more than that.

God also tells us that we are not only loved but loved enough to die for.

The much-quoted John 3:16 tells us that “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.”

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Sacrificing oneself for an undeserving humanity is certainly not a common action of a god. What’s more, Christianity is arguably the only major religion where we don’t have to do

“

God tells us that we are not only loved but loved enough to die for anything to be given this rescue. God is offering a free gift and a new focus without having to win a competition, and without having to be perfect. It’s truly good news.

I have a regular fight with myself about whether I need to exercise more often, and my competitiveness for ABBA is still alive and well. But it’s different now, because that’s not where I get my meaning from anymore. So, when “The Winner Takes It All” comes on the radio, and I proceed to perform it for the surrounding drivers, I find myself reminded of the fact that if I place the right Winner at the centre of my life, it’s going to be better than any prize, including a lunchbox.

Jessica Krause is currently completing a law/media degree at Newcastle University in NSW.

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TRANSPORTATION FOR THE

EXPRESS RECHARGE Electric cars may become a lot more ergonomical, as new batteries have been developed with a five-minute recharge time. The "StoreDot" technology is being slated for implementation in electric road cars by 2025, allowing them to drive 160km on a single charge.—The Guardian

BLUE

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SUPER BULLET TRAIN

Chinese researchers have revealed a "maglev" train, with speeds estimated to clock around 640km/h. Scientists from Southwest Jiaotong University claim the train will use superconductor technology and could be ready in the next six years.—Sy Fy Wire

BLUE JEANS Research has found blue jeans are one of the worst sources of ocean pollution. Blue jean material was found to release 56,000 microfibres per wash, significantly contributing to pollution.—ACS pollution.—ACS Publications Publication

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, PEXELS—PIXABAY, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

FUTURE BUS

Covid-19 social distancing measures are informing the future of transport, with an international team designing a contactless "Futurebus". The vehicle features a large upwards sliding door that allows more space for passengers to enter and exit, and dividers between seats.—SciTechDaily

MODERN AGE

OPEN SOURCED MICROSOFT'S SUPPORT

Open-sourcing, the act of making computer software code available for modification by the public, has again been supported by Microsoft. While the method supports collaboration, it has also raised concerns about hacking.

Microsoft's recent open-source initiatives significantly deviate from the company's previous business model.

—Tech Radar

SWATTING THE BUG

Microsoft's GitHub platform has released a study finding 17 per cent of bugs in software were malicious. These are listed as including "backdoors", where vulnerabilities are created in the software for potential future exploitation.

"Bugdoors" are also areas of weakness in software that may allow for future hacking. Experts have suggested the best way to combat these is by introducing further peer-reviewing into software. —ZDNet

WIKIPEDIA'S BILLIONTH EDIT

Wikipedia is a well-known example of open-sourcing, where internet users contribute and edit information on the encyclopedic website. Launched in 2001, the website has since grown into one of the 15 most popular websites in the world and registered its billionth edit in January.

Once criticised for its open-source nature, it was singled out in 2018 by Youtube and Facebook as a resource to combat fake news. —Vice, Washinton Post

HEATING UP Water temperature tracking has found Earth's oceans absorbed more heat in 2020 than in any other year on record. The statistics mean the heat in Earth's oceans could have boiled 1.3 billion kettles.—Science kettles.—Science News

STING-RAYDAR Japanese scientists are using stingrays to map unexplored ocean bed. Equipped with pings that bounce off surfaces, the use of stingrays has been approved by animal care groups.—SN groups.

—SN Applied Sciences

APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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the

Unspoken

EPIDEMIC Film review: The Girl on the Bridge

BY MIKAELA MATTHES

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Film: The Girl on the Bridge Director: Leanne Pooley Release Date: October 10, 2020

W

e’re the ones that are dying, and therefore we’re the ones that have to stand up and solve it, because no-one else is going to,” implores Jazz.

The Girl on the Bridge, a confronting and moving documentary, follows Jazz Thornton as she creates a web series to tell a story of hope. Jazz herself has survived multiple suicide attempts and works to support other young people in similar situations.

Jazz states her purpose is to create change to stop the epidemic of young people dying by suicide. She decides that it is through understanding that she must first change people’s reactions to suicide. The best way to create empathy and understanding for people is to move in close to them and uncover their story.

While this documentary comes out of New Zealand, where suicide rates have risen by more than 100 deaths each year in the last 10 years, Australia’s statistics are just as frightening. Lifeline records that eight Australians die every day by suicide, which is double the road toll.

Suicide is the leading cause of death for Australians between the ages of 15 and 44. Further, for every life lost to suicide, approximately 135 people are impacted. This is a significant problem.

Recently, my grandfather said he did not previously understand

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why individuals with depression didn’t just “snap out of it” and move forward. After experiencing significant losses in a short period of time, my grandfather said he realised that sometimes low mood hangs over you and appears for periods of time without you having much control over it.

I was initially frustrated that he’d ever thought that, and that this suggested he didn’t value my job as a counsellor. However, I was encouraged that he was expressing this aloud because he no longer agreed with the statement. What better person to watch a documentary about changing the stigma attached to mental health and suicide, than someone currently coming to more understanding about mental health?

In the film, Jazz is focused on working out how to tell the story of her friend, Jessica. Jessica had expressed a desire to recover and share her story of hope through Jazz’s platform, Voices of Hope. Sadly, Jessica died by suicide, but Jazz sees many similarities between Jessica’s story and her own. Jazz sets out to fulfil Jessica’s desire for her story to bring hope. Obviously, this is going to be a challenge.

By highlighting the similarities and differences between Jazz’s story and Jessica’s, these stories bring to life the statistics of young people making suicide attempts. The pain, anguish and confusion of the family and friends of Jessica present the seriousness and urgency to create change.

Their shared backgrounds of abuse

demonstrate the importance of understanding what is behind someone’s attempts to take their own lives. By sharing these deeply personal stories in the most delicate way, Jazz seeks to remove the stigma of suicide attempts as “attention seeking” or that young people just need to “harden up”.

I must admit, the first part of the documentary had me in deep concern for Jazz. I was wary of how the story of her friend would be presented in the light of hope. I was wary for Jazz’s ongoing mental health, as she seemed to have limited boundaries in her well-intentioned efforts to support those experiencing suicidal thoughts.

I was concerned about what these aspects of the film would actually say to other young people. Were other young people going to think that the best way to support people was to be available all the time and take responsibility for helping others without professional support?

However, as is clear in the intention of the film, there is hope. The final half of the documentary artfully depicts the conversations Jazz had with the producers of Jessica’s Tree to

determine what details to include and how to tell the story to achieve hope and understanding. We see emotional conversations with producers and lawyers discussing what details of the abuse and suicidal attempts to disclose. This places the emphasis on the motivation for the storytelling, which becomes more powerful than which information is revealed or not. The film is also careful not to disclose the exact nature of Jessica’s death to avoid sensationalising suicide.

Ultimately, it is reinforced that Jazz wants to remove the stigma to better support young people and to encourage young people to fight for themselves rather than just survive.

Jazz emphasises that comments such as, “It will be OK,” minimise the struggle the individual is experiencing and rather, hope-oriented language such as talking about moving towards or away from goals for the future can encourage young people to fight for themselves.

A key aspect of supporting individuals with suicidal ideation is to share the burden. This applies among mental health professionals who are trained to remove their own emoAPRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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tions as well as friends and family. It takes many individuals, professionals and otherwise to share the parts of someone’s story. Jessica’s friends also talked about feeling the way to support her was to hold her secrets about her struggles. An important message from the film is that suicidal ideation is never something to keep a secret about, even at the risk of a friendship. This is not to suggest any one person holds responsibility but

“

Talking openly can instil hope that there was help that many people often have parts of someone’s story and together they can create a fuller picture of what is going on.

The focus of this documentary is not exactly to provide solutions or tips for supporting loved ones experiencing suicidal thoughts. It also doesn’t show a resolution for Jazz in creating healthy boundaries around her support relationships. But it does offer suggestions. Supporting someone with suicidal thoughts is hard, emotional work and all individuals involved require mental health support.

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after the documentary finished, aware that it can be a heavy topic for those less familiar. He said he was surprised at how young people could feel worthless their whole lives, as he values young people and loves spending time with them. Grandpa also said he felt moved by the family of Jess, who did their best, but so much was outside of their control.

He shared a common misconception that he thought talking more about suicide would give people ideas.

Rather, we know talking openly can instil hope that there was help and that people care. Grandpa said he realised the topic of suicide really is not as simple as it might first seem.

Jazz’s final encouragement is this: “Our job is to care and to care in the right way so that people who are struggling can save themselves.”

As part of this job we ought to keep an open mind, consider any unhelpful beliefs we may hold about mental health, whether they are about others or ourselves. We must seek to grow empathy for others with the help of thoughtful resources such as this documentary. There are actual human lives behind statistics.

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal feelings, don't hesitate to reach out to a mature trusted friend, a health care professional or an online/ phone service such as Lifeline Australia—13 11 14; New Zealand—0800 543 354 Mikaela Matthes lives and works in the Lake Macquarie region and provides counselling services in a local school and in her private practice.

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ELL B EING

SUPPLEMENTS OR HOW TO GET NUTRIENTS

Should we consider supplements to fill the gaps in our diets?

THUTAREESARMKASAT—GETTY IMAGES

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here’s no doubt a healthy diet is the best way to get all the nutrients we need, but the reality is, most of us fall far short of eating five serves of fruit and veggies a day.

So, should we consider supplements to fill the gaps in our diets? We ask Sanitarium Health Food Company dietitian Angela Saunders: “Supplements are not intended to be a substitute for food. When you eat whole plant foods, you’re actually getting many more nutrients than a tablet can provide.

In addition to essential vitamins and minerals, whole foods are also packed with fibre and thousands of other protective bioactive compounds, like antioxidants and phytonutrients.

“These nutrients are essential for our bodies to function. They help us grow, help prevent disease and are vital for good health. The type and amount of nutrients you need will vary depending on your sex, age and whether you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.

“However, you don’t need to get too hung up on counting the amount of nutrients you are consuming each day.

Instead, we recommend focusing on eating a variety of healthy foods from SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • APRIL 2021

the core food groups to ensure you are getting all the nutrients you need.”

FOOD SOURCES OF FIVE IMPORTANT NUTRIENTS Calcium: Calcium-fortified, plant-based milk and products; calcium-set tofu; legumes (soybeans, navy beans, chickpeas, kidney beans); sesame seeds and tahini; green leafy vegetables (broccoli, kale, bok choy, cabbage); almonds; calcium-fortified breakfast cereals; dried figs; dairy and dairy products.

Iron: Tempeh; wholegrains; legumes (lentils, soybeans, kidney beans); green leafy vegetables; iron-fortified breakfast cereals; dried fruits (apricots, dates, figs); nuts; seeds.

Vitamin D: Vitamin D-fortified milk and plant-based milk; fortified margarines; vitamin D mushrooms; eggs; fortified juice.

Zinc: Wholegrains; tofu; tempeh; legumes; nuts (cashews, pinenuts, pecans, Brazil nuts, almonds); seeds (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds); dairy products.

Iodine: Seaweed; eggs; bread; iodised table salt.

FOOD?

COMMONLY RECOMMENDED Vitamin B12. It helps your body produce blood cells, supports immunity and normal mental function. It is found almost exclusively in animal-based foods. If you limit your intake of these foods, you may need to include B12-fortified foods and/ or a supplement.

Vitamin D. It helps maintain strong bones and muscles.

Vitamin D comes from the sun with only a small amount available from food. If you have little safe sun exposure, your health professional may recommend a supplement.

Folic acid. Recommended to be taken before pregnancy and three months after conception to help prevent neural tube defects. Also, be sure to eat foods fortified with folic acid as well as foods naturally rich in folate such as green leafy veggies, legumes, avocado, beets, eggs and citrus fruits.

Article courtesy of Sanitarium Health Food Company. Visit sanitarium.com. au or sanitarium.co.nz and subscribe to Wholicious living for more great health and nutrition info each month.

APRIL 2021 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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FUN

CROSSWORD

STONE-SOUP—FLICKR

Hint: 9 Across

EDUCATION.COM

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CROSSWORD CLUES

ACROSS 5 A group of large phylums including snails and slugs 6 A group of Christian leaders 8 When a wound continues to form pus 9 Cabbage known for its nutritional benefits 12 Independently organised popular worldwide conference 14 A film consisting of real footage DOWN 1 Name of cord connecting a mother and baby 2 When a person remembers something they witnessed 3 Essential mineral produced in thyroid gland 4 Newspaper writer who offers commentary and opinions 7 Private university in Massachusetts, USA 10 Small Belgian city known for historic 1815 battle 11 Plural for a series of rock layers 13 To feel a large amount of long-term pressure

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How closely have you been 4 3 2 reading? Each keyword in this 4 is also contained 8 1 6 puzzle within this edition of Signs of the Times.

8 Happy digging!

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SOLUTIONS AVAILABLE ONLINE SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU 63

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