Signs of the Times - October 2018

OCTOBER 2018

N A O T D E V O M E W

M U L S N A I IND SELFIES, SCALPELS & SOUL SURGERY

SOBER DOESN’T HAVE TO MEAN BORING

A CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE WORLD TODAY

IN THIS ISSUE

OCTOBER 2018

WE MOVED TO AN INDIAN SLUM PAGE 32

How living among the poor alerted one Aussie family to the urgency of a global issue.

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38

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CURRENT

FAITH

WELLBEING

WHAT IN THE WORLD HOW TO GIVE YOUR MONEY AWAY And make it count 12 SEVEN WAYS TO HELP THE POOR Helpful tips that make a difference 20 SELFIES, SCALPELS & SOUL SURGERY Is social media feeding insecurities?

26 STREET SIGNS The public speaks out about selfie culture

38 THE SABBATH

18 GO HEALTHY FOR GOOD

4 6

COMMUNITY What can we learn from this ancient practice?

44 ANOTHER LOOK AT THE DARWIN AWARDS Does life have more value than a cheap death?

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50

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CULTURE 52 FINDING THE

PIECES OF US Book review: The Space between the Stars, by Anne Corlett

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The latest news in health and wellbeing DODGING DEBT Save money and live richer WHEN YOUR BRAIN CHOKES How to excel under pressure FOODS TO BOOST YOUR BRAIN POWER SOBER DOESN’T HAVE TO MEAN BORING Enjoy the taste without regret

FUN 62 CROSSWORD & SUDOKU

FIND US ON SOCIAL MEDIA 2

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/SIGNSOFTHETIMES

FROM THE EDITOR

N

o man is an Iland, intire of itselfe” is how the poem by John Donne begins. That little gem from high school English class has somehow lodged in my brain, not least because it demonstrates that atrocious spellers can still be poets!

But Donne made a vital point: humans are social beings. We are designed that way. Even after God created a perfect world and proclaimed it “good” (as recorded in the first chapters of the Bible) there was something missing. “It is not good for the man to be alone,” said God (Genesis 2:18).

This month’s Signs of the Times explores in various ways the importance of healthy human community—when we are both nurtured by and responsible to one another. This means both joy and sacrifice, as AJ Swoboda points out in “The Sabbath Community” (page 38). Our two articles examining the practicalities of charitable giving (page 6 and page 12) challenge us to look beyond ourselves, as does our incredible cover story of the Delaney family’s decision 13 years ago to move to an Indian slum (page 32).

Our aim at Signs magazine is to help you to connect better and more meaningfully; to build a stronger sense of community with your family, your community and your Creator.

VOL 133 NO 9 ISSN 1038-9733 EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Brad Kemp EDITOR Kent Kingston ASSISTANT EDITOR Daniel Kuberek COPYEDITOR Tracey Bridcutt GRAPHIC DESIGN Theodora Amuimuia 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, $A26.00; New Zealand, $NZ26; South Pacific countries, $A41.00; Other countries $A51.00 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.

Kent KENT KINGSTON Editor @Kent_SignsMag

Unless otherwise stated, Bible verses are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®.

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc®. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

COVER PHOTO: Delaney Family OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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WHAT IN THE WORLD CHINA

A TURN FOR THE WORSE Christians in China are expected to face decreasing religious freedoms, under President Xi Jinping.

Police officers have raided churches, confiscated religious imagery and demanded members be registered with the government.

The one-party Communist state has reportedly sought to infuse religions with “Chinese characteristics,” in a move that has also affected practising Muslims and Buddhists.

—The Washington Post

BOILING POINT WORLD

Global temperatures elevating by one degree could have devastating consequences, according to researchers.

Described as a “hothouse” climate, it could subsequently increase the global temperature up to five degrees above normal, and a sea level rise of up to 60 metres.—ABC 4

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MYANMAR

is considered a third-world country

32.1% LIVING BELOW the National Poverty Line

USA

SERIAL KILLER, FRAMED

MASTAPIECE, MAIKE HILDEBRAND, MACROVECTOR—GETTY IMAGES, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Deceased cult leader Charles Manson has been featured in a Las Vegas museum in a painting using his real ashes as a medium.

The artwork is among a gallery of items that feature serial killers.

Manson, infamous for nine murders in 1969, was himself an avid painter— one of his artworks made in prison was recently auctioned off for $US2500.—WBRC, TMZ

(Asian Development Bank)

MORE THAN

37%

don’t have access to clean water and sanitation, causing rampant health issues.

(Borgen Magazine)

HEALTH

JUST HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON People with DSL internet access sleep up to 25 minutes less than noninternet users, according to a new study by Bocconi University, Italy.

The research found a large majority are dissatisfied with their sleep and are less likely to get 7–9 hours’ rest.—Science Daily

AND YET, Myanmar has the HIGHEST AVERAGE RATE of donating money to charity or volunteering time

IN THE WORLD AT 64%

(CAFonline.org)

New Zealand has 57%, and Australia has 56%, ranking them 4th and 6th, respectively.

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HOW TO GIVE YOUR MONEY AWAY and make it count Australia and New Zealand are consistently ranked among the most generous nations on the planet, but charities and the world around them are changing quickly. So what are the best ways to change lives overseas in an ever-changing world?

BY BRADEN BLYDE

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CATLANE—GETTY IMAGES

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start at the top

By far the single biggest donor to international aid projects is our own government. In Australia, however, the total amount of money given has dropped over the last decade.

According to the devpolicy.org website, the Australian government was twice as generous in 1967–68 compared to today. This, along with the toughening of Australian immigration programs, is seen by many as 8

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a hardening of a once compassionate stance and a reflection of the rise of nationalism across the globe.

In many ways advocating and using your vote to support a generous aid policy is the most powerful way of making a difference overseas.

Charities, such as the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA), have been vocal in condemning the cuts and calling on the government to reflect a more generous and collaborative approach to relieving poverty.

“ADRA Australia strongly urges the government not to further decrease the aid budget,” said Paul Rubessa, CEO of ADRA Australia.

“Australia as a nation is not doing its fair share: we are already the least generous we’ve ever been. Australia can afford to be more generous to our neighbours. A further cut to the aid budget will hamper the global effort to alleviate poverty and distress.”

In contrast, Kiwis have seen modest growth in their government’s aid budget over several years. However, a

AUSTRALIAN AID PHOTO LIBRARY

A

seemingly endless stream of needy causes compete for our attention and money every day.

In a world made increasingly small by the speed of travel and communication, our ability to see and respond to the needs of those in some of the poorest parts of the world has never been easier—or as easy to exploit.

Every week generous people are tricked out of their money by fraudsters posing as charities. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission revealed recently that Australians lost more than $90 million to scams in 2017.

If the media is to be believed there is also an increasing number of legitimate charities using donated funds in unethical, inefficient and fraudulent ways.

To top it all off, the regulations that govern charities are constantly shifting with government policy—often to the frustration of both charities and their supporters.

So how do you ensure your donations are really making a difference?

little digging through the devpolicy. org website reveals the amount actually spent on aid is decreasing—New Zealand has under-spent its foreign aid budget and the world’s poor will not see the full amount that had been set aside for them.

Whether the trend is up or down, the bottom line for individual donors is this: more than ever governments’ international aid budgets are driven by politics, not need. And it’s the poorest of the poor who usually lose out. Our governments aren’t necessarily listening to them, but they may listen to us—the voters.

the tax man cometh

Since the first child sponsorship program began in 1920 to help children affected by World War I, the direct donor-to-child model has raised more money for international aid than any other initiative, and by a significant margin. So, it shocked many donors in Australia when they learned earlier this year that they can no longer claim tax deduc-

tions for donations to their sponsor child, or that, in order to preserve tax-deductibility, their charity would now direct donations to the child’s community rather than the child themselves.

Why the change? In the pursuit of the most effective and efficient ways of helping, both the Australian and New Zealand governments (along with many others) developed policies that encouraged people to give to the programs that years of experience and research had revealed to be the most impactful in reducing poverty.

It’s a change that reflects long-standing questions about the effectiveness of child sponsorship.

Donations to international aid from Australians are now split into tax-deductible and non-tax-deductible. Charities are no longer able to offer tax deductibility for donations for projects focused on welfare, evangelism or political activities.

Child sponsorship falls squarely into the welfare category. The resulting drop in sponsors and donations has brought some large child-sponsorship-focused agencies to crisis point.

In a recent letter to donors, Wayne Ulrich, CEO of Asian Aid Australia, a Christian charity that, until recently, had a large child sponsorship program, outlined the projects that can still receive tax-deductible gifts.

“Projects must encourage local community participation; improve the wellbeing of those in need; and produce sustainable benefits that will continue after the development assisOCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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BANG FOR YOUR BUCK

5 steps for getting the most from your donation Choose a small number of charities that align with your beliefs and values, not the ones that make you feel most guilty.

Check that the charities are registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (Australia) or the Charities Register (NZ) and are full members of ACFID (Australia) or CFID (NZ), the peak bodies for international development NGOs. Check that the charities are fully accredited with DFAT (Aus) or MFAT (NZ), to ensure robust policies are in place to prevent issues relating to fraud, money laundering, terrorism and child protection.

Get to know the charity’s work and impact by downloading a recent annual report, reading newsletters or giving the charity a call.

Stay in touch by reading (or requesting) project updates.

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tance has ceased,” he said. “Programs such as improving community education, water, sanitation, agriculture, job creation, social enterprise, microfinance and emergency programs, are tax-deductible.”

So how important is tax-deductibility really? It’s something every potential donor should consider.

However, it’s also important to realise that child sponsorship, and other non-tax-deductible programs, have been categorised this way because they are no longer seen as the most effective way to achieve change.

dropping off the map

When a massive tsunami struck Japan in 2011 the global community sprang into action, with millions of people rushing to donate to their favourite charity in response. Much frustration ensued as credit cards and cheque books were put away. Why? Because Japan was not listed on the highly regulated list of countries to which charities could send funds— nor had Japan put out a call for international assistance.

This scenario highlights two important reasons why some countries seem to disappear off the charity map: Our government does not consider some countries needy enough to receive funds or, in other cases, consider the governments in a fit state to receive donated funds. Also the official List of Developing Countries changes as countries such as India, Vietnam and others transition from “developing” to “developed.”

Japan did eventually request assistance. If anything, the change in Japan’s position illustrates the dynamic nature of charitable work and giving. As many countries continue their development progress you may see your favourite projects drop off the charity map. It’s a bittersweet situation, but one that signifies that the country and its communities are ready to thrive under their own steam and that it’s time to put your generosity to work elsewhere.

rubbery figures

The percentage of donated funds used for “administration” is one of the most contested figures in the charity world. Often, it’s a race to the bottom, with well-meaning donors assuming—and on occasion demanding—that a lower administration percentage results in a greater impact on the ground.

But it’s not always that clear cut. A small change in the way money is accounted for or reported on can have a drastic effect on a figure like the “administration percentage.” And it is no real reflection on how effective the charity is at delivering projects.

For example, a charity with a very small administration percentage may not have adequate management to ensure best use of funds or cost-efficient project operation. At the same time a charity with a high administration percentage may just be paying its senior staff too much.

So, instead of looking at percentages, consider the needs the charity

is addressing and the results they are delivering, evidenced by the longterm changes in the lives of those they work with.

Yes, giving your money away has never been more complex, but by following a simple formula you can make sure your donations make a real difference—knowing why you want to give, how much you can give and who you are giving it to. (See our quick five-point checklist on facing page.)

“We would encourage donors to do their homework about the organisation they choose to support,” says Rubessa, CEO of ADRA Australia.

“By choosing a reputable organisation that aligns with your values and can demonstrate impact, you can be confident your generosity will be multiplied to make amazing things happen.”

Braden Blyde is a social justice activist and school chaplain. He was previously marketing director for the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in New Zealand.

HOW TO AVOID CHARITY SCAMS Concerned you’ve given to a scam, or have been approached by a charity fraudster? Scam Watch websites provide a list of known scams, suggested steps to take if you have been scammed and easy-to-use reporting tools to help ensure others are protected.

AUSTRALIA: scamwatch.gov.au NEW ZEALAND: consumerprotection.

govt.nz/general-help/scamwatch

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Overwhelmed by the scale and complexity of poverty around the world? Here are some simple tips to get you started on the road to generosity.

SHELLS1—GETTY IMAGES

BY VICTOR PARACHIN

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WAYS TO HELP THE POOR

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I

t is an unfortunate situation that

in our world there are people who can live lavishly, enjoying not only essentials but luxuries. On the other hand, there are people in the world who cannot secure basic requirements of food, water, clothing, shelter, education and health care. One group is able to enjoy a wide variety of comforts and pleasures while another group must struggle and battle daily to meet minimal requirements of life. This inequity can be changed and the poor can be helped. Here are seven ways . . .

#1Remember that assistance delayed

RESPOND PROMPTLY WHEN YOU SEE A NEED.

is almost always assistance denied. As soon as you see someone in need, respond and do what you can. If you have a little, give a little.

If you have a lot, give a lot. The key is simply to act when a need presents itself. This is a biblical teaching: “When you happen on someone who’s in trouble or needs help . . . . don’t look the other way pretending you don’t see him. Don’t keep a tight grip on your purse” (Deuteronomy 15:7, 8, The Message).

Mother-of-four JoAnn tells of a time four decades earlier when

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she and her struggling family were helped in this way. At the time she, her husband and children were living in a small two-bedroom apartment they shared with her husband’s parents. JoAnn’s sister was working for a prominent investor as an au pair for his children. One day he came to the apartment to pick her up and “saw our tight living arrangements.” Speaking to JoAnn, he said: “This is not good. These children need rooms to play and sleep in without being on top of each other. Go find a house to buy.”

JoAnn explained it was not possible for them to make such a purchase.

“You find the house, then we’ll talk,” the investor responded. A few days later she and her husband found a three-bedroom house. “And sure enough, this wonderful man made the down payment, which was about $3000, a lot of money in those days.

We moved right in. My gratitude to that man, now deceased, is neverending. Because of his generosity, my children were raised in a safe, clean and fun environment with plenty of room to run around and play. I still say thank you for him every night.

And I’m still living in the house.”

#2Sometimes the USE SOCIAL MEDIA.

need is greater than you, as one person, can meet. That’s the time to partner

MACROVECTOR—GETTY IMAGES

with others who can help you to help someone in poverty. Social media offers an exceptional way to publicise a need and gain support. Recently, a teenager approached Matt White as he was leaving a Memphis supermarket and offered to carry his groceries in exchange for a box of doughnuts.

White recalled that the teenager looked “ashamed, hungry and broken.” Moved by the youth’s desperation, White took him back into the shop and invited the young man to fill a shopping trolley with groceries.

Once the trolley was stocked with cereal, milk, fruit, pasta, peanut butter and vegetables, White paid for the items. Then he offered to give the teenager a ride home and helped carry the groceries inside. There, White was stunned at what he witnessed.

The boy lived in a tiny flat with his grandmother. “They were sleeping on pads made out of sleeping bags, they had two lamps and nothing in their refrigerator. The grandmother was a kindly woman but was very fragile. She had some sort of physical and/or mental disability that made her shake. I thought I was going to cry,” White recalled. Later that day he shared his experience on social media and linked it to a GoFundMe crowd-funding website. His goal was to raise $250 to buy the teen a lawnmower so he could earn money. However, the story spread and touched 14,000 people who contributed almost $345,000 to help the boy and his grandmother. While not every attempt at fundraising will be

that successful, Matt White provides an inspiring example of what can happen when we respond and ask others to help us help the poor.

#3If you are

GIVE PRO BONO.

in an educ­ ated profession such as medicine, law or accounting, or if you have a unique trade skill—you’re an electrician, plumber or carpenter—apply the legal concept of “pro bono,” which means offering your professional services for the public good without compensation. Robert Dole, former US senator and presidential candidate, was the recipient of pro bono kindness during World War II. In 1945, near Bologna, Italy, his army unit was engaged in combat with German soldiers. Dole was seriously wounded by machine gun fire. Despondent over losing the ability to use his right arm, it was the kindness and generosity of an orthopaedic surgeon that lifted his spirits. Dole explains: “Dr Hampar Kelikian, an Armenian, operated on me half-a-dozen times and wouldn’t let me pay him. He said, ‘I’ll get my money from the next rich client I have, but you’ve got to make the most of what you have left. You just can’t sell pencils on a street corner.’”

The doctor’s kindness and words of OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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wisdom motivated Dole. “I couldn’t use my arm very well so I decided I’d use my head. I went back to school and became a lawyer.”

#4 You can change a life by lending someone in a developing

MACROVECTOR—GETTY IMAGES

OFFER A MICRO-LOAN.

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country as little as $25. These micro-loans are offered through non-profit organisations. By lending a small amount borrowers can establish a business and lift themselves and their families out of poverty. Poor people living in developing countries often do not have access to banking services. Additionally, banks in developing countries hesitate to offer “micro”or very small loans, because administrative costs are too high and they cannot report a profit on their services.

Lourdes, a young single mother from Paraguay, is one who benefited from a micro-loan. She secured her first loan of $60 to open a business selling empanadas and snacks to support her son and herself. As her business succeeded, she repaid this loan and began taking out and repaying bigger and bigger micro-loans.

With her growing success and credit history, Lourdes was able to work with several agencies to borrow $975 in order to increase her inventory SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

and buy a refrigerator. This allowed her business to grow to the point where she could afford to move into a larger shop with a secured gate to prevent robberies and an attached home for her family.

#5

OPEN YOUR HEART TO MEDIA NEWS OF SUFFERING.

Author Leo Buscaglia writes: “It’s not enough to have lived.

We should be determined to live for something. May I suggest that it be creating joy for others, sharing what we have for the betterment of person-kind, bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely.” Apply his insight when watching or reading news which presents the suffering of another being and allow that information to open your heart. One who did this was Dr Wayne Dyer, author of several best-selling books.

He was watching a news program which profiled the plight of an elderly African-American woman named Harriett Cleveland. She was 61 years of age, living in Alabama and raising her threeyear-old disabled grandson.

Earlier she had received a traffic infringement notice with a $75 fine. Unable to pay it as well as buy her medication and food, she’d put that ticket in a pile of

unpaid bills, intending to deal with it later when she had the money.

Over a few months that simple traffic fine accrued interest, growing from $75 to more than $3000, and also earning her a warrant. She was arrested in her home, in front of her grandson and taken to jail to serve a one-month sentence. Watching her story, Dyer tracked down Cleveland’s address, wrote her a letter and sent her $3000 to cover the fine and get out of jail. He then sent a second letter with another $2000 for any additional expenses she might have. Cleveland phoned him in tears saying she couldn’t believe that a complete stranger would send her more money than she’d ever had in her life. Dyer’s daughter, Serena, later commented that, of the millions who watched that news program, only one person reached out to help the woman and that was her father. How often do most of us learn of someone’s suffering via the news, are saddened by it, but never cross the bridge linking compassion with action?

#6

IF YOU’RE WEALTHY, BE FINANCIALLY GENEROUS.

That advice comes from Gregg Popovich, head coach of the San Antonio Spurs basketball team. His salary on a fiveyear contract is

reportedly $55 million. Well known for his generous financial donations, Popovich was asked by reporters why it was important for him and others in similar situations to give back. His reply was blunt: “Because we’re rich and we don’t need it all and other people need it.” He suggested that those who have “it” but don’t share “it” are lacking in gratitude, responsibility and compassion. “Pretty simple,” he concluded.

#7

ALWAYS HELP FROM A PURE INTENTION.

When reaching out to the poor, be guided by this advice from the Jewish Talmud: “If you give liberally, but unlovingly, and wound the heart of the poor, what good is your gift? If you give little, but give your heart with it, your deed is blessed and you are blessed.”

The Bible recognises the pervasive reality of poverty—“There will always be poor people in the land” (Deuteronomy 15:11). There will never be a time when someone somewhere isn’t in poverty. Because of that reality, we must constantly be updating the various ways in which we reach out to help the poor.

Victor Parachin is a journalist and author. He has written several published books, including Healing Grief and Across the Ages.

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W

ELL BEI NG

GO HEALTHY for good WITH

DR NERIDA MCKIBBEN

DELAY THAT FIRST DRINK

YOU BOOZE, YOU LOSE

Each year, thousands of cancer deaths could be prevented if Australians curbed their alcohol intake.

Current consumption sits at 15 standard drinks per week for the average Australian.

Researchers suggest that reducing consumption to 10 drinks per week could reduce cancer deaths by 12 per cent and save 5500 lives per year.

The higher the intake, the greater the risk. There is no safe lower limit, with alcohol linked to cancers of the mouth, throat, stomach, bowel, liver and breast.—SMH 18

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JUSTIN AIKIN, YUTACAR, KINGA CICHEIWICZ, GENTRIT SULEJMANI—UNSPLASH, DORIAN2013—GETTY IMAGES

A study tracking almost 10,000 Australian and New Zealand teens to the age of 30, has shown that weekly drinking prior to age 17 is associated with a two- to threefold increase in the odds of binge drinking, drink driving, alcohol-related problems and alcohol dependence in adulthood. One of the study’s authors said the findings “debunk the myth that teen experimentation with alcohol promotes responsible drinking; instead, it sets a young person up for later-life problem drinking.” It also supports a recommendation by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and others, to raise the legal drinking age to 21.—Addiction

GRUMPY TEENS MAY NEED SLEEP

Both the length and quality of sleep are important for positive emotions in adolescents. A recent study involving 4582 Aussie teens found that insufficient sleep is associated with lower happiness scores and fewer positive emotions such as excitement, inspiration and interest.

Poor sleep quality was associated with more negative emotions, like hostility, irritability and fear.—SLEEP

ALL FATS NOT EQUAL Preliminary research suggests that baby boys who receive omega-3 fats may gain a cardiometabolic advantage later in life. Researchers in Perth randomly assigned 420 babies to a daily supplement of either omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids or olive oil from birth to 6 months. At five years of age, the kids receiving omega-3 had a smaller waist. Boys who had had omega-3 fats had a 20 per cent reduction in insulin levels and insulin resistance compared to the olive oil group. Time will tell whether the advantage continues into adolescence and adulthood.—Pediatrics

FIVE TO STAY ALIVE!

Five lifestyle factors have been found to be associated with a reduced risk for premature death and as much as 12–14 extra years of life, according to recent research. Not smoking, having a normal weight, exercising vigorously for at least 30 minutes a day, avoiding excess alcohol consumption and enjoying a high quality diet combine to give a huge advantage for health and longevity.—Circulation

Dr. Nerida McKibben, a New Zealand-born obstetrician and gynecological surgeon, passionately enables people to achieve their greatest health potential. Wanting everyone to live life to the fullest, she integrates wholistic principles into medical treatments and procedures. For more, go to www.hop.ec/gohealthyforgood OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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SELFIES, SCALPELS & SOUL SURGERY

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These days, just about anyone can Photoshop their selfies to perfection.

But that’s no solution for the ugliness of selfloathing.

BY JULIE GUIRGIS

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aily we are exposed to a multitude of images of unattainable beauty, thanks to social media.

Before the digital age we would see images of impossibly perfect celeb­ rities on billboards, TV and in magazines, but we weren’t consumed by them for hours every day. Viewing pictures that show thin, attractive women or muscular, lean men has been shown to lead to body dissatisfaction.

And it’s not just the exposure to these images that’s damaging; it’s the pressure to have perfect profile pictures, comparing ourselves to others and the constant analysis of our bodies.

In 2013, two-thirds of teenagers had signed up to Facebook, posting and sharing images millions of times a day.

Kelsey Hibberd, from Southend in the UK, recalls her high school years as “miserable.” She intentionally kept her Facebook friends to a minimum— they were the ones who wouldn’t pick on her.

“I’d always been tall, and I was a bit podgy, too. In Year 7 everyone started pointing at me, noticing things, making me think I was ugly and not special,” she says.

She became self-conscious about small things like the shape of her eyebrows and size of her forehead, and was bullied from the age of 11 to 16. She knows firsthand that teenagers can have thousands of “friends” SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

online, yet still be vulnerable to body image issues.

“You put forward your best self, and that can be a bit dangerous, because you naturally compare yourself to others,” Hibberd says.

In 2012, MPs recommended that all schoolchildren take part in body image and self-esteem lessons. An inquiry by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Body Image revealed that girls from the age of five were worrying about their size and their appearance. It was also noted that about 60 per cent of adults felt

ashamed of the way they looked.

Pressure to look good had pushed up cosmetic surgery rates by nearly 20 per cent since 2008.

MP Caroline Nokes was a member of the parliamentary group, which is helping launch a campaign to change attitudes, Be Real: Body Confidence for Everyone. She has visited schools and talked to 12- and 13-year-olds about how easily images in the media can be altered to create something far from realistic.

“They understand because they go through the same process when they post images on social media sites.”

Most cameras in smartphones have built-in filters used to enhance even the most embarrassing selfies.

“I ask them to shut their eyes and put their hand up if they have ever enhanced an image on Facebook,” Nokes says. Most of them raise their hands and one girl said every single image she’d uploaded had been Photo­shopped.

“Social media has a huge effect on young people’s body confidence—it

“

. . . they are seeing the world through a filter, and it’s not healthy.

cannot be ignored,” Nokes explains.

“They can decide not to look at magazines and TV, but social media networks are the primary way they communicate and their main channel to the outside world. But they are seeing the world through a filter, and that’s not healthy. It’s really important we try to instil confidence that they can be who they are,” she says.

Her aim is to educate young people and challenge the images they see and admire, and to challenge retailers and businesses to be more responsible with advertising.

Dr Phillippa Diedrichs, from the Centre for Appearance Research, says social media triggers body image issues. The more time spent on Facebook, the more likely people are to self-objectify themselves, she says.

She believes depicting a diverse range of bodies in the media can help people with body image issues.

incisive critique

The growing popularity of cosmetic surgery raises many questions in today’s society. The main concern is that it intensifies a culture built on superficial anxieties about appearance—a culture that honours endless renovation over hard work, experience and a secure sense of identity.

The anti-plastic surgery viewpoint includes the concern that consumerism is recasting our true identity.

Cosmetics and clothing companies, counsellors, gyms and surgeons make billions of dollars out of these insecurities. The result is more emptiness— OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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we seek the next thing, without ever finding anything worthwhile.

Social media has been credited with an increase in plastic surgery. Surgeons who responded to an American Academy of Facial and Reconstructive Surgery survey reported a 31 per cent increase in requests from people who wanted to look better on social media. The survey showed cosmetic surgery is in higher demand than reconstructive procedures, accounting for 73 per cent of all plastic surgery operations.

The most popular are nose jobs and fillers.

distorted reflection

Our body image is the mental picture we have of our own bodies and is how we see ourselves, regardless of how we look. Poor body image is often linked to dieting—many people try a panoply of different diets that don’t work. Yes, obesity and overweight are issues in the overfed West, but too many people diet because of poor body image, not because they want to be a healthy weight.

Self-esteem describes the values, beliefs and attitudes we have towards ourselves. It reflects the overall opinion we have about ourselves. Healthy self-esteem is about accepting ourselves, despite our flaws and defects.

eternal beauty

The Bible tells us that we need to take a different approach to appearance than fitting into society’s idea of beauty. The Bible tells us that, while our body is God’s unique creation and even a “temple” worthy of respect and care, it’s important to resist the extremes we see in wider society.

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewellery or fine clothes,” wrote the apostle Peter. “Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight” (1 Peter 3:3, 4).

This was written to warn Christians against adopting the expensive fashions and hours-long beauty routines of women in New Testament times. And while there’s nothing HOW TO IMPROVE

LAFLOR—GETTY IMAGES

BODY IMAGE & SELF-ESTEEM

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wrong with caring about our appearance, it’s more important to be beautiful on the inside—this kind of beauty is eternal.

American poet Mattie JT Stepanek penned these beautiful words: “We are a mosaic of gifts, and each of us has our inner beauty, no matter how we look.”

Unfortunately we live in a super­ ficial world where most of us judge people on appearance. Proverbs 31:30 offers some perspective: “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” And a man too, no doubt.

God our Creator does not see us superficially. When the Old Testament prophet Samuel was directed

by God to anoint a new king for Israel, he was sent to the household of Jesse. On seeing Jesse’s firstborn son, Eliab, Samuel was sure this was “Jehovah’s anointed” (1 Samuel 16:1–6). “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him.

The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the out• Treat your body with respect and love • Make a list of your assets, talents and contributions • Make friends with the person you see in the mirror • Learn to appreciate the many different sizes and shapes that human beings naturally come in • See that there is beauty and strength in all bodies

ward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart’”(verse 7).

When we judge people by how they look, we may miss out on connecting with quality people who don’t have the physical attributes that society admires. Appearance doesn’t reveal what people are really like or what their true value is.

Fortunately God judges by faith and character; only He can accurately judge people. His purpose is developing our inner beauty to be reflected in everything we do.

If we accept God’s plan for us, our identity will be found in Jesus Christ; anchored in His freedom-giving mercy. We can be children of God with a spiritual inheritance of forgiveness, an intimate relationship with Jesus and a hope of an eternity with God. We can have what social media and cosmetic surgery can never hope to provide: unconditional love, inti­macy, secur­ ity and hope.

Julie Guirgis is an international freelance writer.

When she’s not writing she’s spending time with her family, creating handmade journals and hanging out with friends.

• Experience the joy of moving your body freely • Find physical activities you love doing, for example, dancing, gardening, walking or sports • Acknowledge your emotional needs and the right to have these met • Be critical of messages that tell you that to be happy and successful, women need to be thin and men need to be muscular OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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S T R E E T S I G N S

what do you think about selfies?

Why would you take photographs with yourself? You know who you are. [If] you’re gonna take photographs, take photographs of something that’s interesting to other people . . . . As far as taking photographs of yourself is concerned, I can see that gradually fading out. I can’t see any purpose in it.—Bernard

When Instagram first came out in 2011, if I look back at the things I was posting then, it’s like, “oh, this person is my best friend”— snap. Or, “this is some awesome lunch we had together”—snap.

“What a beautiful sunset”—snap.

But now it’s like, it’s become all about me and what I do . . . . I feel ashamed to say it out loud, but that’s also what all of my friends have done. That’s how we’ve all evolved. Your account is a resume of your appearance and your travels.—Laura

I try and find people of other nationalities, like Africans. I take selfies with them, and then post on Facebook that I’m having a great time in Africa, or wherever the person is from. So my friends think I’m travelling—because I never get to go anywhere, I can’t afford it. [My Facebook friends] don’t really say anything, they’re just stunned I think.—Paul

We live in this social media world where everyone is looking for validation. But we’re looking for validation from the wrong places.

People who take pictures, upload them on Facebook . . . it’s got to do with likes. Most of the time you’ll see that people who are going through a lot of personal stuff do post a lot of pictures so that they can get their boost of confidence.—Judith

IMAGES BY DANIEL KUBEREK

The Bible is very clear that humility is the quality we should be exhibiting in our lives, and that we should esteem others more highly than ourselves and be serving others . . . .

Obviously we shouldn’t be feeling badly about ourselves, but the way we feel better about ourselves is when we serve other people. If [selfies] are about ourselves and making ourselves feel better, it’ll ultimately end up being empty.—Tom We are chasing for something that is not real . . . Last week in our Bible study group, someone said that he is spending hours on Insta­ gram and he feels like a loser all the time, because he is constantly comparing his lifestyle with what is published on Instagram . . . [The group recommended that he] stop doing this, and even to remove the app from the phone.—Tomek

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ELL BEI NG

DODGING DEBT Loans look so quick and easy—they get us what we want, now! But then there’s the debt trap . . .

BY VICTOR KULAKOV

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oet and humorist Ogden Nash once lent some insight on the pernicious nature of debt when he observed, “Some debts are fun when you are acquiring them, but none are fun when you set about retiring them.” Yes, people like to borrow money because it allows them to swap it for material things right there and right now—consumerism and instant gratification, two defining characteristics of modern Western society. But it has massive side effects as they try to get rid of the debt.

CNYTHZL—GETTY IMAGES

CREDIT CRUNCH

According to a finder.com.au survey, 70 per cent of Australian adults hold a credit card. But is this such a big deal? After all, we need to manage life, right, and credit is an essential part of economic growth and prosperity. Reserve Bank of Australia figures show that the nation’s consumers together owe more than $A51 billion on their credit cards, of which some $A33 billion is interest.

The average credit card balance is $A3130 and the average interest accruing on it is $A1936. It means that, on average, more than 70 per cent of card holders in Australia become poorer by almost $A2000 every year simply because they pay interest. That’s where the fun side of borrowing money ends and the ugly side takes hold of people’s lives.

There’s more to this downside of debt. Financial pressures on households have left a third of Australians living pay cheque to pay cheque.

And more than ever they are desperately seeking help with their money troubles.

Figures from 2017 show nearly 14,600 Australians used phone services to seek financial counselling, an increase of about 11 per cent from the previous year.

SYMPTOM OF A DEEPER PROBLEM

As debt can put significant financial pressure on households, it’s important to do all we can to manage our spending. The advantage for everyone who reads and follows the Bible is immense: The wise (and mega wealthy) King Solomon said of debt, “The borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). In other words, debt doesn’t just buy you the pleasures it promises, but it sells you into slavery.

But debt is not the real problem.

Rather, it’s a symptom of a deeper problem, already alluded to, which is consumerism. Research reveals that, as a rule of thumb, people spend about 20 per cent more than they earn regardless of their earnings.

Fuelled by the media, advertising and pride, people want to have even more things because they think they will be happier if they have them. If I have this latest iPhone, I will be happier; if I have this cool D&G handbag, I will be happier; if I drive this head-turning car, I will feel important. But the truth is, if we draw happiness and significance from things we own, we’ll never be satisfied, as there will never be OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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enough; there will always be something newer, and someone else will always have a better car.

As someone once put it, Christmas is the season when you buy this year’s gifts with next year’s money. Don’t be enticed into this bottomless pit. Rather, follow the plain advice of Thomas Jefferson: “Never spend your money before you have it.”

TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR MONEY

How do you do that? Here’s a formula used by many wealthy people, which has helped me become financially liberated:

DIVIDE YOUR EARNING INTO THREE GROUPS:

GIVING

AT LEAST 10%

Truly wealthy people give, regardless of their status and religion.

PAYING YOURSELF This money is saved to be used as seeds of future investment.

AT LEAST 10%

LIVING EXPENSES

LIMIT TO LESS By allowing yourself to live only on THAN THE 80 per cent of your income (or less) REMAINING 80% you will likely need to simplify your

lifestyle and lessen your consumption.

Remember that people usually spend more than they earn, not because they need more, but because they choose to live beyond their limits. By doing so they rob themselves of becoming financially free as they accumulate debt and end up slaves to creditors.

And to conclude, here’s some good news. If you earn an average wage in Australia, you’re already set to becoming a millionaire well before your retirement—but only if you start living by this formula in your 20s. That’s about $10,000 a year over your working life of 40 years—at compound interest. So make a start now.

And there are better reasons than just wealth. Read Jesus’ parable in Matthew 25:14–30. God has given you many “talents,” and a regular wage is one.

You can use it wisely, invest and multiply it, or waste it by spending it all, much of it paying off interest, or worse, accumulating debt that robs you of your own freedom in life.

And one final maxim: Don’t save what’s left after spending; spend what’s left after saving.

Victor Kulakov is a church leader based in Auckland, New Zealand. An active family man, he has two sons.

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CU

R RENT

WE MOVED TO

AN INDIAN

How living among the poor alerted one Aussie family to the urgency of a global issue.

SUPPLIED

BY MARK DELANEY

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SLUM

n working to reduce the threat from climate change, the good news is that leading a low-carbon life is not only doable, but can be a fulfilling and fun way to live. We should know. We’ve attempted to live low-carbon lives in both middle Australia and the slums of India. In fact, our love for the natural world has, somewhat ironically, grown out of our living in places with very little natural beauty: poor urban neighbourhoods in north India, places that many would call slums. My wife Cathy and I, along with our sons, Tom and Oscar, have lived there for more than 13 years. Why would anyone in their right minds choose to do that?

HOW IT ALL BEGAN In my second year of university I started to take my Christian faith more seriously. At its core, that faith challenged me to move from a purely self-centred life towards being mindful of others around me, especially those at the bottom of society. Intriguingly, my new-found faith also suggested that to the extent to which I shifted my orientation from myself to others, life would actually become more meaningful and fulfilling. As a result, I began to question the normal “life map” laid out by society for middle-class young people like me: completing a university education, getting progressively higher-paying jobs, buying a house and retiring early to a life of leisure.

Disturbingly, it seemed as though OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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their child, right there in their hut, without any medical help. As I said goodbye, I shook his hand. It felt like ice. It was the middle of winter and he was clearly struggling to stay warm. It was a very simple interaction, but one that changed my life. I was deeply affected by the idea that I was leading a privileged life, with world-class education and healthcare, purely by virtue of being born in the West. Meanwhile, this man’s life was incredibly difficult, simply because he was born into a poor family in India. That difference seemed terribly unjust to me, so I decided to do my part to redress it.

My wife Cathy has been on a very similar journey. We were convinced that God loved the poor and wanted to alleviate their suffering. So did we.

HUMBLE APPROACH Many development and aid organisations, both Christian and secular, operate off a model of ex-

SUPPLIED

my role models did not advocate such a life map at all. Jesus, Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa and Gandhi directed most of their energy toward caring for the outcasts of society: the homeless, the lonely, the sick, the marginalised and the misfits. Even worse, they confronted those in power—the politicians, religious leaders and wealthy rulers—who were largely responsible for pushing people to the margins.

If I were to model my life on these heroes, it seemed to require using whatever skills and resources I was privileged enough to possess, to care for others, rather than to “feather my own nest.”

So, while finishing my law studies and working for a few years, I started to look at the bigger picture of the world and considering careers through which I might somehow make a difference. Practising law may have led to a career within the UN or politics through which I may have eventually been able to bring about some positive change for the poor, but that was going to be a long road. I wanted a more direct path to responding to the broken world around me.

From a couple of months in India during my university holidays, I knew that the needs in the developing world were enormous. One incident in particular had a profound impact on me. I met a man outside his house (a plastic shack).

With my limited Hindi, I learned that his wife had just given birth to

The Delaneys with friends in their New Delhi home. They’ve since moved 500 kilometres east to Lucknow.

ternal experts coming in to provide the solutions. However, Cathy and I didn’t want to presume that we, as relatively inexperienced outsiders, could add anything to the fight against poverty in India. So when we moved to India, we went with a group called Servants whose distinctive approach involved living with the poor in their neighbourhoods.

The experts on poverty, after all, are the poor themselves! The first step to helping the poor is learning about their lives and growing to love them.

It is only from this foundation that our various interventions—assisting people to find jobs, helping with medical emergencies, teaching kids to read—have been possible.

This model—living with the people you’re serving—is inspired by Jesus. Rather than saving the world from the distant safety of heaven, He entered it: walked around, talked to people, heard their pain and, where He could, brought solace and

healing. We, too, strive not just to talk about Jesus’ love for the poor, but live it out. However, this is a two-way movement. We hope our neighbours see Jesus’ love reflected in our lives, but we certainly see God’s goodness reflected in them too. We have seen remarkable compassion, solidarity and hospitality in the lives of our poor friends.

EMERGING THREAT As we’ve sought to respond to the broken world around us, the nature of this “brokenness” has changed somewhat over the years. When we first went to India in the mid-’90s it was the huge gulf between the rich and the poor that motivated us. While that gulf is still there, another issue of enormous import has emerged that has the potential to worsen, indeed end the lives of millions of the poor: climate change.

If our atmosphere warms more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels, we will face more frequent natural disasters, the extinction of thousands of species, a sea level rise measured in metres, food shortages and possible climate-related wars. These changes will happen within this century unless we, as a global community, limit our carbon dioxide emissions to around 800 gigatonnes for the remainder of the century. That might sound like a lot, but it averages about two tonnes per head per year for everyone on the planet. At the moment, Australians emit 23 tonnes per year. As a global community, we’ll OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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Friends in Lucknow. “We find our neighbours’ ability to survive and thrive with very little, inspiring.”

36

blow our budget by 2040 if we continue at the current rate. The awful consequences of climate change will increase in intensity within our own, and even more so, within our children’s lifetimes.

Wealthy Westerners’ emissions are driving climate change, yet it is the poor—who have done the least to cause the problem—who will suffer most from the consequences. God’s love for the poor, and His justice, demand that we take climate change seriously. Yet it is often people of faith SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

who ignore or even deny climate change and go on living high-carbon lives. Some people of faith have theologies that justify the exploitation of natural resources, based on a misinterpretation of the creation story in the early chapters of Genesis. Others feel that the world will be destroyed on Judgement Day, so there’s no harm in ruining it earlier—ignoring our mandate to be caretakers of our world for future generations. Many of us simply cling to the secular hope that scientists, business leaders or politicians will save us, without me needing to do anything.

However, history shows that great social and political reforms—from the abolition of slavery to universal franchise, from Indian independence to the civil rights movements—have been won by the efforts of ordinary people. So it is with climate change: it is people like you and me who must take the initiative, by leading low-carbon lives. Only then will politicians and business leaders follow by creating the solar farms, highspeed rail networks and international agreements necessary to usher in a sustainable world.

EVERYTHING I NEED In the face of the climate crisis we find our neighbours’ ability to survive and thrive with very little, inspiring. Kids invent games with whatever materials they find—a few stones, a stick and tyre—or even nothing at all. Our friend Kaneez is a destitute, disabled widow, who lives

in a tiny hut with her kids, getting by on her widow’s pension and the generosity of neighbours only slightly better off than her. Yet when Cathy asked her one day whether there was anything we could do for her, she responded, “No thanks, I have everything I need.”

This is the lesson we Westerners must learn—to be content with what we have. The average Australian consumes far more resources than our Indian neighbours and emits 10 times more carbon dioxide in the process. We must learn from people like our friend Kaneez, that happiness is about connection with God, with people, with nature . . . not about buying a second car or going on an overseas holiday. The things in life that give us true joy tend to

have a small carbon footprint, while carbon-heavy consumerism leaves our deeper needs unmet. We can live in smaller houses, with lower electricity consumption and less stuff— and be all the happier for it. We can travel the slow way—riding rather than driving, taking the train instead of flying—and, paradoxically, have more time for the important things in life.

The science, and our faith, demand no less: that we live more simply, so that others can simply live.

This article was co-­authored by Mark’s son, Tom Delaney. Find out more about the Delaney family’s journey at LowCarbonAndLovingIt.wordpress.com, where you can also buy their new book.

FA IT H

THE

The ancient practices of Sabbath observance offer the opportunity to build deeper relationships that are more healing and ask more of us.

BY AJ SWOBODA

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BLAKE CAMPBELL—UNSPLASH

SABBATH

COMMUNITY

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J

erusalem can get a little crazy on a Friday night. My friend Annalisa tells of her journey through the Holy Land during college. Her journey’s final day happened to be a Friday in Jerusalem.

Already busy with the hum of hustle and bustle, Jerusalem picks up to an even more frantic pace as Friday’s sun begins to descend. Cars zoom by faster than ever. Buses start moving before new passengers have a chance to sit down. Conservative Jewish men can be seen running so fast that their tightly wound Orthodox curls dropping from their temples flow far behind their heads as they race to home sweet home just in time for the sun to disappear into the night.

Why? What provokes the Jerusalem rush? Of course, this very scene has been playing itself out for centuries every Friday night in the ancient city. Jerusalem before sundown is a city buzzing in anticipation for the weekly celebration—the Jewish Sabbath that begins as soon as Friday’s sun descends. The sun’s setting inaugurates a day of rest and joy and hope when an entire city once again finds itself wrapped in the arms of a God at rest. Week in, week out, for centuries, the city has made its way home once again to the sacred day of rest to re-join God, synagogue and family in celebration. Jerusalem is making its way home to light some candles, take its sigh of relief, and party with wine and laughter and the sweet taste of challah like it’s the dawn of creation all over again.

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time to be together

The ancient Jewish rabbis have always seen the Sabbath as a kind of homecoming.1 Sabbath is that perfectly timed day each week when God’s people—prone to wander from the Lord their God—are once again welcomed back into the loving, eternal embrace of their Creator.

Sabbath is not just a day of rest or family or good food. Sabbath is a structured reminder each week for all of God’s people together to return to their God, to their Maker, who intricately crafted them with love.

Jerusalem on Friday is a whole city coming home. A city entering rest.

Sabbath is first about relationship with God. But it is also about our relationship with each other. Leviticus 23 makes this crucial connection: “There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a sabbath to the Lord” (Leviticus 23:3). The Sabbath, alongside other festivals, was not celebrated in isolation but was a sacred day for the community to gather. Such a rhythm offered a texture in the yearly and weekly calendar for people to enter into enriching, life-giving relationships around shared worship.

God’s intention for the Sabbath was, and is, that we would be drawn into the richness of community. One observes this communal dimension of Sabbath in Matthew 12:9–14 as Jesus enters a synagogue on the

Sabbath day to heal a man with a withered hand. The backdrop of the healing is Leviticus 23—they have gathered together at a synagogue.

Sabbath assumes community.

Years ago, one researcher discovered something interesting about Jewish communities: mortality rates plummet on the Sabbath. How could

on television. We think we can fulfil all our own needs with the click of a button. And in many cases we can.

Because of this, we trade the kind of community that is forged around a Sabbath for a “sense” of community where we are not vulnerable to each other in real and tangible ways.3 In many urban Jewish communities,

that be? The researcher concluded that even the sick and terminally ill “rallied” for the Sabbath day because it was a chance to be with family and friends.2

one will observe far more people walking on the street on the Sabbath than on any other day of the week.

Why? Because many Orthodox Jews believe driving a car on the Sabbath is work. While such a thought may seem arcane, it has a powerful social implication. On the Sabbath, one must walk with fellow worshippers to Sabbath services. David Jacobson illustrates the social dynamic in this: “One group of people who live in separate homes are walking together to the same place at the same time.

Try to think of another community

STELLA LEVI—GETTY IMAGES

rebuilding community

What does this mean for us, however, who live in a hyperindividualist society? In his book Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam describes how Western society is increasingly living in isolation and individualism.

Putnam famously said that instead of having friends, we watch Friends

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This expression of ethical community was costly, painful and dangerous, only possible if people were willing to give up their rights and serve. John Gager once attributed the success of Christianity to this kind of community, “open to all, insistent on absolute and exclusive loyalty, and concerned for every aspect of the believer’s life.”5 Christian community was radical community. Christianity was marked by people willing to die to self for the sake of the other because of the work of Christ.

MONKEY BUSINESS IMAGES—GETTY IMAGES

that similarly walks together. This doesn’t happen in very many churches anymore, nor does it happen for baseball games or grade school.

Occasionally a neighbourhood might have its own Fourth of July parade where people walk the streets together, but that’s only once a year.”4 In a very real sense, the Sabbath gives a framework for the flourishing of ethical communities where a day shapes our relationships. The Sabbath draws people together not around shared likes or dislikes but around a commitment to God and each other. Scripture has nothing to say about the building of communities where we gather because of shared opinions. The church is the church that Christ builds, not our shared interests. And we are called to live in covenant community where we live and die for each other. The biblical picture of community—of ethical community—can best be

illustrated by the early church community in Acts 2:42–47: They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common.

They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people.

And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

radical love

There remains a big difference between finding a church we like and serving the church that Jesus calls us to love and lay down our lives for. The words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer should be written on the canvas of our hearts: “Every human wish-dream that is injected into the Christian community is a hindrance to genuine community and must be banished if genuine community is to survive. He who loves his dream of a community more than the Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter, even though his personal intentions may be ever so honest and earnest and sacrificial.”6 True community is not born of our efforts in creating a sense of community—it is the natural outcome from the act of loving other people. As far as I can tell, in the Gospels, love leads to crucifixion.

I am convinced that the kind of community that we yearn for and need most is severely lacking in the church today—a place where we learn to love even the people we do not like. In that ethical community, people with different political views worship together, men and women serve together, and majority and minority can be reconciled. A Sabbath community is where commitment to each other becomes deeper than our commitment to shared desires and wants. In the Sabbath, we share space with the other whom God has placed before us.

During World War II, Jewish

philosopher Emmanuel Levinas was imprisoned by the Germans occupying France. Despite his feelings of rage and anger toward his Nazi captors, Levinas insisted on his obligation to the other: “To be able to see in the face of the other, in the face of those who would try and kill me, in the face of the criminal, the face of God, this is the hardest challenge of the religious enterprise.”7 The Sabbath opens up space for us to enter into community with the people of God whom we may or may not like, those in our family and our church whom Christ died for. In a world where we enter community as long as it is full of people we like, the Sabbath becomes a prophetic act of learning to love even those we deplore and dislike.

The Sabbath is the gateway to God’s dream community.

AJ Swoboda is a pastor, professor, author and enthusiastic public speaker. This article is adapted with permission from his latest book, Subversive Sabbath: the surprising power of rest in a non-stop world (2018, Brazos, Baker Publishing Group). Find out more at <BakerPublishingGroup.com>.

1. Peli, PH (1989). Shabbat Shalom: A Renewed Encounter with the Sabbath, B’nai B’rith Books, Washington DC. 2. Ringwald, CD (2006). A Day Apart: How Jews, Christians and Muslims Find Faith, Freedom, and Joy on the Sabbath, Oxford University Press, New York.

3. Putnam, RD (2000). Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, Simon & Schuster, New York.

4. Jacobson, DO (2012). The Space Between: A Christian Engagement with the Built Environment, Baker Academic, Grand Rapids.

5. Gager, JG (1975). Kingdom and Community: The Social World of Early Christianity, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 6. Bonfoeffer, D (1954). Life Together: A Discussion of Christian Fellowship, Harper & Row, New York.

7. Levinas, E (1990). Difficult Freedom: Essays on Judaism, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

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FA IT H

ANOTHER LOOK AT THE

DARWIN AWARDS Yes, the fittest may survive, but they still make dumb decisions sometimes.

BY GARY SWANSON

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PHOTO SCHMIDT—GETTY IMAGES OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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t was on Valentine’s Day this year, as the law of irony would have it, that an unnamed couple were arguing as they walked along a riverside in Berlin. The quarrel worsened, in fact, to the place that the young man, seemingly unable to sustain his point, shoved the young woman into the river and leaped in after her, reportedly to try to continue to force her under the water. As it happens, the pusher did not know how to swim; the pushee swam to safety and the young man drowned. It will never be known whether his opinion was the more compelling, but cert­ ainly his judgement is in question.

This anecdote is only one of thousands of entries in the Darwin Awards, which date back into the early 1990s. These unofficial awards of dubious value are “named in honour of Charles Darwin, the father of evolution . . . [to] commemorate those who improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it.” These incidents are some of humankind’s dumbest—and often, to us unrelated survivors, hilarious—everyday mistakes, which offer a kind of proof that only the fittest survive. Presumably, this accidental, self-inflicted fatality prevented this ill-equipped creature from producing less-than-fit offspring. His personal genes lost the war in the great gene pool. And the rest of us can utter a sigh of relief.

This idea of survival of the fittest, though, deserves some examination.

Are there not universal influences beyond the mere physicality of genes

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that may bring about the end of an evolutionary line? Isn’t it also possible that at least some dumbness may be learned? OK, maybe “learned dumbness” may appear at first to be an oxymoron. Some of the most brilliant people in the annals of humanity did some of the most foolish things that sometimes led to their untimely end.

Is it possible to be too fit for survival?

the wisest man who ever lived

With this in mind, even the most casual reading of the Bible would bring up Solomon, whose name has been synonymous with wisdom ever since his reign as the third king of Israel almost a millennium before Christ. It could be said that the story of his life is the stuff of legend, except that it is truly historical.

Early in Solomon’s reign, God appeared to him in a dream to make an amazing offer. “Ask for whatever you want Me to give you”—kind of like granting three wishes!

But Solomon’s response wasn’t what we might have expected: “I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties . . . . So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.”

(Read the story in 1 Kings 3:5–15.)

God was pleased! Recognising that Solomon could have asked for long life, riches or victory over enemies, He gave him “a wise and discerning heart” and promised him the more obvious blessings as well: “both wealth and honour” and, “if you

MACROVECTOR—GETTY IMAGES

walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands . . . I will give you a long life.”

Apparently, there would be no possibility of a Darwin Award for Solomon. And clearly, as he set out to serve his people, this young king demonstrated some uncommon wisdom.

judgement. The child was apparently too young to show any positive response to either woman, and there seemed to have been no witnesses.

What to do?

Solomon summarily made the decision that the child should be cut in two and half given to each woman.

One of the women bitterly agreed

The Bible in 1 Kings 3:16–28 goes on to recount the story of two women, each claiming she was the mother of the same newborn child after the other of the women’s babies had died in the night. The women appeared before Solomon, seeking a

that this was the fairest outcome; the other immediately surrendered her claim in order to save the child’s life. Solomon promptly rescinded his command and awarded full custody to the woman who had pled to save the baby’s life. Clearly, he said, she OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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was the true mother.

Brilliant!

As the years came and went in his 40-year reign, Solomon’s reputation became known far and wide. “King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth” (2 Chronicles 9:22). Such was his international reputation, in fact, that the queen of Ethiopia, a monarch of formidable reputation herself, made a state visit with the full intention of analysing his wisdom. “She came to test Solomon with hard questions.” (Read the story in 1 Kings 10:1–10.)

The queen was impressed. “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true,” she said, impressed with Solomon, his nation and his God. The two sovereigns exchanged gifts and the queen returned to her land.

wise but weak

But somewhere along the way, as curious as it may sound, Solomon’s wisdom went to his head.

The power, wealth and celebrity that came from God’s blessings led him in an unexpected direction that sounds as if it would have assured at least the physical survival of his genes in the evolutionary process.

Not only was he smart, but he was virile and proved it by marrying 700 wives (not to mention the 300 other women who didn’t quite make it to wife status). Surely there could have been no risk of this particular branch 48

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of the human species dying out. No Darwin Award for Solomon!

This did result, however, in an alteration of Solomon’s spiritual DNA that nearly cost him the extinction of his relationship with God. For much of his later life, his pagan and polytheistic wives “led him astray” (1 Kings 11:3), which, in turn, brought about the inevitable increased risk that his heirs, those eligible to take his place on the throne, would face an extinction of their own.

Solomon’s once-powerful kingdom fell apart, with only a trace of its former eminence remaining in the reign of his son. Before he died, Solomon came to the realisation that intelligence and wisdom are not the same thing. “Do not be wise in your own eyes;” he wrote, “fear the Lord and shun evil” (Proverbs 3:7).

The life of Solomon—the wisest man who ever lived—is a tragic cautionary tale of the consequence of placing too much confidence and pride in human capability.

There is grave danger in forgetting where our talents and abilities come from. And more than mere physical survival is at stake in what one does with God-­given intelligence. There is a goal for humanity that transcends anything that may be suggested in the discomfiting distinction of winning a Darwin Award.

Gary Swanson is a freelance writer and editor of Perspective Digest. He lives in Maryland, USA, with his wife, two sons and five grandchildren.

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When your brain

CHOKES

WORAPUT—GETTY IMAGES

BY ARLENE TAYLOR

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he life-saving Heimlich manoeuvre can help a person who is choking due to something stuck in their throat, but what do you do for brain choking? Millions have observed this phenomenon in the unexpected catastrophes of Olympic trials and in high-stakes sports events.

Also known as “paradoxical performance effects,” choking describes a person’s poor personal performance when under pressure, despite striving and incentives for superior performance.

Choking under pressure is associated with four variables: audience presence, competition, performance-contingent rewards and punishments, and ego relevance of the task.

The neurophysiology of choking begins in the brain. It’s triggered when you get so anxious that you try to seize conscious control over a task that should be executed automatically; you fail to trust your highly-honed skills.

Don’t confuse this with panic. According to social commentator Malcolm Gladwell, panic involves too little

thinking while choking represents too much thinking.

To avoid choking at that crucial moment, try using the STP antidote:

S

TAY IN THE MOMENT. Think about what you need to do now— not about what just happened or even about the finish. Breathe slowly and relax your muscles for a moment to help you refocus.

T

AKE CONTROL OF YOUR MINDSET AND SELF-TALK. Imagine only what you want to do and what you want to have happen. Tell yourself: “Jack, trust your brain. It’s got this.” Or “Jill, you are smooth and relaxed.”

P

ERFORM WITH PLEASURE. Trust your brain and body and the skills you have honed. Remember how much you love what you are doing. Have fun and enjoy it!

Arlene Taylor is a brain function expert and educator.

Her presentations have been shared via TV, radio, DVDs and books. More info: ArleneTaylor.org.

OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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CUL

TU RE

BOOK REVIEW The Space Between The Stars

By Anne Corlett (2017, MacMillan) Reviewed by Kent Kingston

he genius of science fiction is its ability to extrapolate—to push an idea to its ultimate conclusion and, in doing so, to discover implications that are not immediately apparent in the messy thickets of here and now.

Anne Corlett’s debut relies on this

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strategy in deft, minimalist strokes, sketching an overcrowded archipelago of inhabited planets whose multi-billion human population is reduced, in a matter of days, to a mere few thousand isolated inhabitants. Jamie is one of the few survivors of a genocidal virus.

FREEPIK

FINDING THE PIECES OF US T

Upon waking from the last remnants of her fever, she finds herself completely alone, the bodies of all other humans in the vicinity reduced to dust.

Like many people, Jamie had wished for some space—that’s what she told her partner of 13 years when she left

him and headed for Soltaire, an isolated rural planet. Her body illustrates the pain of human connection: a scar from neck to navel where she was surgically separated from her conjoined twin at birth. But now that she has all the time and space to herself that she could have ever wanted, Jamie finds herself overwhelmed by an abyss of aloneness. She begins a desperate scramble to find other people—someone, anyone.

Corlett has reduced the human race to its stark essentials. Basic survival is not at issue; the abandoned cities and settlements contain all the necessities for human life. What is left is the need to structure a new society within the empty husk of the old and to understand what it means to be human.

Similarly to Reginald Rose’s Twelve Angry Men or Sandra Bullock’s one-woman ordeal in Gravity, Corlett’s premise strips away the complexity and forces us to ask hard questions about human nature. Clearly we’re social animals—we need one another.

But how does that work when so many of us are downright obnoxious?

Corlett’s second task is to explore how we make meaning. When Finn, a character with autism, irretrievably loses pieces from his giant jigsaw puzzle, he refuses to even begin it, knowing the end result will be incomplete. Jamie offers him her collection of coloured sea glass instead. Finn struggles at first, frustrated that none of the fragments fit together. But he soon learns to categorise the pieces and make patterns and shapes from them; initiating his own pictures, no OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

53

longer constrained by the uncompromising correctness of the puzzle.

The clarity of this motif will render high school English teachers weak at the knees, especially when paired with the novel’s exploration of religion. Rena, the most overtly religious character, is consumed with the idea of God’s plan and bristles at anyone who sees things differently—she clings to the jigsaw metanarrative of “one right way.” Lowry, a lapsed Catholic priest, has come to see things differently: “‘Life is its own point,’ Lowry said.

‘It’s just a series of moments, some of them memorable, some of them not.

There’s no redemption but what we’re prepared to grant to ourselves. No point when we’re finished becoming what we’re going to be. “‘There’s just this breath, and the next one, and the next one. Each one of these breaths, each of these moments, helps to shape us.’”

Lowry articulates what is increas­ ingly the worldview of Western intellectualism: a postmodern denial of objective truth (which must somehow be maintained in tension with a reliance on infallible science), a humanist optimism in the ability of people to achieve peace and prosperity, and a dash of Buddhist mindfulness to get you through the day. But from “life is its own point” it’s a very short and slippery slope to the nihilist conclusion that “life has no point.”

“There’s no redemption but what we’re prepared to grant to ourselves,” says Lowry, channelling this zeitgeist.

In contemporary culture “redemption” 54

SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

applies to anyone who manages to shake off guilt, failure or social disapproval by singular and public achievement—witness how the success of Hacksaw Ridge prompted the overnight rehabilitation of director Mel Gibson’s reputation from anti-Semitic crank to quirky genius. But this usage denies the biblical meaning and foundation of redemption: a person can only be redeemed through the sacrifice of another. Sinners and the firstborn were redeemed via animal sacrifices in ancient Hebrew ritual. In the New Testament the Messiah arrives, the ultimate redemption. “Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world,” John the Baptist proclaims.

But in Corlett’s universe there is no extra-terrestrial life. No-one looking for a distress flare from the lifeboat. No rescue to hope for. Humanity is utterly alone.

While The Space Between the Stars veers dangerously close to allegory—if not frank preaching—in exploring these ideas, the novel maintains its integrity as a story, the characters are compelling and the settings vivid. There are plot twists, blazing weapons and romance. There is subtlety, paradox, delicate nuance and some breathtaking turns of phrase. Unlike thousands of failed attempts at genre-busting before her, Corlett has succeeded in finding a fine balance between popular, literary and science fiction and has crafted a story that is truly memorable.

Kent Kingston is a science fiction tragic and editor of Signs of the Times. He lives near Lake Macquarie, NSW, with his wife and adult children.

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When it comes to feeling great, a wholefood plant-based diet comes out on top. Fruits, vegetables and grains are ideal foods to nourish your body and your brain. So, to help keep your memory sharp, give these 10 brain foods a try.

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SUPPLIED

FOODS TO BOOST YOUR BRAIN POWER

BERRIES

These little guys pack a serious nutritional punch. Berries are bursting with antioxidants and phytonutrients, which help boost cognition, coordination and memory. So, whether you’re after a healthy snack or something to boost your morning smoothie, a handful of berries is a no-brainer.

LEAFY GREENS

It’s no secret that green leafy veggies, such as spinach and kale, are great for your health. Not only do they help support the immune system and keep an ageing brain sharp, they are also a source of iron and a rich source of folate.

WHOLE GRAINS

Whole grains are rich in phytonutrients and B group vitamins that are important for cognition and an ideal energy source for maintaining concentration throughout the day.

POMEGRANATE

There’s a reason why you’re seeing this delicious fruit in healthy salads and it’s not just because of its good looks. Pomegranates are packed with powerful antioxidants that help protect your brain and memory.

EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

This pantry staple is the perfect choice for everyday cooking and salad dressings. Not only is olive oil full of good fats, it’s also rich in phytochemicals that help to enhance blood flow in the brain.

CRUCIFEROUS VEGGIES

Don’t let the name scare you off! The cruciferous vegetable family refers to everyday veggies such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Brussels sprouts. This versatile bunch is rich in vitamins and minerals that may help improve memory.

GARLIC

Eating garlic does more than ward off coughs and sniffles. Research shows the phytonutrients found in garlic may help prevent the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

NUTS

Don’t let brain fog get the better of you—enjoy a handful of nuts a day to improve mood and help with clear thinking.

SEEDS

Seeds such as flax and chia contain vitamin E—an antioxidant and omega-3 fat that may help your brainpower.

You can sprinkle them on salads or add them to your favourite cereal, ready for a busy day.

TOMATOES

Tomatoes are a rich source of lycopene. It’s the nutrient that makes them red and it also has potent antioxidant properties that may help combat the development of dementia.

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

OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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The popularity of non-alcoholic drinks is on the rise and they’re tasting better than ever.

BY FLIP SHELTON

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SOBER

doesn’t have to mean boring

SETH WEISFELD—UNSPLASH

H

ealth nuts, pregnant women, the religious or even those who hate the taste of alcohol now have plenty of beverage options. A study recently published in the Lancet medical journal using data from nearly 600,000 current drinkers in 19 high-income countries found an increase in all causes of death when more than 100g of alcohol was consumed per week.

Now that’s a sobering fact.

With this stark reality, plus the fact that the European market for non-alcoholic beer grew by about 5 per cent per year from 2010 to 2015, it’s no wonder Heineken (the world’s second-largest beer company) released an alcohol-free version of its beer in Europe in May 2017.

Meanwhile, the world’s biggest beer company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, which produces Budweiser, Corona and Fosters, is now developing low and non-alcoholic brands, saying that these blends will make up 20 per cent of its global production by 2025.

Even in Australia, infamous

for its binge-drinking culture, it seems two local entrepreneurs are on trend with their non-alcoholic offerings. And business is booming, according to both companies.

the Sobah story

Twelve months ago, Gold Coast surfer Clinton Schultz launched Sobah, a range of non-alcoholic craft beers. It’s a neat play on words. Bah means “place of ” in the local Yugambeh language, ergo Sobah means “place of sobriety.”

Schultz, a psychologist who has worked in drug and alcohol rehabilitation for 10 years, has seen firsthand the damage created by excessive consumption of alcohol. He decided to quit the booze in 2014, saying he felt hypocritical “working in that space and drinking.”

He confesses that his drinking would have been described as “heavy.”

“I was your typical 30-plus Australian male. I still enjoyed the taste of beer, but didn’t want OCTOBER 2018 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES

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to drink ginger beer or soft drinks when I went to the pub with mates. I wanted an adult-tasting drink.”

So what then? Schultz spent the following two years tinkering with non-alcoholic brews, finally contracting Tweed Heads’ Pickled Pig Brewery to create a unique craft beer. His beers feature Australian “bush tucker,” including lemon aspen, finger lime and pepperberry. He says interest in the craft beer, which has been “greater than expected,” is leading them to look for investors and partners sooner than they thought.

“Non-alcoholic beverages are the fastest-growing area in the adult drinks sector, so it’s exciting times,” Schultz said.

DR QUENTIN—UNSPLASH

spirited effort

60

Stephen Lawrence, CEO of Brunswick Aces, which launched their first non-alcoholic botanical spirits, Spades and Hearts, late last year, believes they are the only one in Australia doing what they are doing.

Brunswick Aces started as a neighbourhood group of six friends who all shared a love of gin.

Initially their intention was to build a conventional distillery, but one of the six, chef Doug Cook, couldn’t drink the gins they were tasting for inspiration because he was training for a marathon.

“It was then that we realised SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

that there is a massive market catering to those who love the ceremony of drinking gin but can’t drink—either because they are an expectant mother, fitness freak, the designated driver or don’t drink due to cultural or religious reasons,” Lawrence said.

Brunswick Aces make their beverages using traditional distillation techniques like any boutique gin producer, just minus the ethanol.

“It’s a very different experience because everything you taste is through smell,” Lawrence said.

They are doing trials for two more blends—Clubs and Diamonds—which he says will be quite unique.

“Business is growing so quickly that we are now discussing who is going to give up their other fulltime occupations first,” Lawrence said.

While they are yet to finalise terms for national distribution, they are already in discussions with the Middle East, Hong Kong and other parts of Asia. And who knows when New Zealand, with its unenviable binge-drinking statistics will be in their sights.

Brunswick Ace’s beverages are sugar-free, sweetener-free and have no calories—all reasons worth raising a glass for.

Flip Shelton is a broadcaster, presenter, writer and healthy-living influencer. She also writes for the New Daily, where this article first appeared.

Used with permission.

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Each keyword in this puzzle is also contained within this edition of Signs of the Times. Happy digging!

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SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU • OCTOBER 2018

CLUE: 4 ACROSS

SUDOKU CROSSWORD CLUES

MEDIUM

ACROSS 4 The religious identity of more than six million people in Israel 7 Card game involving 52 cards 8 A food group 10 The feeling when expectations are not met 13 A benefactor 14 Pharaoh until the age of 17

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DOWN HARD

1 Marketing a product 2 The study of the human mind 3 Image manipulation software 5 To have complete power 6 A force that gives weight 8 Nutrients that support brain function 9 Resurrected Bible character 11 Contradictory 12 Someone from modern Greece’s second largest city

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