Current Events & Trends: The fading American dream
The United States certainly appears to be undergoing a terminal decline that could possibly lead to the biblically prophesied time of Jacob's (or Israel's) trouble (Jeremiah 30:7).
Many of those with northwest European ancestry (large portions of the populations of America, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Switzerland, Northern France, and the Benelux and Nordic countries) are, along with the Jewish people, descendants of the patriarch Jacob and his 12 sons—the 12 tribes of Israel. (To obtain the essential historic and prophetic evidence, request or download our free booklet The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy.) The English-speaking nations in particular have dominated the world, as prophesied, for the past two centuries.
Decades of remarkable economic growth in America ended with the onset of the 21st century. Since then the country has experienced significant decline. The past decade was the worst for the American economy in modern times, characterized by high unemployment and stagnant wages. China is projected to pass the United States as the world's leading superpower in the next couple decades or so. According to a Sunday Telegraph article, "The head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management has predicted that China could overtake the United States as the world's largest economy by 2027" ("Jim O'Neill: China Could Overtake US Economy by 2027," Nov. 20, 2011).
The Economist reported that "the World Bank sees a relentless decline in various indicators of American governance" (Schumpeter, "American Idiocracy," August 13, 2011). Many U.S. business leaders blame the decline on intransigent leadership in both the executive administration and the Congress. The country's competitiveness is gradually sliding compared to other nations. America used to be number one in many categories.
University of Wisconsin-Madison history professor Alfred McCoy, in a piece titled "The Decline and Fall of the American Empire," argued that U.S. dominance will end by 2025. He said, "The question is not whether the U.S. will lose its unchallenged global power, but just how precipitous and wrenching it will be" (CBSNews.com, Dec. 6, 2010). The biblical evidence has been set forth in the final chapter of the booklet mentioned above. (Sources: The Sunday Telegraph, The Economist [both London], CBS News.)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: January - February 2012
Course Content
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
Tom Robinson
Tom is an elder in the United Church of God who works from his home near St. Louis, Missouri as managing editor and senior writer for Beyond Today magazine, church study guides and the UCG Bible Commentary. He is a visiting instructor at Ambassador Bible College. And he serves as chairman of the church's Prophecy Advisory Committee and a member of the Fundamental Beliefs Amendment Committee.
Tom began attending God's Church at the age of 16 in 1985 and was baptized a year later. He attended Ambassador College in both Texas and California and served for a year as a history teacher at the college's overseas project in Sri Lanka. He graduated from the Texas campus in 1992 with a Bachelor of Arts in theology along with minors in English and mass communications. Since 1994, he has been employed as an editor and writer for church publications and has served in local congregations through regular preaching of sermons.
Tom was ordained to the ministry in 2012 and attends the Columbia-Fulton, Missouri congregation with his wife Donna and their two teen children.
