World News and Trends: Is America turning to religion?
The current war effort and geopolitical tensions in general have apparently boosted the de-mand for Bibles, hymnals and prayer books.
The current war effort and geopolitical tensions in general have apparently boosted the de-mand for Bibles, hymnals and prayer books. Sales were up by nearly 40 percent for the month of January. Publishers are cautiously attributing this trend to the current national and world scene. Bibles are now selling very well in America. One research analyst said that "in the U.S., you would think that religion was on the downturn, but the growth has been in inspirational books and in international sales."
A recent Harris Poll, published under the title "Good Rules Over Evil" in USA Today, reported that 90 percent of Americans believe in God, 68 percent in the devil, 82 percent in heaven and 69 percent in hell. (We should mention that the United Church of God offers free publications on all of these subjects. You may want to request or download Life's Ultimate Question: Does God Exist?, Is There Really a Devil? and Heaven and Hell: What Does the Bible Really Teach?)
However, the true test is not whether the United States may be returning to religion, but whether the country is getting back to and really finding God. One key reference point is the state of Americans' moral behavior. Is the nation both teaching and observing God's spiritual law, summed up by the Ten Commandments? We have an 80-page booklet on the Ten Commandments, freely available on request or download.
(Sources: The Financial Times, USA Today.)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: May - June 2003
Course Content
Jerold Aust
Jerold Aust has served in the ministry for 52 years, as a public speaker for 58 years, a published writer for 38 years, and is employed by UCG’s Media and Communications Services. He is a Senior Writer, interviewer, and editor for Beyond Today Magazine and has taught Speech Communication for UCG’s ministerial online program and the Book of Revelation for ABC.
Jerold holds a BA in theology from Ambassador College, Pasadena (1968), an MA in Communication from California State University, Fullerton (1995), a distance-learning Ph.D (2006), and a Famous Writers School diploma in non-fiction writing (1973). Additionally, he studied post-grad communication at University of Southern California (1995), radio, TV, voice-overs, and Public Relations at Fullerton College (1995-1996), and graduate communication at Wichita State University (1978). Jerold has taught communication at the University of South Alabama (7 years) and ABC (17 years). His published works include, Ronald Reagan’s Rhetoric: Metaphor as Persuasion and EZSpeakers: Public Speaking Made Easy in 7 Steps. Jerold's overarching goal is to share with humankind its incredible destiny!
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.
