My portrayal of this world is the Bible's portrayal. This is a world ruled by God's adversary and seen clearly in the evil acts perpetrated by wicked humans under his influence. Man's "inhumanity" does not come from within humans but is influenced by the unseen wicked forces that the Bible speaks about.
Ephesians 6:10-13:
"Finally, go on acquiring power in the Lord and in the mightiness of his strength. 11 Put on the complete suit of armor from God so that you may be able to stand firm against the crafty acts of the Devil; 12 because we have a struggle, not against blood and flesh, but against the governments, against the authorities, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places. 13 For this reason take up the complete suit of armor from God, so that you may be able to resist in the wicked day and, after you have accomplished everything, to stand firm."
Gandhi spoke for himself....When British Viceroy Lord Irwin asked Gandhi what he thought would solve the problems between Great Britain and India. Gandhi picked up a Bible and opened it to the fifth chapter of Matthew and said:
“When your country and mine shall get together on the teachings laid down by Christ in this Sermon on the Mount, we shall have solved the problems not only of our countries but those of the whole world.”
Was he wrong?
He is also reported to have said...
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” I totally agree. What passes for Christianity today, is nothing close to what Christ began.
MLK achieved a lot for American blacks, after decades of human rights abuses, but evil people took him out. Racism is still thriving in some parts of America.
The Psalmist wrote....
"Do not put your trust in princes Nor in a son of man, who cannot bring salvation.
4 His spirit goes out, he returns to the ground; On that very day his thoughts perish."
Good men often have no one to fill their shoes when they die.....so wicked humans again ascend to power....and again the power corrupts them.
Mandela was not about racism, but about equality. He would not agree with what is happening in South Africa today.
The rise of a new black racism in South Africa
The 'white squatter camps' of South Africa | Daily Mail Online
And as far as world domination by Nazism or fascism.....history was actually written in advance in Bible prophesy. Namely the book of Daniel. The Anglo-American dual world power was to be the dominant ruling power until the coming of Christ to judge the world. The Bible speaks of no human world power to follow. (Daniel 2:44) The rule of God's kingdom has no successors.
Euthanasia is a rather good metaphor. Someone needs to put this world out of its misery. I think that the world is groaning in agony. Can man provide a solution.....or is he the problem? The woeful state of this world is clearly not fixable by men. According to the Bible, they will attempt one last shot at controlling things with a single world government, taking away all the freedoms that humans have fought to achieve....but it will fail. (Revelation 13:16-18)
These are your gods...correct?
Krishna
Ganesha
Brahma
When will your gods get their wish? Can you see any evidence of these men who "strive relentlessly with...various gifts from one generation to the next to bring this world a bit more towards completion, and maturing and shaping our own spirit in that striving"? I cannot.
The God of the Bible says of these gods....
" A mouth they have, but they cannot speak; Eyes, but they cannot see; 6 Ears they have, but they cannot hear;
A nose, but they cannot smell; 7 Hands they have, but they cannot feel; Feet, but they cannot walk; They make no sound with their throat. 8 The people who make them will become just like them, As will all those who trust in them." (Psalm 115:5-8)
How do you know that they exist?
Gandhi will most certainly include the JW as the kind of Christians he does not like, and Gandhi's Jesus was
like that of Jefferson, a moral teacher and a person who exemplified non-violent resistence to authority upto death. He rejected all other claims of Christians about sin and its forgiveness only through Jesus and his sacrifice. He also rejected all ideas of Satan or human condition as punishment for sin. He was thoroughly a Hindu. You should read him more closely.
For me, it is completely apparent from looking at the world that
we are living through the greatest, most prosperous, most flourishing and the happiest period of human history. A greater fraction of people enjoy a quality of life that is overwhelmingly better than anything the world as ever seen. Does not mean that there is not suffering and deprivation in many regions and there are many who are suffering from poverty or war or sickness. But the fraction is far far less than ever before . So for me, I see that the promise of a more perfect world and a more perfect human spirit through human effort
is being fulfilled right now right here throughout the world, and all around. The objective as well as the subjective evidence is there for all to see who have not been blinded by ideological bias. True there is much to be done, as material wants have to complemented by psychological and spiritual wants as well. But the success and the progress is unambiguous.
And the effort, big and small will continue on to make the world tomorrow better than the wold today, everywhere, and by all people who have not been misled by the toxic beliefs like the one you ascribe to.
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG_Gap_2015_E_web.pdf
Were the Millennium Development Goals a success? Yes! Sort of
MDG 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
The target of reducing extreme poverty rates – people living on just $1.25 a day – by half was met five years ahead of the 2015 deadline. Globally the number of people living in extreme poverty has fallen from 1.9 billion in 1990 to 836 million in 2015.
However, target of halving the proportion of people suffering from hunger has narrowly been missed. The proportion of undernourished people in the developing regions has fallen from 23.3 per cent in 1990 to 12.9 per cent in 2014.
MDG 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education
Primary school enrolment figures have shown an impressive rise, but the goal of achieving universal primary education has just been missed. The primary school enrolment rate in developing regions reached 91 per cent this year, up from 83 per cent in 2000.
MDG 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
About two two-thirds of developing countries achieved gender parity in primary education. Progress has been particularly strong in Southern Asia. Only 74 girls were enrolled in primary school for every 100 boys in 1990. Today, 103 girls are enrolled for every 100 boys.
MDG 4: Reduce Child Mortality
The global under-five mortality rate has declined by more than half since 1990 – dropping from 90 to 43 deaths per 1,000 live births. This falls short of the targeted drop of two-thirds.
In practical terms this means 16,000 children under-five continue to die every day from preventable causes. A terrible reality made worse by the fact we know what each one of these major killers are, and what can be done to thwart them.
MDG 5: Improve Maternal Health
Since 1990, the maternal mortality ratio has been cut nearly in half. This is an impressive result, but as well with goal 4 it falls short of the two-thirds reduction that was aimed for. There were an estimated 289,000 maternal deaths in 2013.
MDG 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases
The results with MDG 5 are mixed. The target of halting and beginning to reverse the spread of HIV/Aids has not been met – although the number of new HIV infections fell by 40% between 2000 and 2013.
According to the UN, over 6.2 million malaria deaths have been averted between 2000 and 2015, primarily of children under five years of age in sub-Saharan Africa. The global malaria incidence rate has fallen by an estimated 37 per cent and the mortality rate by 58 per cent
MDG 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainably
Between 1990 and 2015, 2.6 billion people gained access to improved drinking water, meaning the target of halving the proportion of people without access to safe water was achieved. Worldwide, 2.1 billion people have gained access to improved sanitation.
MDG 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Official development assistance from wealthy countries to developing countries increased by 66 per cent in real terms between 2000 and 2014, reaching $135.2 billion.
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My observations and objective data quoted above shows that your worldview and your idea about the state of humanity, the state of the world are false and deluded and all your claims are as empty and devoid of reality as the specific idea of God you believe in. This world and humanity will endure and flourish long after your specific religion has disappeared and had been forgotten to all but the historians of the future. That is my prophecy.
The statues you linked to are some of the most popular representations of Hindu Gods, though they, like everything else are various facets of the one fundamental essence, Brahman that animates all that is. Any representation that connects with the person in question will do.
