The other day I was chatting with a friend and he made an observation that, to him, was no doubt obvious. He said there’s little doubt the world is spiraling down; that it is a more evil place than when we were growing up, that the state of the world seems to be getting worse. I remember being struck by the comment. Not because I believed it, but quite the opposite. As far as I can tell – and I do pay attention – the world is not getting worse but is, in many ways, getting better.

After giving the matter some thought it occurred to me that this friend, who comes from a more conservative branch of Christianity than me, probably sees the world – somewhat anyway – through the fundamentalist lens. So, for him, when he says the world is getting worse all the time, that statement comes as a result (probably) of theology he’s been taught, observations he’s heard being made in his circles, and because the milieu of our 21st century, postmodern society, looks different – and perhaps therefore “worse” or a “downgrade” – from the one he and I grew up in – even only a couple of decades ago.

Just a note in reference to the theology piece, I don’t know that this friend quite subscribes to the full “Left Behind” sillyness – which is of course, infamous for not being based on very much biblical grounding at all – but he definitely seems to operate on an assumption that the world will spiral down – inevitably – and then comes the judgment of God. So, considering he’s got this as a precondition to his perception, it’s maybe not all that surprising that he sees confirming factors all around him.

Now, leaving this friend and his perceptions aside for a moment, let me offer a counter-conclusion. I actually think the world is (while not uniformly of course) actually getting better all the time. (Yes, I now have that old Beatles song in my head too!). So how is it that I can come to pretty much the opposite conclusion to this friend of mine? Well, for one, I think the theology he holds to is sadly lacking – and based largely on a misreading of biblical apocalyptic material – much of which I see coming to pass during the destruction of the Template in AD 70. Secondly, when I think in terms of “better” or “worse” I tend to think in more practical applications. My friend, on the other hand, tends to think in terms of purely “spiritual” applications – i.e. are there more born-again Christians in the population now than when we were kids, etc.

Now, let me be clear, I care how many people start following Jesus. And when I say “following”, I mean they actually take up a lifestyle informed by Christ’s teachings and actions. I’m less concerned with vague statements of “faith” made at one moment in a person’s life, made to ensure the location printed on their eternal boarding passes, that seem to play little role in actually changing behavior in the here and now.

Now, for me, the practical applications that should apply in deciding whether or not the world is a better place or not look something like the following: how many people today, compared with 20 years ago, have fresh water to drink? How many people today, compared with 20 years ago, live in a state of extreme poverty? How many people today, compared with 20 years ago, have access to medicine to cure the most treatable diseases which everyone in the 1st world is automatically treated for? How many people today, compared with 20 years ago, die from war related causes? I could go on, but I think you get the picture. And the good news, in my book anyway, is that – in every case I’ve just described, there has been improvement over the last 20 years.

Sure, we might hear more about the bad stuff today, via the 24hr news cycle, and, sure, bad stuff certainly still goes on – enough to rip your heart out. Certainly we’ve definitely got a very long way to go. But, in my mind, we’re headed in the right direction. It’s messy, its incomplete, its painful in its slow transition – pocked with incidents of complete backwardness – but, again, overall, the world is getting better. Why do I say that? Because, for the most part, the most vulnerable people in the world – the widows and orphans of today’s world – are slowly having their lives improved.

Now, this friend of mine might look at all I’ve just written and say “Come on, that’s humanism! That’s just temporary improvements for temporary earth residents!” To which I would say: “First of all, please do away with the this-world-vs.-the-afterlife dichotomy, my friend, its neither helpful, nor,” I would add, “really very biblical”. But, most importantly, unlike this friend of mine, I actually give not just us humans, but the Holy Spirit who is guiding our actions here, credit for the improvement. I believe it is the Holy Spirit who is, slowly but surely, informing our collective and individual consciences so that fewer people (25% in 2008, as opposed to 40% in 1977) live in extreme poverty today. This is good news to celebrate. And, in my book, it’s not just any kind of good news. But rather, it’s very much part and parcel with the “good news” Jesus of Nazareth promised us more than 2000 years ago.