Rethinking the Future: A deep analysis of our society today and in the future

By Alberto Mottesi

WHY RETHINKING THE FUTURE?

Alarms are sounding everywhere; the world is in crisis. Democracies or totalitarianism. A government of law or populism. Political necrophilia, Corruption. Banks lau

• Language: English
• Publisher: Renacer
• Release date: Jun 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9781956625417

Book preview

Rethinking the world

The town is called Telluride. It is a small community in the mountains of Colorado.

In winter the town has more visitors than permanent residents. Hundreds of young people come eager to slide down the slopes of those snow-covered mountains. The view is spectacular!

Our eldest son Marcelo invited the family here, and here we are: our two sons, their precious wives and our five grandchildren.

Every day they all go skiing. Noemi and I remain in the warmth of the cabin. It’s several degrees below zero outside.

I love the huge fireplace. The grandchildren stoke it with firewood and one of them is in charge of keeping the fire burning.

It is one of the most pleasant experiences; the crackling fire, warm feet, a cup of coffee, the majesty of the snowy peaks visible through the windows. That fire that burns in the fireplace, although it does not reach the intensity of that other fire, that of the heart.

That heart that after walking a lifetime with the Lord wants to shout louder than ever: God is real! His love is real! His Word is true! Let us not give up in the face of injustice and corruption!

How interesting the way God works! I should have written this book several months ago, maybe years ago, but the intense rhythm of the ministry did not allow me to study enough to do it.

So, the Lord, who is so wise, took me out of the frenzy of work and brought me to a place whose height, about nine thousand feet (approximately three thousand meters), does not allow me to move fast and almost forcibly makes me develop ideas.

It is no coincidence that a few days ago I received the news of the death of Desmond Tutu, who was the Anglican Archbishop of South Africa. President Mandela commissioned him to chair the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Some called him the moral conscience of South Africa.

Questions arise that concern me. Shouldn’t we, every politician, every businessman, every journalist, every Christian worker, every union leader and every faith community, be the moral conscience of our cities and nations? What has happened to Christianity?

When God conceived of the Church to be his representative, to continue his plan in the world that He created, He did not think of it as a building and a Sunday morning meeting. Both aspects are functional, but they should not be central to the life of the Church.

He planned the Church as a movement. A supernatural and empowered movement penetrating the larger community and filling it with his character, his principles and his holiness.

How is it possible that the largest Church in history (numerically speaking) has the least influence in all of history?

Something is not right.

An avalanche is coming! Well, calm down. It is not a snow avalanche. It is an avalanche of feelings, of self-criticism, of rethinking who we are, what we are doing, what our role is and where we are going.

This has to include rethinking the world and rethinking the Church. We always said that the Gospel does not change, but the way it is communicated should.

What a strange world we live in!

Rebellious against its Creator, unable to learn the lessons of its own history and unstable, like a confused boy in the face of the challenges that are presented to him.

This unstable characteristic was accentuated after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Understanding the new modality would help us to live better and more fruitfully.

Analysts from all over the world predict different situations.

Human beings yearn to socialize, but things will never be the same. Thousands of offices will be closed because online work is here to stay.

Many executive and director meetings that were previously held face-to-face are now held via Zoom.

There will be a giant wave of layoffs compounded by the onset of the age of automation. Even before the pandemic, according to the University of Oxford, half of all jobs were expected to disappear.

Sales of formal wear decreased while sales of casual wear increased, driven by working from home.

Many conferences will be replaced by less expensive virtual meetings.

Many universities will reduce their campuses because there will be a mix between face-to-face and virtual classes.

Human beings will turn more and more towards nature. Tourism will grow exponentially around nature.

Since the location of the home in relation to the workplace is no longer as important, many will move to the suburbs in search of green space.

Churches will focus much more on discipleship. Fewer events, more study and training