Channel Five, 7.30 pm, Friday 9th January
2004
A commentary by Paul Garner
Part Five of The Big Question was entitled ‘How will the World End?' According to the presenter, mathematician Ian Stewart, science now gives us a good chance of answering this question. He outlined five scenarios. The first two he described as “possible but unlikely”; the others were described as “inevitable”. Here they are:
- Snowball Earth. Climate models indicate that the Earth has fluctuated between ‘ice house' and ‘green house' conditions. Today we are in a warm period but there is the possibility that climate might ‘flip' into another cold episode – leading to the Earth becoming encased in ice even to the equator. This scenario is based upon the controversial ‘Snowball Earth' hypothesis, which says that such an episode occurred about 600 million years ago.
- Gamma ray bursts. In the 1960s, alarming bursts of gamma radiation were detected coming from space. Although astronomers are not certain what causes them, they are powerful explosions that radiate more energy in a second than an entire galaxy. Most are very far away but there seems little reason to think that one might not happen close by. A nearby gamma ray burst could strip away the Earth's ozone layer and deliver a fatal dose of radiation. This would spell the end for life on our world.
- Asteroid impact. It is believed that collisions with objects from space have caused mass extinctions in Earth history. A large impact generates poisonous gases, ash, dust, and soot that block out sunlight. This could cause the death of plants and the global collapse of food chains. Tens of thousands of asteroids circle the Sun, and occasionally they are disturbed into near-Earth orbits. A small one could destroy a city; a large one could kill most of the species on Earth.
- The death of the Sun. According to stellar evolution, the Sun will expand into a red giant when its hydrogen fuel supply is exhausted in about four billion years time. The Sun will become so large that it will engulf the inner planets, including Earth. However, long before the Earth is swallowed up, the temperature will have become so hot that all life will have died in any case. Our best chance of escape is to develop the technology that will enable us to colonise other worlds – but even this will only buy us time.
- The death of the Universe. There are two ways in which the Universe might die. Perhaps it will continue to expand forever, gradually becoming cooler and darker as the stars die. An alternative idea, based upon observations suggesting that the expansion of the Universe is accelerating, is that the fabric of space will be torn apart in a ‘Big Rip'. Whether the Universe dies a slow, lingering death or a dramatic, violent one, our ultimate fate is extinction.
The outlook for humankind, concluded the presenter, is gloomy. Life will come to an end – and there is no ‘caped crusader' waiting to save us. The most comforting suggestion he was able to make, in the closing moment, was to suggest science as a Saviour. Maybe – just maybe – science could find a way out for us? However, in view of all that had been said previously, this seemed little more than ‘whistling in the wind'! This was a deeply pessimistic programme – what should we make of it? Here are a few thoughts:
- These scenarios are the product of a scientific picture that excludes any consideration of God and his activity in our Universe. There is no room in this worldview for Him as the Creator, Sustainer, and Judge.
- There is, however, a growing recognition that the world will end. Life will not go on as it has indefinitely. This is surely a point of engagement with the world. As Christians we can agree – although we will differ about the manner of the end and what we must do in light of this knowledge!
- The view promoted by this programme is ultimately a hopeless one – to which an appropriate response would be despair. There must be many who cannot accept that life is as meaningless as this and who will search for solace. We must be ready to hold forth the word of life to this perishing generation!
- The Bible's account of future things is dramatically different from the one portrayed in The Big Question . The Bible tells us that Christ will return as Judge and that the righteous – those for whom the Lord Jesus died – will inherit everlasting life in a restored creation. But the unrighteous will be shut out of God's presence forever and eternally bear the punishment for their own sins. There is a message of hope – and a message of warning – for despairing humanity!
- A final thought: some Christians have suggested that the Big Bang was simply God's method of creating the Universe. They seek to harmonise the secular worldview with the Bible's account. But are they comfortable with the implications for the fate of our Universe? Must Revelation be consigned to myth just as Genesis has been?
