Science, especially that which developed over this century, seems to bring boundless hope to mankind: success in materialistic satisfaction. Man thinks he is controlling fate because he possesses such force -- supernatural power and armors.

True enough, life in this present age has been greatly changed by scientific development which has made into reality many of the past‘s fantasies. Superficially, the standard of living is continuously improving. However, as a whole, no matter which society, which country, which political system, existing everywhere are crises, poverty, warfare and crimes. Continuously increasing everywhere are the burdens of life, psychological pressure, moral corruption, environmental deterioration, even a tendency as a whole for human life expectancy.

What is the cause of all these? How does one rate the value of science? What are their functions and how do they affect? How should one perceive the effects of science on humanity in the present age? Two direct effects are: 1) Science has brought great riches in materialism. 2) Science has caused a serious and an almost unsalvageable destruction - physical, spiritual, and environmental.

1) Whenever a new discovery appears, men would hurry to be the first to reap the benefits for themselves and harm for others. New-up-to-date products are coming out daily, monthly, yet the conveniences are soon being taken for granted. As man's lifestyle becomes more and more comfortable in material enjoyment, physically man is deteriorating. Just think, if all the modern conveniences of housing, transpiration, food/nutrition, and communication were to revert to the primitive time, which one of us would be able to exist? Why was it that our forefathers (ancestors) were able to adapt to their environment while we cannot? There is only one explanation, i.e. physically we have deteriorated. During the beginning of human history, materialistically it can't compare with modern time, but neither were the burdens and pressures of life as heavy, and life expectancy was longer than now.

It is true that sciences has brought much benefit to mankind, but they have weakened human in his endurance.

2) Not only is man's physical body weakened by sciences, but also spiritually. [money is the cause of greed].

A society which exalts money elicit sinful greed (of man) leading to countless tragedies. All for self gain, worries of cheating one another are the most obvious of our societies. No matter how elevated the standard of life, nothing can satisfy the human greed. The richer, the crueler and the more severe laws are necessary, causing the loss of greater freedoms for humanity.

3) Materialistic wealth and environmental pollution are like twin brothers. During the beginning of modernization, man had not realized the seriousness of such problems. When we discovered and began to utilize refrigeration, we never thought that freon would be the major culprit of destroying the ionosphere. When industrial revolution took place, man did not realize that coal and crude oil which burnt into carbon dioxide was responsible for the green house effect. Only when large parts of the forest were cut for lumber did they realize that it affected our climate, upsetting the original balance.

Such examples are numerous. On Oct. 11, 1995, the atmosphere pollution index in Paris reached the peak in the history. Air everywhere was filled with bad odor, causing many to wear masks. This became the front-page news in many newspapers. According to Societe Francaise de Sante Publique report, on Feb. 6, this year, there have been 260-350 persons each year dying as the direct result of air pollution - an etiologic agent for cancer as well as arterial sclerotic heart diseases. Yet air pollution is a small portion of man-made destruction on the environment and a very small portion at that! Besides this, pollution of the ocean, sewage, destruction of ecological balance, and even pollution of space; seemingly everywhere man sets foot on, he leaves behind evidences of destruction.

4) Many scientists like to paint a pretty picture of the future of mankind: science is to bring more and more blessings to man, even enable man to enter the heavens and behold the sovereignty of the universe. Nevertheless the fact is just the opposite of the wishful thinking of the self-credited scientists.

The more the improvement of medical technology, the more helpless we are toward the age old common diseases. While self-congratulating our discovery of a cure for TB, the dark shadow of cancer rears its ugly head. While the smartest elite medical scientist are still being conquered in the presence of the great enemy - cancer, the age of fatal AIDS came upon mankind. Whether coronary sclerotic heart disease is caused by air pollution or high cholesterol is still a question. Is abnormal climate the result of a greenhouse effect or from nuclear explosion? Electric/electronic transportation may decrease air-pollution, but who can guarantee that the nuclear pollution would be easier to handle than chemical pollution? For the benefit of one time, we have a hole in the ionosphere (ozone layer), what kind of scientific development would be necessary to make something to mend this hole and restore it to the original?

The facts have proven that man is less and less able to control his environment. Before the mysteries of the universe, we humans have become more and more a weakling. Before the judgment throne of God, we mankind are more and more frightened and lost.

Miserable mankind, how long are you going to continue in bondage of your sin-nature? What will the world come to to-morrow? Is it going to be a nuclear Armageddon? Or a world epidemic plague on this small planet of ours?

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