The Difference of Little Things

Summary

The problems we face today are large and many.

• Item #1: In healthcare, the number of Covid cases has been surging in many places across the globe, including the United States. The surge of cases is so strong that some people are no longer talking about a first wave and a second wave, but are instead talking about a firestorm of Covid cases.
• Item #2: In social relationships, the pervasive lack of intercultural competence and understanding is finding new expression in calls for reform, so that all persons are treated honorably.
• Item #3: In economics, oodles of people who lost their jobs earlier this year cannot now find another one. Meanwhile, the economy struggles and businesses are trying to find ways to survive in a new economic environment.
• Item #4: In religion, the number of adults who describe themselves as Christian has declined 12 percentage points in the last decade. Meanwhile, 26% of Americans now describe themselves as atheists, agnostics, or nothing in particular, up from 17% a decade ago. [1]

None of this considers additional problems such as climate change and its consequences or continuing wars. In such a context, we can easily feel doomed, as if these problems are too big and complex for us to solve.

[1] “In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace,” Pew Research Center, October 17, 2019, https://www.pewforum.org/2019/10/17/in-u-s-decline-of-christianity-continues-at-rapid-pace/, accessed June 24, 2020.