Christianity- The panacea to the ills of the modern world.

Respected fathers, judges, elders, parents and dear friends,
The topic Christianity- The Panacea to the ills of the modern world is apt for our lives. Every government in the world today is on the lookout for vaccines and medicines against various kinds of viruses and diseases. Things are getting out of control. This is when we need to go back to our scripture and traditions which offer the remedy for all the ills that plague the world today.

There are three things which human beings are afraid about. They are the death of God’s creation, the death of the human body and the death of the human character. Natural calamities have destroyed the world as we know it and have wiped out entire places from the face of the earth. People are dying of diseases which were unheard of and human beings are becoming morally weak. In the book of Genesis 9:11 God promises Noah and his sons “I promise every living creature that the earth and those living on it will never again be destroyed by a flood.” God demands faithfulness from Noah and his sons and in return promises God’s faithfulness to all of God’s creation. St. Augustine calls this God’s way of telling God’s people that God will take care of them if they listen to God’s commandments.

Humans all over the world are afraid of death and of the separation that it brings. We are trying our best to overcome death by making better vaccines and medicines. But viruses like the Ebola virus has shown us that one virus can wipe out an entire population. But Christianity does not stop with the body of a person but reminds every one of the soul and the importance of the soul. Jesus tells Martha in St.John 11:25 "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” The beauty of Jesus’ promise goes beyond the limitation of death and offers an everlasting solution to all who believe in him. Jesus assures us in St. Matthew 6:25-27 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” Jesus further says in St. Matthew 6:33-34 “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” St. Ephraim says “Blessed is he who has in the Lord become completely free of all earthly things in this troublesome life, and who has loved the good and merciful God.”

Christianity believes strongly in the morality and strong character of a person. The world that we live in has seen an increase in crimes against women and children. One reason for this is the lack of a moral code of ethic which teaches people that taking life and practicing violence is against our religion and conscience. Jesus Christ reminds us in St. Matthew 5:27-28 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery” but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” This strong moral ethic that Jesus preaches prevents a Christian from doing wrong against another human being. If one is a strong Christian, one will be a good human being. Jesus’ code of ethics is a model for us to follow to become good people.

To conclude let me say that Christianity is a strong belief in God and a strong code of ethic which when followed to the letter and spirit of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ will offer us the ultimate panacea to the ills of the modern world. May we as youngsters and elders with the strong intercession of St. Mary and all the blessed saints apply prayer as medicine to our souls and offer ourselves as servants of God to dispel darkness and do away with the ills of the modern world. Amen.

(Can be used for speech/elocution competition in church.)