Although Europe keeps hold of various good values, the continent has found itself in the line of fire in the recent times, particularly by its own people. It is indeed doom and gloom in Europe because of worsening economic crisis, unfair practices towards refugees, increasing unrest in the community, calls for the division of the country, and racism rising at an alarming rate. The underlying reason is that a part of the European people have gradually turned away from spirituality.
The recent statistics serve as a proof of the situation. The churches in Germany, England and Northern European countries have been largely forced to be closed down in the recent times, while some of them are being turned into private property, which is a heartbreaking situation. According to the records of the German Protestant Church, a total of 82 churches were destroyed throughout Germany between the years of 1990 and 2011. More than 200 Protestant Churches passed into the hands of other persons. These churches were either turned into private property or terribly converted into restaurants, clubs, workshops or event centers.
A recent study in England shows that roughly a little less than half of the people in England do not embrace any religion, which is more than the number of Christians in the country.
Generally, in Europe, the rate of those who define themselves as religious is 26% in the Netherlands, 23% in the Czech Republic, and only 19% in Sweden.
While the number of religious people is increasing worldwide, there are certainly important reasons that this is not the case for Europe. Europe made several mistakes in defining its core values of democracy and secularism. Forgetting that secularism refers to freedom for all forms of belief, Europe considers secularism equal to “atheism”, while democracy is considered as a freedom only for atheism.
The meaning of the concepts of human rights and freedom has largely sunk into oblivion. All doom and gloom has caused intense lovelessness, loneliness, atheism and suicide attempts particularly among the European youth.
The reason that led to all of these is that the materialist mindset is established in the European societies under the guise of science, and particularly that the youth is raised based on such mindset.
Europe may have initially failed in noticing that such materialist mindset would bring such harm to itself and would seclude the societies from their values. However, the divergence of the societies from religious values in masses, would inevitably move people further away from moral, humanitarian and social values.
The materialist mindset has always made it easier for people to commit murders, to engage in violence and to massacre, further caused people to acknowledge the concepts of outrage such as racism and xenophobia, and led to the advent of the generations, detesting themselves, their families and the society.
Europe is of critical importance and value. It should treat all doom and gloom seriously and take sound, rational, scientific measures to ensure the development of spirituality.
The implications of atheism are apparent in Europe even now, influencing Europe adversely each passing day. This is not the desired situation. Once the communities become strengthened spiritually, they can achieve happiness and develop themselves. If Europe aspires to flourish, strengthen and lead the way in the field of democracy, it should first take notice of this fact.
