Michael Mazarr, Global Trends for 2005

Mazarr, Michael J. Global Trends for 2005: An Owner's Manual for the Next Decad

St. Martin’s Press, New York, 1999) 330 pages, hardback, $27.95. Obtain from St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010)

Although the book is not written for church leaders, the author identifies a host of trends that will affect ministry in the new world such as the urban migration taking place all over the world, the rise of the third world as the leaders of the future, the transformation of and apathy toward all present forms of authority, the paradox of an aging and youthful population, the importance of perception rather than reality, the affects of biotechnology on the meaning of being human, to mention only a few. The book is a well written, balanced, and somewhat optimistic look into the very near future.