Being that we live in Romania, here are a few thoughts about European demographics:
- The population of many Eastern European countries is declining. This is due not only to low birthrates but also to high emigration rates. Many young, educated Romanians, for example, desire to move either to Western Europe or to the United States. I have known people with college degrees who could earn more money picking olives in Spain than working a business job in Romania. So they move if they can.
- Many of the countries in Western Europe that have positive growth rates are growing primarily through immigration or high birth rates of immigrants. France, for example, currently has a moslem population that makes up 6% of its population. These are mostly North Africans. Among the under-20 age group in France, the moslems make up 20% of the population. Projecting this into the future, France could be a moslem-majority country by the end of the 21st century.
- This amplifies the importance of missions to Europe! Which continent has the lowest percentage of Evangelical believers? It isn’t Africa, Asia, Australia, South America, or North America. It is Europe! The churches here need to be strengthened. Europe needs to be re-evangelized, or there could be a repeat of what happened to Asia Minor. The land to which Ephesians, Colossians, and Galatians were written (Turkey) is now 99% moslem. Don’t let the same thing happen to Europe.
European annual growth rates — Wikipedia
Grace and Peace
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