Would enough of humanity survive a nuclear war?

Yes. A nuclear war would bring terrible destruction, but it would be limited, and large parts of humanity would survive. Mankind will not be wiped out.

The fear of nuclear war is understandable. The weapons are dreadful and their effects would be horrific. Yet scientists who truly know their subject consider it inconceivable that such a war would wipe out the whole of humanity. Much of what is said about it serves to frighten rather than to describe accurately.

The destruction would be great, but limited. Many regions of the world would be spared. Even in the countries directly affected, not every region would become uninhabitable. That an entire continent would be emptied and the human race would vanish for ever is not what will happen.

One reason lies in how such figures are produced. When it is said that a weapon can kill at most a certain number of people, that is a theoretical upper limit. It would only apply if every unit of energy struck exactly one person. In reality a large part of the energy is lost, and many other factors come into play. No weapon is ever so completely effective.

From a religious point of view, too, total destruction is not the plan. The first verse above speaks of the religion of truth prevailing over all others. This promise assumes that after the trials of the future there will still be people to accept it.

This is no reason to play down the danger. The second verse reminds us that harm comes from people’s own deeds and is meant to call them back. Whoever takes this seriously works for peace instead of being lost in fear.