The Harvest

by John David Krygelski

  Reese, who had been updated on the overnight events, asked Elohim, “I know You don’t ‘do’ the future, but how bad do You think these attacks are going to get?”

  Elohim gazed at him with the steady, unnerving stare to which Reese would never quite get accustomed. “I am always amazed and saddened at the capacity for evil that lives within mankind. Prior to receiving the first…information…about these plots, these travesties, I would not have anticipated their occurrence. I can only share with you lessons of the past. After my earlier departures, there were unspeakable bloodbaths. In both instances the majority of all those living were killed…not as a judgment by me…not by the forces of Heaven…but by fellow men. In some cases entire tribes, entire peoples were wiped off the Earth: every man, woman, and child killed; their remains burned; their possessions not looted, but destroyed; and their cities leveled. It was as if the others wanted to eradicate any evidence that they had ever existed.”

  “Why?” asked McWilliams. “The ones left behind were all in the same boat, weren’t they?”

  “There are essentially two causes. And you have witnessed a microcosm of both. You had a hand in destroying an evil group several years ago in Atlanta. What was the chain of events that led to its total demise?”

  “Our bureau had been tracking and tapping the group for months, building a case. They had absolutely no idea we were even on to them. When we had enough of a case, we moved on one of the leaders and his lieutenant. They drew down on us, and in the ensuing firefight both of them were killed. A third member had been on his way to meet them and saw the fight…saw the outcome. He hightailed it back to their rabbit hole, spilling the story to the rest.

  “From what we’ve been able to put together, the chain of events went somewhat like this. Three of the group thought the man who had returned had failed the group by not joining the fight and taking out at least a couple of agents. They pulled their weapons and shot him. We found more than thirty slugs in his body. Other members didn’t like that choice and pulled on those three, blowing them away. It just turned into a frenzy. By the time we arrived, there was one guy alive…out of thirty-two. Autopsies and ballistics later revealed that just about everyone had bullets from just about everyone else’s guns in them.”

  “Just like pack animals,” Reese commented. “Stress them enough…present them with an overwhelming threat or force, and they’ll turn on each other.”

  “What’s the second reason?” McWilliams asked Elohim.

  “The social, spiritual, and moral directions of individuals are a complex web of interrelated tendencies, each set unique to each person. Yet, when viewed objectively from a distance, it is possible to assign subsets. With certain exceptions, all of mankind can be divided into three broad categories. The first group become the Chosen. As we have already discussed at great length, they most clearly grasp the requirements of a harmonious society and a society that encourages each individual to attain self-actualization.

  “The second group struggle with internal conflicts. They may intellectually grasp the same requirements as the Chosen, yet they are either unwilling or unable to control their emotional wants and needs. They live their lives wishing they could be better people without ever quite reaching that goal. There is generally much goodness in this group, and many of them are capable of becoming members of the Chosen, if only provided with the additional impetus…the added motivation needed. Without this added motivation, they find themselves in an endless cycle of committing transgressions, followed by making amends for the offenses. There are many among the Chosen who once fit this description and found the strength to transcend the pattern.”

  Elohim saw understanding and silent agreement on the faces of all three men.

  “Many, perhaps most, within this second group, when confronted with the reality of my arrival and the departure of the Chosen, find the necessary reinforcement of the positive side within themselves. They not only set themselves upon the path of redemption, but they attempt to share this discovery…this newfound understanding…with others.”

  “The zealousness of a born-again,” observed Reynolds.

  “Yes,” confirmed Elohim. “And prior to my arrival, each of you witnessed the visceral reaction that most have when confronted with this type of person.”

  “Ranging from irritation to outright hatred,” said McWilliams. “I went through it myself. After my injury I returned to my religion and, for a time, became something of a fanatic. I was grappling with my paralysis and pretty much used God…I mean You…as my whiskey. I drove a lot of people away. They didn’t want to hear the preaching.”

  Nodding, Elohim continued, more somberly this time. “The third group, and sadly the largest by far, have chosen lives that are inherently in conflict with what one must be to join me in Heaven. There are many manifestations of this group…some are violent criminals…some are successful men and women of business…some are entertainers…some are scientists, doctors, and educators…and there are politicians, social workers, clergy, and the destitute. As varied as these lives may be, the underlying urges are common to all: self-centeredness, self-importance, self-gratification, the placing of one’s own needs above all others, and the complete rejection of personal responsibility. They have chosen their fields, not for what those fields will allow them to do for others, but rather for what will be brought to the individuals themselves in terms of money, fame, prestige, power and, of greatest significance, the appearance of contribution to society.”

  Reynolds interrupted, “Some of them choose to be criminals or homeless for the appearance of a contribution to society?”

  “In the case of criminals, many do. Within some of the cultures on Earth, criminals are admired and exalted by their immediate peer group.”

  “Certainly the case in the inner cities. It’s the Robin Hood syndrome,” said Reese.

  “Yes,” agreed Elohim. “And in those environments, they have convinced themselves that an unlawful life is all that is available to them which, in fact, is not true. They are simply making a choice. With regard to the destitute…people find themselves in that condition for a variety of reasons. Among those who deserve to be within the final group, the unfortunate ones who have become destitute became such because they attempted to succeed at one of the other endeavors and failed. Their choices were all self-based and self-oriented. Their sense of personal responsibility was nil. They believed their teachers and parents when they were told they could ‘do anything they wanted to do,’ even though they clearly did not have the necessary abilities.”

  “To protect their ‘self-esteem,’” Reese said.

  “Yes. Failure which follows unrealistic expectations is a bitter pill to swallow, resulting in alienation and a sense of betrayal. Destitution is the natural result of embarking upon the path that I have described and failing miserably. And since they placed themselves above all others early in life, in their quest for the money, fame, prestige, or power they craved…they had no one to turn to upon their collapse. With the absence of any support from others, their total decline was an inevitability.

  “This third group…this majority of mankind…become dependent upon the perceived benefits and pleasures of the self-centered lifestyle. Their need to maintain this lifestyle is as intense as the need of a heroin addict to maintain his supply. Their ability to rationalize when confronted with any conceivable fact, including my presence and the departure of the Chosen, is boundless. You have all seen this when interacting with alcoholics. They can deny the existence of physical proof, will declare a limitless number of witnesses to be liars, and when all else fails, will revert to violence…all simply to maintain their status quo. This is as it is with the third group because they are intoxicated – with themselves.

  “After we depart, only the last two groups will be left behind. The group I will call the ‘good’ will attempt to, as they see it, help the others whom I will call the ‘evil.’ They will try to get the evil to change their ways…
try to coax them onto the path to redemption. They will be making a fatal mistake, because they will be assuming the evil want to be redeemed. And the good will approach all of this with a newfound vigor and intensity that will not allow them to back away. Where they cannot convince, they will attempt to legislate and compel; after all, they will have no doubt as to the righteousness of their message.

  “The evil will not tolerate any of this. They may attempt to oppose and resist in a civilized fashion at first. They will go back to their old ways of using the various mass media to portray the offensive aspects of their lifestyle as normal, harmless, and even noble. However, with the glaring reality of my recent visit and the obvious absence of the Chosen, the good will no longer succumb to the mind-numbing techniques of the past. After all, I am no longer an abstract concept, a superstition, a delusion, a supernatural myth.

  “The pressure will grow on both sides until the evil side demonstrates an ability the good side abhors – the ability…indeed, the propensity…for violence. Following the past visits, segments of the good rose up, understanding the necessity for physical battle at certain times, and attempted to oppose the force of evil. Yet it was a force that overwhelmed them, nearly wiping them out. The evil were so opposed to criticism being directed at them…so opposed to their choices being questioned at all…that they hunted down the others, the good, until they had silenced the voices. Only a few of the good remained…forced to hide…forced to conceal their beliefs. No longer proselytizing, they learned to teach only their own children. Eventually, they found a few others of the good. Enclaves were formed, congregations established, religions reborn…all over thousands of years.”

  “What happened to the society immediately after the good were either killed off or pushed underground?”

  “You know that answer, Reese. You’ve warned against it in your books and lectures.”

  “I guess I’m curious about the rate and degree.”

  “The rate is incredibly rapid,” answered Elohim. “The degree is nearly total.”

  “Why does it happen?” asked Reynolds. “I mean, at that point isn’t the world essentially filled with the like-minded? Who are the enemies?”

  “They all are,” answered Reese before Elohim could speak. “It doesn’t take the mathematical mind of Walter Penfield to understand that you cannot subtract more from the sum than you add, unless someone else is putting more in. If all of those who contribute more to society than they take are either removed by Elohim or killed by the others, it’s really a simple calculation. All of the aspects of civilization, all of the benefits of food, security, comfort, sanitation…the list is nearly endless…essentially go bankrupt, either literally or figuratively. The core perspective of narcissists is that they deserve whatever they want or need, without recognizing or acknowledging any requirement for quid pro quo. As far as they are concerned, their mere existence is more than sufficient to compensate the rest of humanity for what they take.

  “Only among the good and the Chosen will you find those who believe that a transaction must be win-win for all parties. For the narcissist each transaction must be win-lose with the narcissist the only winner. A society is nothing but transactions…millions of them a day. How can there be winners and losers in a world of only narcissists?”

  “So they begin to turn upon each other…in a struggle best described as survival of the fittest,” Elohim said, continuing Reese’s line of thought. “And the struggle accelerates exponentially, as the perceived availability of resources dwindles. Alliances are quickly formed and more quickly betrayed. Political structures, originally conceived as mechanisms for the benefit of the group, disintegrate under the pressures of self-interest. On an individual level very few are able to find any help, any support from others.”

  “Every man for himself,” added Reese.

  McWilliams, sadness and worry etched upon his face, asked, “It sounds like a fairly complex process. Does this take years to play out?”

  “Again, I cannot speak for tomorrow; yet, based upon the past, I would have to answer that it could be a timetable measured in months, rather than years.”

  “It’s basically anarchy?” asked Reynolds.

  “No, that is not being fair to the concept of anarchy. Anarchy – if all who participate are enlightened and place the welfare of the whole above the needs of the one – is an ideal structure. In fact, it most closely describes Heaven. Anarchy – if practiced only by the self-possessed – is chaos.”

  Reynolds asked, “Anarchy in Heaven. I can’t help but ask….”

  “You are wondering how there could be anarchy in Heaven with me present?”

  “Uh, yes. It seems like more of a benign monarchy.”

  “I have no interest in ruling. Most who rule do so to obtain the power of the throne. I have no need for that power. That is exactly why I have chosen to populate Heaven with those who do not require rules and laws.”

  They rode through the morning sky in silence, each of them contemplating the immediate future. After a time, Reese asked, “None of what You’ve described explains why they are now targeting the Chosen?”

  Elohim answered wistfully, “Reese, remember our discussions about Lucifer?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “You must remember, in the midst of all of this, that he lives within many. His only unthinking compulsion is to keep as many here as he can. The Chosen are lost to him…forever. His anger…his fury…will cause many to perform foul deeds. Some acts will be pure rage with no purpose. Those who have been chosen will go to Heaven whether they are killed or not. Other acts will be calculated to tempt some, to turn some away. He will view each individual soul diverted from Heaven as a victory. No matter what form his plan may take, it will surely be unspeakably evil.”

  The attendant served breakfast, stopping the conversation while plates were set out, and coffees and juices were poured. Finishing, the attendant excused himself and returned to the front of the plane. McWilliams and Reynolds, seated across the cabin from Reese and Elohim, were engaged in muted conversation regarding the security issues which would be facing them in Rome upon their arrival. Reese sat directly facing Elohim, so close that their serving trays very nearly touched. He leaned forward and softly asked, “Just about everything that You’ve told me indicates that You are a pragmatist…and that Your only goal is to cultivate candidates for induction to Heaven.”

  Elohim nodded and said nothing.

  Reese continued, “From what You’ve described of the probable chain of events following Your…our departure, it just doesn’t seem consistent with Your goal. I mean, the smaller group…the ‘good’ group…apparently would be Your potential pool of future candidates…at least the best hope for the creation of more, anyway. And yet, they are going to be essentially wiped out, and the nasty group will prevail.”

  “You’re wondering why, after our departure, I don’t gather up the second group, put them on an ark and destroy the rest?”

  Taken aback by his bluntness, Reese agreed, “Yes, I guess so. It just seems that it would be consistent with Your goals.”

  Smiling, Elohim said, “Are you familiar with what members of your medical profession refer to as the ‘super bug’?”

  Reese, accustomed to Elohim’s apparent changes of subject, answered, “Antibiotic resistant bacteria?”

  “Yes. And are you familiar with the process that creates these resistant forms?”

  “I believe so. I’m sure to get the quantities all wrong, but the concept is fairly simple. I have a trillion nasty bacteria in my body. The doctor gives me some penicillin which kills off all but a hundred of them, those that manage to live through the full dosage. Those survivors have a slight genetic mutation that allows them to survive. Since they are the only survivors, when they reproduce, all of their offspring have the resistance. Their numbers reach a trillion again, and I get sick again. The doctor gives me a stronger antibiotic which kills all but a hundred or so. Those who survive again hav
e a mutated resistance as will their offspring. And so it goes, until you eventually have a new, powerful breed of bacteria that cannot be killed by any of the known antibiotics.”

  “Basically, yes, that is how it works.”

  “The obvious connection is that You want the remaining group, the group You called ‘good,’ to go through the same process.”

  “Yes. When they are nearly eliminated from the face of the Earth, and only a relative handful survive, those survivors will be alive because they are not only good…they are, to use the term you mentioned a moment ago, pragmatic…they are strong…they are quick-witted…they are wise. If those things were not true, they would not have survived the onslaught from the others. They will also carry with them an even more strongly held belief structure, more strongly held because it has been hard won. The development of this new group cannot occur without the presence of the others, any more than the super bug can come into existence without the presence of the antibiotics.”

  “So You are planning on taking the human race to a new level, higher than where we are today?”