The Harvest

by John David Krygelski

“Why not?”

  “Because my neighbor is a flake.”

  “By that I assume you mean he doesn’t have the credibility to warrant following such extreme advice?”

  “That would be an understatement.”

  “The problem is, neither do we. We have blown our credibility so many times over that it is unbelievable.”

  “Walter, you don’t really believe that global warming isn’t happening, do you?”

  “My gut tells me there is something going on and that something is not good. The planet has warmed and cooled cyclically for millions of years. The ice has frozen and retreated countless times. I don’t know if what’s happening now is part of the cycle, man-made, or a combination of the two. I do know that a few years ago most of the globe outlawed aerosol propellants at the urging of the global warming advocates who argued that the propellants contributed to the warming process. Now, the atmospheric scientists and climatologists are discovering that those propellants were actually moderating the warming process, and that their removal has accelerated the warming effect. And that’s the problem: we scientists are too quick to tell the whole world what to do even when we don’t have our ducks in a row.”

  Doris, who had been quietly eating during Walter’s diatribe, asked, “Randolph, doesn’t it strike you as ironic that the very lifestyle changes proposed by the scientists to prevent global warming were suggested two thousand years ago by Christ? A less consumptive, less materialistic lifestyle has always been His message. The very person that you view as ‘public enemy number one’ is one of your best allies.”

  Duncan held up his hands defensively. “Look, Walter, Doris, I’m not going to sit here and defend this amorphous body called science. We’ve been less than perfect, and I include myself. But, for the most part, the motives have been good. The average scientist – whether he’s a chemist, climatologist, physicist, or biologist – wants to help, wants to do something that betters the lot of mankind.”

  “I disagree,” said Penfield. “What I’ve noticed of late is a tendency to be anti-anthropomorphic.”

  Duncan, puzzled, asked, “How so?”

  “I think it verges on a hatred of all that is mankind. It almost feels as if that is the underlying agenda of many scientists, that man is a blight upon the Earth, that everything we do is inherently, by definition, unnatural and therefore destructive. We, as a discipline, have forgotten the basic concept of entropy as it relates to our abode. Earth is our home. And any home will suffer degradation as a result of supporting its residents. As responsible homeowners, we’re supposed to maintain it, fix the damage, and replace the worn-out. More and more of what I read is not constructive. There are few ‘how to’ tips to repair the damage our living here creates. The recurring message seems to be that the house is precious and that we are the culprits. The only solution is for us to move out of the house so that it can be okay, because if we stick around, our very nature dictates that we will destroy it ourselves.

  “And this self-hatred spills over into so many other areas. The so-called solutions that science provides are not solutions to our problems; they are edicts on how we need to alter our habits, change our choices, and quit being so damn human. I don’t need to be told that being overweight is bad for me. I don’t need to be told that smoking is bad – or driving fast or eating trans fats or any of the countless other choices that science lectures me about. I already know all of those things, and I don’t need someone else judging me for doing any of them. What I need, what we all really need is to know that someone out there is working on fixes for all of those things.”

  Duncan smiled and said, “My visit this morning really unleashed quite a lecture.”

  Walter laughed. “Randolph, I’m sorry. There’s no reason for you to suffer the brunt of this rant. It’s just that, well, we’re leaving soon. And there is so much that I always wanted to say and didn’t. You just happened to be the unlucky cuss who showed up.”

  “No problem,” answered Duncan. “You’ve actually given me a lot to think about after you, uh, leave.”

  They all fell silent. Duncan and Penfield returned their attention to their now cold meals. Doris stared off into the distance. The first to speak was Duncan. In a soft voice, he asked, “What was he like?”

  Penfield, again putting down his fork, frowned thoughtfully for a moment before answering. “Amazing, actually. I went into the interview thinking it was total BS. I believed in God, always have. I just didn’t think for a moment that this person, sitting in an interrogation room at the FBI, was going to be Him. Have you read the transcripts?”

  “I have. After a rather poignant discussion with one of the postdocs in my department, who also is…or was, I guess…a good friend, I pulled them up and read them all.”

  “What did you think?”

  “He seemed persuasive.”

  Penfield laughed. “Yes. That’s an understatement.”

  “The physics…the math. Does it all hold up?”

  “As I said before, it’ll take a long time to run the numbers and set up the experiments, but, yes, it surely looks as though it makes sense. It definitely answers more questions and ties up more loose ends than the directions we’ve been going for the last three decades. What’s your take on the biology He mentioned?”

  “Well, unlike your field, he really didn’t come out with a new paradigm. His point seemed to be that evolution does exist; it’s just the tool that he uses to achieve his goals.”

  “Except, of course, for when it takes a wrong turn.”

  “Right. Then he steps in and makes a correction.”

  “Randolph,” Doris asked, “how is that different from what you already believed? I mean, whether you call it God or nature, isn’t it all basically the same?”

  “You mean except for the drastic interventions? There really wouldn’t be a difference, other than semantics, I guess.”

  “Then why the strongly held resistance to the idea of God?”

  “Doris, a week ago I could have answered that. Today I’m not so sure. The truth is that a lot of what Elohim said differs from the dogma I’ve fought against my whole life. So many of the religious zealots maintained that God created each and every living thing on Earth, exactly as it exists today. I had a problem with that. We may not be able to put together the full story of evolution with no gaps, but we damn well can prove that the process is occurring and has occurred throughout history. But Elohim did not side with them. He acknowledged that evolution is happening right under our noses. So, I guess the answer is that I thought I was reacting to what God was supposed to be, when I was actually only responding to a fringe of believers who had taken things a bit too literally.”

  “I, too, had a problem with some of the specifics from the literalists in religion,” Penfield said. “The Earth only being six thousand years old was something we could disprove authoritatively. And then Elohim comes along and explains that there has been a time dilation. It’s just that we’re all human – rabbis, priests, scientists, everyone. And we’re all prone to make mistakes. He’s gone a long way toward setting right some of the misconceptions of the religious and the rest of us, as well.”

  “My main problem, I guess,” said Duncan, “is being told that I’m a guinea pig in some grand experiment or, worse yet, that I’m some cow on a breeding farm.”

  Doris leaned forward, placing her hand on Duncan’s. “You would prefer to think that it all means nothing? We’re born, we live, we die, and that’s it? In Elohim’s universe we have a purpose, a goal, and we have an eternal soul. We also inhabit an environment that was created especially for us. That’s got to be better than your alternative that we are just a throbbing, rutting fluke of nature with no inherent reason to exist.”

  Walter added, “Scientists have always avoided taking an anthrocentric position. It goes back to the shame of the past. Scientists of the day…centuries ago…insisted that we were the center of the solar system – not the sun. As I mentioned before, when p
hysical evidence piled up disproving this, they concocted more and more outlandish theories to attempt to support it. It was a dark time for science, and current day practitioners never want to repeat it. Duncan, you’ve obviously heard of the Big Bang, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you know that, observationally, we have proved that all of the stars in the universe are moving away from Earth in all directions?”

  “No. I’ve never heard that.”

  “You haven’t heard it because it isn’t talked about.”

  “That would mean that the point of origin…the location of the Big Bang…is here?”

  “It would, normally. Yet astronomers and astrophysicists cannot bring themselves to take that position. The theories created to explain it…to avoid or ignore the obvious facts…are as convoluted as the epi-cycles of old, all so they never have to come out and say that Earth is the center of the universe. We are ignoring evidence. In fact, we are deliberately burying it so we can avoid ever taking the position that there is anything special about Earth or mankind.”

  Randolph Duncan stared down at his plate for some time before speaking. Finally, he said, “When we first started talking, I told you the reason for my visit was to discuss the existence of God. That wasn’t true. I didn’t consciously realize it at the time, but during our talk this morning I’ve figured out that my real reason for coming was to speak with someone who has met Elohim, someone whose intellect I could respect and whose opinions I could trust, and someone who would see Him again.”

  “Why is that?” Walter asked.

  “To give you a message that I would like you to pass on to Him.”

  “I’m sure you noticed in the transcripts, Randolph, that no messenger is necessary with Elohim. He’s listening right now.”

  Duncan just nodded. Doris and Walter could see his attempt to visualize Elohim. “Yes. You’re right. I do remember that.” He paused again, collecting his thoughts, at last saying, “I never thought I’d ever say a prayer, but I guess that’s what this is, isn’t it?”

  Doris replied, “It’s not a prayer, whatever that means. It’s just talking. Go ahead, talk to Him, Randolph.”

  Still looking down, Duncan began, “These fine people with me this morning are right. I’ve never given You a fair break. I’ve never even allowed my mind to open enough to grant the possibility of Your being real. I’ve actually hated those who believed in You, even though I have no idea why I felt that way. I know I’ll be one of those left behind when You leave in a few days. I just wanted You to know that my mind is open now. There’s a lot I still don’t understand, a lot I still need to learn. But I think I’ve finally opened up a door that I’ve kept shut for a long time. And I think it’s time I walked through it. And, one more thing, I am sorry for the damage I’ve done, for the people my words have swayed who otherwise might have believed.” Duncan hesitated, appearing to come to a decision, before continuing. “And I’m sorry that I’ve surely disappointed You.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Kathy Crocker, smiling at the camera, said, “Good Morning. We are continuing with our coverage of yesterday’s attack in Times Square as well as our ongoing coverage of the arrival of Elohim. Joining me is, of course, Barry Thorndike. Good morning, Barry.”

  “Thank you, Kathy. It is, indeed, a bleak day for the police officers and forensic staff of the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office, as they continue the process of gathering the bodies of the deceased in Times Square. Although the poisonous gas has dissipated, the entire area surrounding the location of the attack is cordoned off, leaving thousands of people without a place to go to work this morning. Several of the gas canisters used in the attack have now been recovered and are being studied for possible clues. The FBI released a statement this morning informing us that there are no solid leads at this point in their investigation of the massacre at Times Square. As you may recall, all of the terrorists involved in the actual execution of the plot were either killed or managed to escape, leaving authorities with no one to question. Those who were killed are still being identified, and the FBI is hopeful that they will find a connection between the shooters and the persons or organization behind the plot. According to the FBI, no group has claimed credit for the attack. Kathy?”

  “Thank you, Barry. Following up on the events resulting from Elohim’s statement, we have now learned that Elohim, accompanied by Dr. Reese Johnson, traveled to the Vatican yesterday and met with the Pope. We do not have any details on this visit and hope to hear from a representative of the Catholic Church soon.

  “Providing us with a different perspective on the mark that apparently Elohim has placed on many around the world, we have Doctor Timothy Shearing, a Bible scholar and an expert on the particular section of the Bible called Revelation.”

  The camera shifted back to show a nervous, middle-aged, balding man.

  “Doctor Shearing,” Crocker continued, “I understand you have a biblical perspective on the mark?”

  Shearing cleared his throat loudly before speaking. “Uh, yes. It’s a passage from Revelation…13:16-17.” His hands trembling, Shearing picked up a paper and began to read, “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of the name.”

  “I’m afraid I don’t quite understand. This passage says that all will receive the mark. That’s certainly not the case.”

  “That’s not the only discrepancy,” answered Shearing. “It also states that the mark will be the name or number of the beast.”

  “The beast?”

  “Why, yes, Satan. The ‘he’ referred to in this passage as to the one who will place the mark is the Antichrist.”

  Crocker stared blankly at the scholar, obviously unsure of the direction to take with her next question. Barry Thorndike stepped in by asking, “Are you saying that Elohim is the Antichrist?”

  Looking startled, Shearing blurted out, “No, no, not at all. Well, I mean I can’t say for certain that he is not. But the appearance of the mark does not necessarily prove that he is, either.”

  Crocker, finding her voice, said, “Well, you’ve certainly given us something to think about. Thank you, Doctor Shearing. In business news, the stock market continues its free-fall, which actually began before Elohim spoke to the public, at the time his visit was first described by Archbishop Kerry Coughlin. We’ll have a full report from our financial consultant, Patricia Weldon, coming up in the second half-hour of the program.”

  The director smoothly switched back to a close-up of Barry Thorndike who continued, “As everyone tries to recover from the trauma of the senseless attack in Times Square, the world continues to grapple with the ramifications of Elohim’s announcement. It seems that the biggest question on everyone’s mind is – ‘Who’s going?’ Several rapid polls have been conducted in an attempt to determine the number of people who have received the distinctive mark on their right hands and, thus far, the results have been mixed. To discuss the various results and possibly shed some light on them is Mark Simak, the founder and president of Simak Opinion Research.”

  The camera view switched to a shot showing Thorndike and his guest, a middle-aged, slender man with gray hair and a drooping moustache. “Mark, thank you for joining us this morning.”

  “My pleasure, Barry.”

  “As I mentioned, several ‘rapid’ polls have been conducted in the time since Elohim’s announcement, including a poll done on behalf of this network, performed by your organization. Before telling us the results, could you briefly describe for us the methodology and structure of your poll?”

  “Of course. As you mentioned, there are several polling companies attempting to ascertain the percentage of the public, at least of the people who reside within the United States or Europe, who have received the invitation, the mark. The first results that I’ve seen – when pe
ople were called and simply asked ‘Do you have the mark?’ or ‘Did you receive Elohim’s mark?’ or other similarly worded queries – had significantly differing responses; so varied were the answers that I suspected there might be issues of veracity involved.”

  “You think some people lied?”

  “Bluntly, yes.”

  “Why did you suspect that, and in which direction were they lying?”

  “To answer your second question first, it turns out that the prevaricators were on both sides. The answer to your first question was originally a gut feeling based upon personal observation. Very few of the people I encountered had the mark. In the time since the announcement by Elohim, I’ve only personally met perhaps five or six people with it. And yet the polls that were coming out were reporting that one out of four or even one out of three people had it. Logically, there were only two possible explanations. Either the circle within which I traveled was filled with people who were very unlikely to be chosen, or the polls were wrong.” Smiling, he continued, “My ego prompted me to pursue the latter.”