The Cleansing Fire

The next chapter of the Bible is being written right now. When a mysterious fever sweeps the world targeting drug users, theories abound as to its origin. Scientists suspect that this is a new pathogen and race to discover an antidote. Authorities worry that it is a man-made weapon designed to eliminate the less productive members of society. A religious group, that calls themselves Noah''s Arc, claims that this fever is God''s tool to cleanse the earth as he did with water in the time of Noah. Within weeks the death toll reaches into the millions and the world breaks into panic. People riot against their governments demanding a cure. The new pathogen moves swiftly, kills quickly and is universally fatal to those who contract it. Surely there must be some defense to this new terror. In a matter of days the inmates of most of the world''s largest prisons fall victim to the disease but not one of the guards or staff members contract it. How could this be? Everyone in the prison consumes the same food and breathes the same air. As the outbreak spreads to include terrorists and gang members, it becomes apparent that the innocent seem to be immune from this fiery fever. Someone is poisoning the sinners of the world. Desperate to avoid the deadly fever people flock to the churches to confess their sins. Drug users check into rehabilitation centers and crime rates drop. Now that every jail term is a death sentence, people fear going to prison. Economies begin to improve. The entire world breaks into the classic debate about good versus evil and where exactly the line between right and wrong lies. Is killing the few to save the many acceptable? And if so, how do you choose who to eliminate? The world population has crossed the seven billion mark. Many scientists believe that the earth does not have enough natural resources to sustain so many humans. If the human race continues to grow without changing our wasteful habits and dependency on natural resources it is likely that a