2036 The Proof: A Thrilling Science Fiction Novel

by Speiser, Zvi

  “And finally, we have Rabbi Nachman Shposelovich as a representative of Judaism, the most ancient of the three religions. I wonder if we’ll ever get a clear answer to the question of what could cause people who believe in God to brutally murder other people who believe in the same deity. Considering their faith, aren’t they afraid of God’s vengeance? Or does the call of ‘Allahu Akbar,’ heard whenever Muslims kill members of their own people or others, actually denote a duty to murder others prescribed to them by God Himself?”

  The elderly rabbi stood up slowly. He was clearly surprised and pleased by the respectful tone of the moderator’s introduction.

  “I assume there’s no need to repeat our main question again. Go ahead, sir,” the moderator addressed him.

  “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth,” the rabbi began. His loud, powerful baritone was a startling contrast to his age and appearance. It seemed to emanate from some other entity, rather than the man himself. For a moment, even the rabbi seemed surprised by his own voice. All whispering in the studio ceased abruptly as everyone turned their attention to him.

  “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth,” his voice boomed out again into the ensuing silence. “You’ve heard four representatives from the two largest religions, which together command millions of believers. All four have testified that they worship the god who gave his scriptures to my people, the people of Israel, after first freeing them from their enslavement to the Egyptian Pharaoh, giving them the Ten Commandments, leading them through the desert for forty years, defeating the nations of Canaan on their behalf, and settling them in the promised land. That was the only period in which Jews destroyed other nations in order to inherit their country as commanded by God, sometime thousands of years ago.

  “We’re not proud of it, even if it was done under the Lord’s command and with His tangible, prominent help. To this day, 3,300 years after the events took place, we still regret them. But all that notwithstanding, throughout thousands of years of Jewish history, we’ve never embarked on a war of destruction against others. On the contrary, for thousands of years, we’ve lived among members of other religions throughout the world who have conquered our country, exiled us, enslaved us, and tried to exterminate us in sophisticated ‘factories’ and with nuclear bombs.

  “Everywhere we’ve lived, my people have excelled, and our percentage among Nobel Prize winners exceeds the global average by a factor of one hundred. However, Jews have never collectively murdered people belonging to other religions or other nations.

  “As for the first part of your question—who is the god whose deeds, even if just a tiny fragment of them, have recently been revealed by scientists—you’ve received your answer from the representatives of the two largest religions. Both of them confirm that it is the God of our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Israel.

  “As for the second part of your question, religions do not represent any god. God does not need any representation. The various religions provide a framework and support to believers, and so long as the believer behaves respectfully to his environment, including all its components, as long as he does no harm, the name of the religion and the manner of worship are completely meaningless. It can be Christianity, Islam, or Hottentot.

  “That’s also the reason Judaism doesn’t try to convert believers from other religions, but treats all of them with respect. And as the president said, we are all—all of us—humans… Children of one God. Every single one of us contains a divine spark that should be expressed in our every deed. Only when we all internalize this and act accordingly will we experience the glory of God,” the elderly rabbi concluded, sitting down once more.

  For a long time, the studio was silent, as if everyone had ceased breathing. Then, at the corner of the hall, someone stood up and clapped a single time. Next was someone else at the other end of the studio who started clapping as well. They were joined by another, and another, until the entire studio audience was applauding wildly, all of them rising to their feet and clapping. Bob himself stood up and joined the applause, which gradually grew rhythmic, as if demanding an encore. For several minutes, he did not even attempt to calm down the enthusiastic audience.

  Finally, he walked over to the rabbi, shook his hand warmly, then pulled him up until he was standing and facing the audience. The rabbi seemed uncomfortable with the prevailing atmosphere. He had never experienced such avid applause. Bob encouraged the imams and the priests to join them on both sides, and the six of them faced the audience, bowing their heads in gratitude.

  “Such euphoria,” the moderator continued after things had calmed down and everyone returned to their seats. “Such brotherly love between Muslims and Christians, Catholics and Protestants, Sunnis and Shiites, and especially between the various Islamic and Christian denominations and the Jews.

  “It seems as if the end times have truly arrived. The millions sacrificed to the false idol of religion did not, apparently, die in vain. From now on, all of us, regardless of religion, are brothers,” he declared in a slow, quiet voice. “Perhaps the scientific discoveries, the president’s speech and the current panel really do signal a turning point for humanity. Future historians might define these days as the beginning of a new era in human history. An era characterized by a realization that the differences between the various religions and denominations justify a theological debate or a satirical TV show at most, but certainly not the slaughter of millions.”

  Mumbling quietly, he added, “Sounds great if you actually believe it…”

  Chapter 39

  God, Protect All Human Beings

  Monday, December 15, 2036

  The Chicago Chronicle’s editorial meeting was volatile as always. Will had recently been promoted to a senior position, as head of the Investigative Department. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that this rapid promotion was a direct result of the exclusive interview the president had granted him, in which she had complimented Will for his brilliant insight in finding the divine common denominator, so obvious in retrospect, between three such different discoveries.

  Emily White, the first African–American woman president in the history of the United States, was re-elected by an immense majority to her second term as president. Almost all the editorials attributed this fact to her speech to humanity, and primarily to her closing statement, “God, protect all human beings.” Religious America had become even more religious, and had thus crowned the president as God’s representative on Earth.

  Will was very pleased with the promotion and its accompanying benefits, but felt uncomfortable with the fact that the media treated him as a twenty-first century prophet who had uncovered God’s tracks. He had never thought of himself as a believer. His inbox was flooded with requests for interviews and lectures all over the world, including offers for highly generous financial compensation. It was enough to keep him busy for many years as well as make him very rich.

  The arguments in the paper’s conference room resembled those in the global media at large. The believers had received scientific reinforcement for their faith. Finally, no one could assail them with the argument that there was no proof of God’s existence. It had actually been the scientists, most of whom doubted the existence of a higher power, who had conclusively proved it.

  And if it weren’t enough that God existed and was watching over His flock, He had even bent the laws of physics to do so. This was more than mere proof. It was a knockout victory for religion over science—scientific proof, along with the collapse of formerly proven scientific theories. The sages of the various religions had not anticipated such a victory. Naturally, each religion declared that it was the only one to correctly worship God, in the way in which He intended, and each was entirely unwilling to accept any other path.

  The senior councils in the major religious centers in Mecca, Teheran, Germany, and Vatican City conducted endles
s debates over the meaning of the recent discoveries and the proper way to address them. No details leaked from these discussions, and despite numerous attempts on the part of reporters, they could not discern even an iota of information regarding their contents. In contrast, chaos reigned in Jerusalem, and many conflicting details leaked from the representatives of the various denominations.

  The majority of the scientific establishment distanced itself from debates on the subject, which were frequently featured in the media. Here and there, fame-seeking minor orthodox scientists consented to be interviewed and expressed their sweeping support for the discovery of divine powers. In contrast, Professor Eugene Leitner of Princeton University, considered a leading astrophysicist, claimed in a very brief article that although physicists still couldn’t explain why the four stars discovered by professors Rosen and Sheffy had not exploded, he was certain that an explanation would indeed be found. He noted that many astrophysicists viewed the discovery of such a scientific explanation as a truly worthy challenge. He also did not hesitate to add that the divine explanation might be enhanced by the fact that other than the four stars cited, no additional stars with similar characteristics had been found.

  Various surreal explanations were also suggested for the diverted course of the asteroid that had been forecasted to strike Earth. One of them suggested that the asteroid had entered into a state of resonance with the gravitational pull of other asteroids in the asteroid belt, which had collectively caused the change in its trajectory. However, no scientist tried to explain the three-dimensional structures discovered by Dr. Lester, although several labs published accurate and relatively simple instructions on how to recreate the experiment in order to produce the structures.

  Professor Abe Alperovich, also a Jewish rabbi by education, had an easier task. In a sophisticated article, he portrayed the discovery of the structures as conclusive proof of the existence of the Jewish deity, as Judaism had been the first monotheistic religion. The article depicted the granting of reason and intelligence to an ancient primate and, steering it into a separate evolutionary track, as the creation of man by God as portrayed in the Bible, while the recently discovered structures were depicted as a divine signature of sorts, a claim of ownership.

  The everyday life of the residents of Earth returned to normal, the religious revival they had experienced subsided fairly quickly, and only the various religious sages continued to intently discuss the scientific discoveries and their meaning.

  Then, when it seemed as if the religious maelstrom had passed and routine had truly been re-established, the Council of Sunni Sages published its response.

  “The unequivocal scientific proof of the existence of Allah reinforces the faith of Islamic believers that they are Allah’s final and successful choice among people. And as proof, after the first failed attempt with the Jews, He tried again with the Christians, and once this attempt failed, He continued with the Muslims. Had this attempt failed as well, Allah would not have hesitated to continue trying other nations. This indicates conclusively that Islam is God’s final, successful choice.”

  These words were included in the comprehensive summary of a book written by the Sunni sages.

  The next day brought the publication of the Shiite response. It was not a detailed book indicating thorough preparation, or a polished, precise manifesto. It was merely a press release. The Shiites did not need scientific proof, and in fact chose to ignore it. Apparently, they did not acknowledge the proof and did not discuss it. The only god who ruled their world was Allah, who had created man and had done everything necessary to protect and take care of only his Shiite believers.

  It was a simple, straightforward response which, of course, ignored the entire controversy. Moreover, it claimed that Allah did not actually take anyone else into consideration, and that the blood of these people could be spilled with no consequences. The only deity in existence was Allah, the Shiite God. End of story.

  As if it had been waiting for the first reaction to be made, the Vatican responded immediately. The press release was phrased with the full cooperation of Protestant religious authorities.

  “There are no differences of opinion between us and the Protestants on this central topic,” it declared. “With all due respect to scientists, as far as believers like us are concerned, nothing has happened. Our absolute faith requires no scientific proof. We feel God inside us at every moment, and carry Him with us wherever we go. Our God loves all people, both those who have faith in Him and those who deny Him.

  “God created the entire world and determined its rules, which are investigated by scientists, who occasionally discover new ones. At His will, these rules persist, and at His will, he may change them. God created the world and everything upon it. He created both the believers and the heretics. God loves all people and does not discriminate between them.

  “The Muslims’ Allah commands them to murder those who deny Him. It is impossible that a God who created the entire world and controls every aspect of it would order some of his creations, the products of his will, to murder others, also created by Him. Therefore, there is no doubt that the God who created the world chose us to walk the righteous path, rather than the Muslims.”

  The euphoria and sense of unity among the different religions that had pervaded much of the public in the days and weeks after the president’s speech, as well as the conciliatory panel in which the religious representatives had taken part, had been entirely blown to bits. Apparently, the quiet prevailing in the interval was covering up a process in which the opposing forces grew increasingly strained, gathering ammunition, biting their nails, and waiting eagerly for the eruption.

  The Vatican’s response broke down the dam that had been holding back the forces of evil. From that moment on, all the volcanoes erupted, and the sort of scenes that had been part and parcel of humanity since religions were first created resumed at full force. Every religion and every denomination appropriated the correct way to worship God solely for itself. In a newly initiated race, the sages of Christianity and Islam turned night into day in their search for verses in their scriptures proving this fact. Not a day went by without one of them providing “conclusive proof.”

  The public media debates also made their way into the churches, the mosques, and the streets. Riots broke out in most European cities with a significant Muslim population. Tensions between the various religions and sects, which had seemingly eased for many years, reawakened with new vigor. Police and military action, required to quell the riots in several cities in France, resulted in many injuries, including some casualties among the protesters.

  A strident speech by the Muslim prime minister further fueled the flames, intensifying the riots, which often involved firearms. The results were many casualties, neighborhoods under siege, and streets that became unsafe to walk through. For lack of any other options, an emergency military regime was declared in Paris and Marseilles, the two French cities with a Muslim majority.

  Sweden, in which there was also a Muslim majority, followed France in declaring a state of emergency. In Brussels, an extreme speech by the Muslim mayor inciting against Christians and Jews triggered violent riots throughout the city, forcing the Belgian government to also declare a state of emergency and send military reinforcements to its capital.

  The riots in Europe paled in significance compared to the situation in the Arab countries. In Teheran, the goaded masses burst into the American and Russian embassies, killing everyone present and setting the buildings on fire. The images of horror distributed throughout the world also ignited the streets of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, in which buildings associated with the West were set on fire along with their residents.

  Militant European movements that had flourished throughout the continent as Islam spread, acquiring a variety of armaments, took to the streets. They confronted Islamic movements, equipped with weapons o
f their own, while military and police forces tried to separate the warring factions and calm the streets once more, with only partial success.

  The giant mosques in Paris and London were torched, followed by mosques in additional cities. The civil war pitting Muslims against Christians spread like wildfire throughout Europe, leaving many injured and dead, as well as many mosques, churches, synagogues, public institutions, and residences burned to the ground. The news channels reported massive deployment of American and Russian military forces to the Middle East.

  Chapter 40

  The Emergency Meeting

  The United Nations, Wednesday, December 31, 2036

  The emergency meeting convened by the secretary-general of the United Nations on the last day of 2036 devolved into a scene of fist-fighting, hair-pulling, and tearing of clothes among the representatives of the Muslim countries, as well as between them and the Western delegates.

  The news channels began to report that the major Muslim countries, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, had their armies at the ready and had prepared their nuclear weapons for launching, declaring they would not hesitate to use them if they felt threatened. The rising tension required the United States, China, and Russia to raise their levels of military alert as well, preparing their armies for action. All vacations were canceled, and the level of alert was raised to DEFCON 1, the final alert level preceding global war.