The End of the World!

No Life Ahead!

My first reaction to a headline such as the one I have chosen for this post would be “Oh, really? Has it happened after all?” See, the message of the end of the world has been trivialized to the extent that it no longer poses an immediate threat to life. It no longer elicits the excitement and anxiety that it did, perhaps when it was mentioned to the early converts in Antioch. Even perhaps closer to home, the events preceding the Great Disappointment in 1844 exemplify the anxiety that grips a population as rumors of the end of the world percolate the ranks of the general public. But these widely circulated rumors might just be the reason there are fewer organized groups of people nervous about the end of the world. [More…]
The 1844 Millerites were convinced that the end of the world would surely come in the month of October of 1844. In fact, one Adventist at the time, Samuel S. Snow, had calculated an exact date for the D-day. They waited, waited some more, then a little more. The Messiah didn’t show up, and the sun continued to rise and set as usual. The world proved stronger than their faith. Many were greatly disappointed.
Of course, before 1844 astrologers and astronomers had their views about the world and had began to foresee the end of the world. An astrologer and occultist, Nostradamus (16th Century AD) predicted the end of the world would come in the 21st century. In fact, speculative scientists have recently pinpointed the exact date prophesied by Nostradamus: December 21st, 2012. A more delayed end of earth prediction places the date on April 13, 2029, when a near miss encounter between the Earth and asteroid 99942 Apophis is expected to trigger some apocalyptic event. Consistent with natural laws of action and reaction, dooms day scientists have proposed scenarios for the end of the world.
Early this year, the History Channel ran a miniseries collectively known as Armageddon Week, in which the end of the world scenarios were discussed at length vis-a-vis past and present end-of-the-world prophesies. The discussions were very intriguing, and though highly speculative, reminded me that once again organized societies are actively springing into action to preach the message of the end of the world. Only this time, religion has receded to a lesser stage than science.
I do not deny the possibility that the world might come to some end some day, but my religion certainly doesn’t teach me that the world is going to experience a gruesome demise. I know from my reading of the Holy Bible that God is going to cleanse the world of sin, much like the way a miner cleanses a mineral of its ore – using fire (Revelation 20, 21). Also, I know that there will be survivors even in the face of the prophesied conflagration that will dissolve the heavens and the earth. It is a very hopeful picture.
But the end of the world scenarios proposed by present-day scientists is very disquieting. One picture portrays a super volcano (Yellowstone) erupting, decimating the entire US Population and creating a cascade of destruction and desolation on the planet. Surviving this scenario is entirely upto chance, but the threat is safely removed from the near future.
There are other scenarios that are closer to home than others. War has been identified as a major cause of mass murder and destruction. Until now, conflicts have been waged largely by use of artillery. However, on occasions weapons engineered to kill by indiscriminate infection of fatal ailments have proved successful in breaking the spirit of the enemy. For example, in the World War I, small pox was accountable for more deaths than the war itself. Granted, small pox is now a containable problem, but science has advanced to such levels as to allow artificial modification of microorganisms to increase resistance to drugs and vaccines. Other microorganisms naturally have the ability to transform within short periods of time, making development of vaccines a very taunting process. An unchecked release of such microorganisms to the public has not only the potential to decimate entire populations, but also the ability to shut down entire civilizations. As horrifying as it sounds, this scenario does not support the idea of the end of the world. Unless, of course, we think that the end of human life is the end of the world – which is a gross fallacy.
Even the worst possible scenario that proposes that the earth might get sucked into a black hole is not foolproof. First, black holes are poorly understood, except that they are insatiable voids somewhere in space, hungry for anything that responds to gravity. Eight years ago, NASA made a discovery very much like any other. Date: April 18, 2000; Event: Observation of XTE J1118+480; Identity: Black Hole. However, this black hole was different. Apparently, having devoured its immediate resources, it had ventured away to look for greener pastures. It had numerous choices, really, but it chose to head for Earth. Chance? Or perhaps it tossed a coin?
Nevertheless, the black hole has started its 6000 years light years long distance journey to Earth. When it reaches the Earth’s atmosphere (assuming we’ll be around to see it) some scientists have drawn a possible scenario for us to preview its dramatic entry and subsequent end of the world. Our bodies will begin to stretch upwards (I am guessing longer necks than those of giraffes), and a home run baseball will no longer fall on some lucky rascal’s lap, for it will forever be lifted towards the bottomless pit. Soon afterward we’d start flying – continuously upward. The earth would have to be the last to be sucked into the black hole. And then we magically disappear!
Now, that is what you’d call packed and ready to go.
But, where will we have gone? No one knows. Is a black hole a basket of sorts? All I know is that it is currently described technically as a singularity.
But if in my limited knowledge of physics and astronomy I can be allowed to speculate, I’d say we’d be safely tucked in the singularity as chocolates in a box. Well, not quite in the ordered fashion of a regular cubical box, but packed, nonetheless. Also, we’d try to move but we’d be pulled toward the center of the black hole so that movement is restricted. As the black hole continues to consume more planets, asteroids, oceans and other things in its path, we’d be drenched, squashed, ground and pressed against all sorts of things. It’d not be surprising to share the same space with an elephant and not be able to cry out for help because the immense gravity inside the black hole would permanently cause the lower jaw to hang. However, as my assumptions are not inspired by facts, this situation may not exist.
Anyways, I do not believe that the end of the world is neigh. I know that at some point extinctions may occur, but that would only cull a species off the face of the earth. The idea of the end of Earth itself is quite far fetched.

Notes:
1. I do not intend to discredit any scientific observations and discoveries made by NASA and/or other scientific communities about extra terrestrial and celestial threats to life on earth.
2. One website has dedicated its space to the description of apocalyptic events that are either imminent or expected to occur in future generations. Please visit http [:/] /www.nasca.org.uk/index.html for these explanations.
3. The Holy Bible is open for varied interpretations but I believe there is only one truth!