Based on the single Bible reference, 1 Thessalonians 4:17 (New International Version),
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
and a number of obscure references claimed to support or prove that verse, an entire Biblical movement called the Rapture has grown into being. Supported by scholarly-sounding books and both documentary and dramatic films, this concept has taken hold and now forms the basis of what is measurably a complete Christian denomonation if not, indeed, a religion in its own right.
Based in the belief that true believers (Christians only need apply, of course) will be plucked instantly from the earth before the Tribulation (or is it after?) leaving behind all those foolish enough not to believe. One can’t help but wonder these days what, exactly, it is that one must believe in though. What happened to the simplicity of John 3:16 (New International Version),
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
The hoops one must jump through to get past all the pre-Tribulation vs. post-Tribulation vs. no Rapture at all contraversy would make one think there is a new set of rules in play.