Post by pantsparty on May 24, 2012 12:52:22 GMT -5
Speaking of religion and all.
I was raised Catholic, and I believed in its tenants growing up. Around 18/19 I started questioning the Catholic Church. I guess I'm still a Catholic, but not really. We did not get married in a church, which upset my mom and other family members, I'm sure, but whatevs.
Up until my brother died, I thought there was "something" out there, but basically it was powerless. Prayer, going to church, and those types of things were not important. Moreso, how you lived your life was important, if anything.
Since my brother died, I feel very conflicted. This probably sounds stupid, but I really thought there would be a "sign" that his spirit is kicking it somewhere. That's a really stupid expectation, I know. I do not believe I have received any "signs" and at times I feel crushed with grief thinking I will never, ever see him again.
I am fascinated by people who are atheists and feel fine with the thought that when we're dead, we're dead. That is not a comforting thought to me.
Feel free to type out your own long-ass commentary.
Post by spitforspat on May 24, 2012 12:54:30 GMT -5
I don't believe in anything happening after death. This isn't necessarily comforting. But, I can't bring myself to believe that somewhere all the souls of every living thing still exist.
Post by bluesmoothie on May 24, 2012 12:55:52 GMT -5
This is what I believe. I cut and pasted it:
In fact, the answer is very simple, and not at all mysterious. After a person dies, the energy in his or her body goes where all organisms' energy goes after death: into the environment. When a human dies, the energy stored in his or her body is released in the form of heat, and transferred into the animals that eat us (i.e., wild animals if we are left unburied, or worms and bacteria if we are interred), and the plants that absorb us. If we are cremated, the energy in our bodies is released in the form of heat and light.
When we eat dead plants and animals, we are consuming their energy and converting it for our own use. Food is metabolized when digested, and chemical reactions release the energy the animal needs to live, move, reproduce, etc. That energy does not exist in the form of a glowing, ghostly ball of electromagnetic energy, but rather in the form of heat and chemical energy.
Many ghost hunters say they can detect the electric fields created by ghosts. And while it's true that the metabolic processes of humans and other organisms actually do generate very low-level electrical currents, these are no longer generated once the organism dies. Because the source of the energy stops, the electrical current stops — just as a light bulb turns off when you switch off the electricity running to it.
Most of the "energy" that any dead person leaves behind takes years to re-enter the environment in the form of food; the rest dissipates shortly after death, and is not in a form that can be detected years later with popular ghost-hunting devices like electromagnetic field (EMF) detectors. Ghost hunters who repeat the claim that Einstein's theories provide a sound basis for ghosts reveal less about ghosts than they do about their poor understanding of basic science. Ghosts may indeed exist, but neither Einstein nor his laws of physics suggests that ghosts are real.
Post by eightangryreindeer on May 24, 2012 12:56:44 GMT -5
tenets
I believe that whatever you believe is what happens to you. Faith is a powerful and fabulous mystery and when the most intelligent people can be met with the most rational arguments and still maintain it, that is amazing. This is not to say that I really buy into a physical manifestation of heaven, like doing it on a cloud in a pink Trans Am while cherubs strum harps all around you. I don't believe it's a physical place.
Personally I believe that there is no life after death other than a merge into the collective unconscious. The motivation to do good works in life is not heaven, it is the drive to touch as many people's lives in a positive way while we are here on Earth, alive, so that we may be remembered after our death, even if only in tiny, seemingly insignificant ways.
I don't believe in the Heaven and Hell thing, really.
I think there's a possibility that we die and our spirits leave our bodies. Just kind of mingle around in the atmosphere.
Or, we just die and that's it.
IDK. None of it worries me, though. It used to, for a long time. Now, I just look at it as another part of life.
I used to think like this. Just like, "When we die, we die, man. NBD." But now it actually worries me. Which is totally pointless, because death is a-comin' for all of us.
Nothing. But it is important what you did during your life. Immortality is in what you leave behind.
I still catch myself thinking about my mom "looking over us" in the spirit sense. Then I remember what I believe and fully grasp that all she taught me is what is present and looks after me and my kid.
I don't believe in the Heaven and Hell thing, really.
I think there's a possibility that we die and our spirits leave our bodies. Just kind of mingle around in the atmosphere.
Or, we just die and that's it.
IDK. None of it worries me, though. It used to, for a long time. Now, I just look at it as another part of life.
I used to think like this. Just like, "When we die, we die, man. NBD." But now it actually worries me. Which is totally pointless, because death is a-comin' for all of us.
Nothing. But it is important what you did during your life. Immortality is in what you leave behind.
I still catch myself thinking about my mom "looking over us" in the spirit sense. Then I remember what I believe and fully grasp that all she taught me is what is present and looks after me and my kid.
I believe in reincarnation, similar to bluesmoothie's analogy, but with some differences. I believe energy can manifest in many different ways, hence we have spirits and ghosts, but essentially we are all renewable energy, if that makes any sense.
when we die, we die. we're done. i do feel comforted that that's it. i mean, obviously the idea of living forever in a magical, completely wonderful place is nice, but the idea that this is it, this is all we get is comforting in it's own way.
I believe in reincarnation, similar to bluesmoothie's analogy, but with some differences. I believe energy can manifest in many different ways, hence we have spirits and ghosts, but essentially we are all renewable energy, if that makes any sense.
No, my post had nothing to do with recincarnation. Basically my post said that when we die we become food or fertilizer.
I believe that whatever you believe is what happens to you. Faith is a powerful and fabulous mystery and when the most intelligent people can be met with the most rational arguments and still maintain it, that is amazing.
Personally I believe that there is no life after death other than a merge into the collective unconscious. The motivation to do good works in life is not heaven, it is the drive to touch as many people's lives in a positive way while we are here on Earth, alive, so that we may be remembered after our death, even if only in tiny, seemingly insignificant ways.
Whoops. LOL @ tenants.
I think I prefer to think of it this way. I was watching an episode of Into the Wormhole on death with my H and it was interesting how there were different opinions among scientists. The one scientist pointed out just that: that people live on in others' memories. Which is different than "going on" or whatever, but still a comforting thought.
When we die, we die. A friend of mine said her grandpa used to say that when he would be dead, he would do anything in his power to keep in touch with them. They are still waiting for a sign. So yeah.
That's why I said "similar"- energy=energy=energy. Even if we become food or fertilizer, we are reincarnating through the earth. I don't think reincarnation is necessarily a tangible being (i.e. we turn into a goat, or fish or whatever), but our energy floats around. I'm definitely not trying to twist your words, however, and I apologize if it came across that way.
When we die, we die. A friend of mine said her grandpa used to say that when he would be dead, he would do anything in his power to keep in touch with them. They are still waiting for a sign. So yeah.
Didn't Houdini's wife wait for years after his death for him to visit her, or am I thinking of someone else?
I think that if you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, then you go to heaven, but I'm clearly in the minority here, along with most topics that come up on ML.
Post by janiejones on May 24, 2012 13:09:42 GMT -5
I waiver between feeling like nothing at all happens, and not being able to shake the notion that sometimes people stick.
I grew up in two different houses that felt haunted.... not just to me/my family, and not in a bad way. The second family home was my grandparents before we lived there, and there were times they still felt like they were around.
So I don't know. But I don't believe in a heaven, or a hell, or any other strange afterlife. I therefore don't act in way to expect judgement after life, not do I think packing myself into a tomb of honey & gold will bring me riches in the after.
I think that if you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, then you go to heaven, but I'm clearly in the minority here, along with most topics that come up on ML.
I think that if you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, then you go to heaven, but I'm clearly in the minority here, along with most topics that come up on ML.
Sucks for all those babies that have died. They didn't believe. Or did Jesus give them a pass? At what age do you not get a pass anymore?
I think nothing happens, you just die. Youre buried and thats the end. I think lots of people NEED to believe this isnt the end, and thats fine for them but I think this is it.
When we die, we die. A friend of mine said her grandpa used to say that when he would be dead, he would do anything in his power to keep in touch with them. They are still waiting for a sign. So yeah.
See, this is how most people believe in ghosts. Most people would take the most random inane things as signs. Ooh, I found a penny from the year 1952. Grandpa was born in 1925. It's a sign! Oh look, a blue Thunderbird just drove past us. Grandpa always wanted a blue Thunderbird. He's giving us a sign! Look, an old man wearing black socks and sandals...just like Grandpa....it's a sign!
I think that if you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, then you go to heaven, but I'm clearly in the minority here, along with most topics that come up on ML.