Do you believe in life after death?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why does God answer some prayers and not others?
How could a loving God allow Newtown?

I am hopeful that there is a God but I find it hard to believe in God or life after death.

And, this is what complicates it for me. There are a slew of situations where I think: how could a loving, merciful god allow this to happen? Number 1 on the list are the things that happened at the hands of his representatives: the rape and abuse of children who were in his care or service. I can't get past how, if he exists, he could allow that to happen.

[Anonymous]

yes I do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous



Why does God answer some prayers and not others?
How could a loving God allow Newtown?

I am hopeful that there is a God but I find it hard to believe in God or life after death.

Because God gave mankind free will. He does not move us around like chess pieces on a board. Mankind has the ability to create great good but also great evil. I believe God is saddened beyond measure when we do wrong.

By your analysis, god created mankind the free will to do "great evil." He is responsible for giving human beings that capacity. Why couldn't god have created mankind the ability to do, without doing such awfulness? Is he not omnipotent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does God answer some prayers and not others?
How could a loving God allow Newtown?

I am hopeful that there is a God but I find it hard to believe in God or life after death.

And, this is what complicates it for me. There are a slew of situations where I think: how could a loving, merciful god allow this to happen? Number 1 on the list are the things that happened at the hands of his representatives: the rape and abuse of children who were in his care or service. I can't get past how, if he exists, he could allow that to happen.

He allowed his sinless son to be killed, just for our sakes.

[Anonymous]

No. There's no evidence for it and no reason to think it would be the case given what we know about the brain.

[Anonymous]

Nope.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does God answer some prayers and not others?
How could a loving God allow Newtown?

I am hopeful that there is a God but I find it hard to believe in God or life after death.

And, this is what complicates it for me. There are a slew of situations where I think: how could a loving, merciful god allow this to happen? Number 1 on the list are the things that happened at the hands of his representatives: the rape and abuse of children who were in his care or service. I can't get past how, if he exists, he could allow that to happen.

He allowed his sinless son to be killed, just for our sakes.

And what a dumb thing that was to do

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does God answer some prayers and not others?
How could a loving God allow Newtown?

I am hopeful that there is a God but I find it hard to believe in God or life after death.

And, this is what complicates it for me. There are a slew of situations where I think: how could a loving, merciful god allow this to happen? Number 1 on the list are the things that happened at the hands of his representatives: the rape and abuse of children who were in his care or service. I can't get past how, if he exists, he could allow that to happen.

God does not have representatives, that is not what a pastor, clergy person is.
Also, just because someone says they are a person of God(be it a christian, jew, pastor, rabbi, etc) doesn't make it so.
I can call myself Bill Gates, but it doesn't make it so.
You tell people by their fruit

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do. Not in the Christian teaching of Heaven/Hell, but I believe our psychic energy persists in some manner. I think there is so much that we can't understand or explain, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I agree with this. As Einstein said, energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another. I believe energy persists after death, and that our spirit just returns to being one with the universe. Same thing with matter - neither created nor destroyed, but returned to the living Earth or ocean, to persist forever in some form.

So, yes, I am a kook and that's okay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do. Not in the Christian teaching of Heaven/Hell, but I believe our psychic energy persists in some manner. I think there is so much that we can't understand or explain, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I agree with this. As Einstein said, energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another. I believe energy persists after death, and that our spirit just returns to being one with the universe. Same thing with matter - neither created nor destroyed, but returned to the living Earth or ocean, to persist forever in some form.

So, yes, I am a kook and that's okay.

I guess folks are free to believe whatever they want, but this article addresses the common pseudo-scientific notions of energy persisting after death.


http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2011/05/23/physics-and-the-immortality-of-the-soul/

The gist:

Claims that some form of consciousness persists after our bodies die and decay into their constituent atoms face one huge, insuperable obstacle: the laws of physics underlying everyday life are completely understood, and there’s no way within those laws to allow for the information stored in our brains to persist after we die.


Lots of people who don't understand quantum mechanics try to bring that into the discussion, but it's just not relevant. Sorry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do. Not in the Christian teaching of Heaven/Hell, but I believe our psychic energy persists in some manner. I think there is so much that we can't understand or explain, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I agree with this. As Einstein said, energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another. I believe energy persists after death, and that our spirit just returns to being one with the universe. Same thing with matter - neither created nor destroyed, but returned to the living Earth or ocean, to persist forever in some form.

So, yes, I am a kook and that's okay.

I guess folks are free to believe whatever they want, but this article addresses the common pseudo-scientific notions of energy persisting after death.


http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2011/05/23/physics-and-the-immortality-of-the-soul/

The gist:

Claims that some form of consciousness persists after our bodies die and decay into their constituent atoms face one huge, insuperable obstacle: the laws of physics underlying everyday life are completely understood, and there’s no way within those laws to allow for the information stored in our brains to persist after we die.


Lots of people who don't understand quantum mechanics try to bring that into the discussion, but it's just not relevant. Sorry.

It's a metaphor. I am guessing you don't understand that.

[Anonymous]

I don't know but I do know this: my dad passed away in February after a long bout of cancer. We had bought him an IPad for movies, music and games during chemo. After he passed away, the IPad was given back to us, and my DH had left everything my dad had downloaded, including his music. During a week in early August, after my young DC cried to me one night after missing his grandpa, the IPad would come on at random times, even after turning the IPad completely off. It would play his favorite Ray Charles songs - we pretty much freaked out. Happened for about a week, and hasn't happened since.

My DH completely shut if off, put it in a case, and he heard it playing music. FREAKY!!!!

[Anonymous]

yes definitely and I always have been sure even though my parents are atheists. check out the near death experience accounts at nderf.org.

[Anonymous]

And PP, I am sorry for your loss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do. Not in the Christian teaching of Heaven/Hell, but I believe our psychic energy persists in some manner. I think there is so much that we can't understand or explain, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I agree with this. As Einstein said, energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another. I believe energy persists after death, and that our spirit just returns to being one with the universe. Same thing with matter - neither created nor destroyed, but returned to the living Earth or ocean, to persist forever in some form.

So, yes, I am a kook and that's okay.

I guess folks are free to believe whatever they want, but this article addresses the common pseudo-scientific notions of energy persisting after death.


http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2011/05/23/physics-and-the-immortality-of-the-soul/

The gist:

Claims that some form of consciousness persists after our bodies die and decay into their constituent atoms face one huge, insuperable obstacle: the laws of physics underlying everyday life are completely understood, and there’s no way within those laws to allow for the information stored in our brains to persist after we die.


Lots of people who don't understand quantum mechanics try to bring that into the discussion, but it's just not relevant. Sorry.

It's a metaphor. I am guessing you don't understand that.

You're right, I don't. At all. A metaphor for what? The point is that the science here is well understood. It's not a mystery.