What do you think happens when we die?

Commenting to subscribe … having a busy day running a church, but will be along to offer opinions later, or tomorrow if I’m too whacked from being a Christian today

[tweetiepooh]

I'm busy revising for an exam on Church History so am looking at theology that covers this topic including Luther, Calvin and many, many others. It really is the fundamental question even if your answer is that you just stop and that's it.
Where too many people who do believe in an afterlife miss is that it's not just about eternity but also how you live here and now.

[joglynne]

Originally Posted by tweetiepooh

I'm busy revising for an exam on Church History so am looking at theology that covers this topic including Luther, Calvin and many, many others. It really is the fundamental question even if your answer is that you just stop and that's it.
Where too many people who do believe in an afterlife miss is that it's not just about eternity but also how you live here and now.

I agree.

Maybe I'm going off topic and for that I applogise.

My Father always said "it was better to be a virtuous unbeliever who does no harm, tries to be charitable and careing than be a pious Sunday Christian who thinks his misdoings for the rest of the week don't matter." His words not mine but I have always understood his message. I no longer believe in an all seeing entity, or that repenting one's sins some how gives you some kind of free pass into any form of glorious existance after I die.

How I conduct myself every day, the legacy I leave behind and the memories of me held by the people I leave when I die are what counts to me.

Originally Posted by joglynne

I agree.

Maybe I'm going off topic and for that I applogise.

My Father always said "it was better to be a virtuous unbeliever who does no harm, tries to be charitable and careing than be a pious Sunday Christian who thinks his misdoings for the rest of the week don't matter." His words not mine but I have always understood his message. I no longer believe in an all seeing entity, or that repenting one's sins some how gives you some kind of free pass into any form of glorious existance after I die.

How I conduct myself every day, the legacy I leave behind and the memories of me held by the people I leave when I die are what counts to me.

[joglynne]

Originally Posted by Hugh

[img]Download Failed (1)[/img]

Hey I'm trying to be one of the good guys in this life!!!!


However it's not not too bad a look for an 74 year old lady. I wonder what shoes I could get to go with that outfit? I don't think Jimmy Choo does High heeled gold Bover boots.

[Taf]

Someone else will have to do the washing up, shopping and cooking.

[Hom3r]

When you die if buried you decompose, and you become a memory, until those people also die.

[denphone]

When l die they will have to open me up to take the metal objects out of me before l am cremated.

[spiderplant]

Originally Posted by Hom3r

When you die if buried you decompose, and you become a memory, until those people also die.

But your CF posts will live on forever

[idi banashapan]

I think that....

When we die, the neurons stop firing, synapse break down and 'consciousness' ceases to be. At that point, 'you' as the reactive meatbag of chemical reactions and electrical impulses is no more. Our consciousness is then as it was before conception - it simply does not exist. Our experiences gone. Our unique perspective lost (not that this is any different to when we are alive, as only we can relate to our own perspective).

As Roy Batty put it, "...all those moments lost in time, like tears in the rain."

Then our corpse decays, people might mourn, and unless we have acheived an outstanding feat that marked history, we will be out of living memory within 2 to 3 generations.

None of us are special. We are so small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Our place in this universe means nothing. We may affect those around us for the very short time we roam our little towns, but we exist for such a short amount of time in comparison to cosmic entropy, we really are nothing.

Chance brought us here, nature will take us back. Eventually, the composites and compounds that make each of us who we are will degrade and decompose and will be recycled into the universe.

And you know what? That's absolutely fine. The universe is an incredible thing. Events, scales, chemistries and all the other amazing things we cannot even get our heads around because they are so complex and fantastic. It's a privilege being a part of it all for our little moment. We should each embrace that chance. We should enjoy it. And we should help others feel the same way whenever we can. Not because we think there will be some reward at the end of it, because there won't be. But because life can be hard. We could say life is cruel or nature is an unforgiving beast, but it's just nature doing natures thing. It favours nothing and no one and to think it does, especially us, would be foolish. Nature doesn't care. The universe doesn't care. We attribute our own standards and emotions to things we cannot control, but it just doesn't work that way.

It's not a supernatural power working in mysterious ways. There's no ultimate plan. We are here by combination of time and fluke through trial and error. Amazing as it is, and against all odds it may be. But it is so none the less.

So, when we die, we won't know. We won't remember. We won't remain floating about in the sky watching others. We simply won't be.

---------- Post added at 22:03 ---------- Previous post was at 21:48 ----------

Originally Posted by ianch99

I'm not fighting. I thought this is a forum where you can debate people's arguments, opinions and statements. If the OP doesn't want this here then fair enough. If you do not want to respond to my questions then, again fair enough.

I think there is a difference between debating someone's faith in itself, and how someone might implement that faith. Jaymoss has every right to have the faith he/she has, no matter how far fetched or difficult to comprehend it may be for others (and I include myself in that).

Jaymoss' faith itself is not there for debate. How Jaymoss my manifest that faith is a different story. For example, were that faith to be forced on others, or were that faith to deny others not of that faith the ability to express or do things that did not 'fall in line', then we have an issue and we can debate and argue.

So we may not agree about faith, but that alone is and should be fine. Jaymoss is not telling us we are wrong for not believing the same, and at no stage has Jaymoss tried enforcing that faith on us. Let's repay that respect by doing the same back.

The weird thing about being dead is you will never know, or even know you dont know ..... Its a hard concept to get your head around, the closest people get to how it will be is sleep, you dont know you are asleep until you wake up again, but with dying, you never wake up again.

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by denphone

When l die they will have to open me up to take the metal objects out of me before l am cremated.

You could become the first Cyberman Den and never die. It"s definitely the way forward. Don't know what that Time Lord is whinging about.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by idi banashapan

I think there is a difference between debating someone's faith in itself, and how someone might implement that faith. Jaymoss has every right to have the faith he/she has, no matter how far fetched or difficult to comprehend it may be for others (and I include myself in that).

Jaymoss' faith itself is not there for debate. How Jaymoss my manifest that faith is a different story. For example, were that faith to be forced on others, or were that faith to deny others not of that faith the ability to express or do things that did not 'fall in line', then we have an issue and we can debate and argue.

So we may not agree about faith, but that alone is and should be fine. Jaymoss is not telling us we are wrong for not believing the same, and at no stage has Jaymoss tried enforcing that faith on us. Let's repay that respect by doing the same back.

A strange statement. As I mentioned before, as this is a public forum I had assumed that if someone make a statement, you could respond with a counter argument. I am not "enforcing" anything here. Your position here is slightly sinister: do not ask questions or you may offend someone. Sound's familiar?

[Halcyon]

It is sad if there is nothing left to hang on to. We live our lives gathering memories, building relationships, having children, experiencing moments that in the end will just be forgotten.


I'd like to hope there is a place that we can live on and enjoy life even though it may no longer be on earth.

[Jaymoss]

Originally Posted by ianch99

A strange statement. As I mentioned before, as this is a public forum I had assumed that if someone make a statement, you could respond with a counter argument. I am not "enforcing" anything here. Your position here is slightly sinister: do not ask questions or you may offend someone. Sound's familiar?

I made it perfectly clear from the start I did not want to discuss my faith further but you went on and on and on when simply you could have just left it. I wasn't offended I was just pissed off you would not drop it