Do you believe in life after death?

[DjfunkmasterG]

He's right. It's way more than a few at this point. Y'know what Dj? You just reminded me of something I had completely forgot about, so in that case, I would like to reinstate my *shudder* all together. Are you trying to tell us you were violated by a catholic pedophile? if so we need to have his ass arrested and then raped by BUBBA

[LouCipherr]

There's a touched by an angel joke i WAS going to make. but it's beneath me. DO IT! or as I say to Dj all the time, post it.. POST IT!!!!!! Are you trying to tell us you were violated by a catholic pedophile? if so we need to have his ass arrested and then raped by BUBBA No, I'm just saying I completely forgot the whole catholic priest/fondle little kiddies coverup that goes all the way up to the top of the chain. Sad I forgot that, really.

[DjfunkmasterG]

There's a touched by an angel joke i WAS going to make. but it's beneath me. There is no level too low one can stoop too. I know I keep finding I get deeper and deeper... i think I came out in China recently.

[BillyRay]

Also raised Catholic - Post Vatican II, pretty liberal Archdiose. (By liberal I mean hippy guitar choir, Godspell songs used in mass, and they never really rammed Dogma down our throats) Went to Catholic school for 8 years. When the letter from the parish came 'round about geting Confirmed, I just laughed. By that time I was on autopilot during Mass (Stand up sing sit down kneel sit stand sing shake hands Communion outathere). It wasn't that I had a real problem (at that point) with the Catholic Church per se - I recieved a good foundation in Ethics, a solid elementary education, and the Priests kept their hands to themselves. My problem was other Catholics. Sure, they're dressed up so nice on Sunday, singing with feeling, taking part in the service; but the rest of the week they're the biggest bastards to everyone around them. But the Good Lord forgives Phonies, too. "A Church is not a clubhouse for Saints - it's a hospital for Sinners". Having been raised with a "God is all-loving and all-forgiving" approach; I couldn't comfort myself with visions of Hellfire & Damnation on these people. If Jesus forgives, who the Hell was I to do any less? So, you can see that I was conflicted. So I broke away from Catholicism, and Organized Religion in general. Studied comparative Religion, finding the "Golden Thread" that weaves through every system of belief. Nowadays - I consider myself a Skeptic, with half-assed leanings toward Buddhism. What happens to us after we "die"? That bit of us that we recognize as "I"? I don't know. And y'know what? You don't know either. That's called Faith. I have no problem with Faith. There's only one surefire way to find out what happens to you after death. And that's by dying. You guys first.

[blind2d]

So, yes... I like to believe I'll go to Heaven when I die... I probably won't be interested in a bunch of virgin women (or men, if it comes to that), but yeah... It would be nice if death were just the beginning. It would also be cool to see another plane of existence. Reunite with deceased family members or friends... fun stuff like that. World Industries depicted Heaven as a place where lots of things are not allowed, including skateboarding, which would be sad if it were true, but I find that hard to believe.

[shootemindehead]

Shouldn't there be a third option? "Don't Know". Cos, er, I don't know. ...and nobody else does either.

[Wyldwraith]

Will take the socially non-trendy position/confession, I believe in "The Afterlife"...as based on a more concrete conviction that the soul/essence of an individual is eternal. No evidence, no argument to support this. Just what I believe after quieting the maelstrom of trivial thoughts storming around inside my head, and listening to the "inner Me" (know how silly that sounds), it just seems to click for me that whatever makes me distinct from every other self-aware human being, and what makes all of you distinctly unique, goes on eternally. I even believe in a benevolent, loving Deity/Godhead that, for WHATEVER REASON, has taken a shine to our poor, tragically flawed yet potential-laden species, and that this Eternal Entity *does something* to make Eternity a positive place for all of us to spend our existence in. I've given a ton of thought to the question "Why do I believe this to be true?"...and after all my reading, the various courses in Philosophy, Comparative Religion(s), Cosmology, and simply thinking/considering the subject...the best answer I can come up with is "It feels right to me." I realize that isn't likely to elicit much more than the sort of mature wistfulness adults feel when listening to children explain why they believe in Santa Claus, but it's the most honest, the most heartfelt reason I can come up with as to why I feel and believe as I do. The bottom line is even simpler for me though. Over a third of my life has been spent in every day, all-the-time, mindnumbing, soul crushing pain I pray none of you ever experience. Not just feeling that much agony for X limited period of time, but to live with it constantly and knowing that not only will this agony be with you for an indefinite amount of the foreseeable future, but that its entirely possible you will NEVER be free of the pain so long as you live provides ample reason to believe in something believe in something better once physical life has ended. At least that was my "reasoning" for believing as I do. Mercy is pointless or useless depending on circumstance if limited only to the material world. My .02