Atheist, Are'nt you scared?

[Aphex_Twin]

The concept of Heaven is perplexing to me. Imagination has never managed to build a serviceable Heaven. The Islamic Heaven has its houris, ever available and ever virginal, so that it becomes an eternal whore house. The Norse Heaven has its heroes feasting at Valhalla and fighting each other between meals, so that it becomes an eternal restaurant and battlefield. The Christian Heaven is usually pictured as a place where everyone has a halo and plunks a harp in order to sing unending hymns of praise to God.

What human being with a modicum of intelligence could stand any such Heavens, or the others that people have invented, for very long? Where is there a heaven with opportunities for reading, for exploring, for interesting conversation, for scientific investigation? I've never heard of one.

If you read John Milton's Paradise Lost you find that his Heaven is described as an eternal sing-along of praise to God. It is no wonder that one-third of the angels rebelled. When they were cast down into Hell, they then engaged in intellectual exercises (read the poem if you don't believe me). Hell or not, they were better off. When I read it, I sympathized strongly with Milton's Satan and considered him the hero of the epic, whether Milton intended that or not.

This is perhaps the best post I've read in a long time. It'd be interesting to see if there is a faith that proposes such a kind of afterlife. It would no doubt be paradoxical as it would be a religion (with a dogma attached to it), which would also promote learning destructive of dogmas. Well, that might be the reason we don't see many around...

 

[Fox Mccloud]

Can you imagine living for 500 years or so? Would it not get boring? I mean, when everyday it's "been there, done that", it will get boring. Now, imagine living in heaven forever. Wouldn't that get boring?

Maybe, but not as boring as the nothing, and that's why the nothing scares me. How is that not logical?

 

[Syterion]

Fear is for theists.

God doesn't send 'em to hell, luiz, they send themselves.

Have you heard of the argument that the people don't have free will? Therefore it isn't their fault.

 

[toh6wy]

How can I fear what I don't know? Of course, I instinctively fear the dying part (most organisms that have any semblance of thought do) - but as long as I live a fairly full life (at least 70 or so), then I wouldn't fear death as long as it wasn't painful. And I definitely don't fear whatever, if anything, there is after death. In fact, I kinda look forward to it. Who knows what it could be? It's the next big adventure. Because I think concepts of hell and the like are so farfetched, I will never fear them (until I actually get there, if it does turn out to exist). And if it turns out that after death we cease to exist, nothing more, then obviously it won't matter because my consciousness won't be around anymore to care.

Maybe, but not as boring as the nothing, and that's why the nothing scares me. How is that not logical?

How is nothingness boring? I certainly didn't find it boring not existing for the several billions of years that the universe existed before my birth. Why would it be any different after my death?

 

[The Last Conformist]

Maybe, but not as boring as the nothing, and that's why the nothing scares me. How is that not logical?

Nothingness isn't boring. You're not there to experience it.

 

[Kozmos]

Well If they make cryogenic tanks that work,just days before my death I would freeze myself so I would float between life and death.

 

[King Alexander]

Fear is for theists.

That's where their faith is based upon: fear of rejection from Heaven. In fact, I'd say that not only they're afraid of death at an imazingly degree, but they even went and evented all these stories to calm down their fearing of death because it'd be bad for their mental health.
I can understand their fear, because all living creatures(animals, in general: humans are animals too) do not want to die, but at some point, one has to accept the way things are and not event stories about it.

Because I think concepts of hell and the like are so farfetched, I will never fear them (until I actually get there, if it does turn out to exist).

For the sake of your hypothesis let's accept that "hell and the like exist" - so what? Go and form your own place, make a few nukes, and nuke them both(Heaven and Hell) to the ground - beware, though; Hell and Heaven could have a nuclear strategic defense, so you must think of 'smarter' nukes to con the system(j/k)

 

[Yom]

Well If they make cryogenic tanks that work,just days before my death I would freeze myself so I would float between life and death.

I agree. The problem is knowing when you are just days before your death. If you are going to die due to some sort of trauma, then it's kinda hard to know when to freeze yourself.

 

[Scuffer]

Aren't you at least a little tine bit scared of your afterlife? If what you say is true, then when you die, there is nothingness, so doesn't that scare you at all?

Not in the slightest - whatever will be will be.

 

[Shadylookin]

God doesn't send 'em to hell, luiz, they send themselves.

who created the people? perhaps they should send the creator to hell since it's obviously his fault.

 

[King Alexander]

My personal bet is that:
a) Hell is doing overtime(works 24h/7d a week) and Satan is really exausted, because all believers have done something that their faith condemns and they were sent in Hell -- Satan has even phoned God to complain about the later's judgement for not accepting anyone in Heaven(!),
b) Hell is really rusted because it's empty as God forgives all believers and they're accepted to Heaven; in fact, even Satan himself has moved there and promised God to be a good boy(and of course, the good Lord forgave him), because, no one can stand loneliness!

So, my good people, as you see, it's futile to believe at all, because all depend on God's forgiveness or not(and on his mood...)

 

[cgannon64]

Have you heard of the argument that the people don't have free will? Therefore it isn't their fault.

Are you arguing that people don't have free will?

That's where their faith is based upon: fear of rejection from Heaven. In fact, I'd say that not only they're afraid of death at an imazingly degree,

You are not a theist, so you're not really fit to speculate on what leads someone to theism.

As a theist, I can tell you that fear of death actually lessens and drives out my belief in God.

who created the people? perhaps they should send the creator to hell since it's obviously his fault.

I suppose your mother and father are to blame for all of your mistakes, then?

 

[Shadylookin]

I suppose your mother and father are to blame for all of your mistakes, then?

nope god is since he supposedly crafted me in my mothers womb

 

[cgannon64]

Well, you sure wiggled your way out of that one, didn't you?

 

[Fox Mccloud]

they even went and evented all these stories to calm down their fearing of because it'd be bad for their mental health.

STOP SAYING IT'S MADE UP!!! Maybe, just Maybe Jesus was the son of god, and MAYBE he was right about everything!! You want a logical arguement? Well, I guess that when you say everything someone believes in is such and such, then when he comes back to tell you to be more tolerant, you put your fingers into your ear, then sing to the top of your worthless voices: "lalalalalalala! Ignoring you!" Then you won the arguement. Is that how you think? All you have to do to win is say: "I'm right and your wrong, so and that's that. Am I correct in assuming this? Is this how you think?

 

[The Last Conformist]

Why shouldn't he assume it's all made up?

 

[klopolov]

STOP SAYING IT'S MADE UP!!! Maybe, just Maybe Jesus was the son of god, and MAYBE he was right about everything!! You want a logical arguement? Well, I guess that when you say everything someone believes in is such and such, then when he comes back to tell you to be more tolerant, you put your fingers into your ear, then sing to the top of your worthless voices: "lalalalalalala! Ignoring you!" Then you won the arguement. Is that how you think? All you have to do to win is say: "I'm right and your wrong, so " and that's that. Am I correct in assuming this? Is this how you think?

If you want a logical argument show some proof that he is wrong, stop SHOUTING and flaming about people not being tolerant enough. "Maybe" is not a good premise in any argument, concrete facts and evidence are. If you can put forth some facts and evidence, you will have a logical argument. So far, you have not even tried to provide any.

 

[Rhye]

I am very afraid of dying. It's curious to see from the poll how many of you aren't.

 

[King Alexander]

Maybe, just Maybe Jesus was the son of god, and MAYBE he was right about everything!!

So??? I refuse to worship him as my God or to worship any God at all --- I'll have to talk with him first, see what he believes in(his ideas about a lot of things), his personality/character, because I think that he wouldn't like what's written in the 2 Bibles, and if we're in agreement, he can be my best friend!

You want a logical arguement? Well, I guess that when you say everything someone believes in is such and such, then when he comes back to tell you to be more tolerant, you put your fingers into your ear, then sing to the top of your worthless voices: "lalalalalalala! Ignoring you!"

I don't ignore anyone who replies to my posts, why do you say this? You mean, that I don't read the various answers all the posters posted? I read them.
What annoys me is that most of the religious things are coming from the Bibles, because Jesus or God(or the Holy Spirit) wrote NOTHING - all these books were written by men, and all put their own morals, thoughts and stance-of-life inside them --- (nevermind the fact that they coppied Isiodus' Genesis to write a variant-Bible, so a lot of the ideas in the Bible wasn't even their thoughts) ---. People then assumed that God really intended to say what is written in the Bibles...

I don't disagree at all with most of the basic/general ideas of the majority of religions - it's what keeps a society organised, what keeps it together and not turn it into Anarchy - those principles were true for a lot of civilizations before Christianism appeared, so, no problem there.

Then you won the arguement. Is that how you think? All you have to do to win is say: "I'm right and your wrong, so " and that's that. Am I correct in assuming this? Is this how you think?

I don't care about winning an arguement at the eyes of other people - victory can be achieved with many ways: what do I care is to make them use their logic and make logical conclusions, make them to not be afraid of letting free their Thought and not to be afraid to challenge anything --- they'll find out for themselves what is good for them and for the society(don't forget long-term consequences).

 

[punkbass2000]

The myth of Jesus Christ does not scare me in the least.