Nothing a person could experience in life on Earth proves or disproves the basic idea that there is an afterlife of some sort in which human consciousness lives on. No sensory experience provides anything more than potentially misleading perceptions of an external world of matter (with the exception of truths about the sense of touch necessitating an external world [1]) and no introspective experience provides anything more than an exploration of one's own mind and its thoughts, perceptions, and desires. In short, neither kind of experience establishes that an afterlife does or does not exist because neither can illuminate what happens after biological death.
There is not even a way to logically prove that there must or must not be an afterlife independent of specific experiences in life, as the only things one could prove about the general concept of an afterlife would be things like the fact that a post-mortem conscious existence is only possible if it does not violate the laws of logic or contradict itself. To put it differently, reason proves that certain ideas about the afterlife could be true or could not be true, but there is still no way to know if the possible kinds of afterlife are really true or not. There is not even just one kind of afterlife that is logically possible!
What form an afterlife might take, whether reincarnation to another life on Earth or on some other planet, a spiritual void without matter comprised of empty space and unembodied consciousnesses, or a different physical plane where mind-body composites dwell like the heaven of Biblical theology, is up in the air. All of these are logically possible even though reincarnation is less like the conventional idea of an afterlife than the others. As long as there are no metaphysical or conceptual contradictions, a thing is possible even if it is unverifiable or unfalsifiable.
That multiple kinds of afterlife are logically possible, though, does not mean there is not evidence for a particular version of it. Just as the historical and broader evidence for the veracity of the Bible (which is something that by nature could only be proven in part at most) means there is evidence for the moral obligations described therein, the evidence for the veracity of the Bible means there is evidence for the kind of afterlife described therein. Of course, not only do most Christians and non-Christians thoroughly misunderstand the heaven and hell of Biblical theology in various ways, but the existence of an afterlife could not be proven by any means before death.
Lastly, there are reasons why a person might contemplate the subject that have nothing to do with an emotional desire to be reunited with dead friends and family (or, if they are still alive, to eventually be together again when all are dead), however. It is not true that someone who realizes an afterlife is possible just believes one actually exists or that it must be anything other than free of contradictions if it does. An afterlife might even be one of incredible temporary or eternal torment for every single human, after all, or one that has little relationship to the uncaused cause. The possibility of an afterlife is something no rational person mistakes for anything but that--not a certainty or a myth, but a genuine possibility that could take many forms if it truly does exist.
As a Christian, with regards to the possible lack of an afterlife, I seem to alternate between finding that prospect (along with it's implications) horrifying and finding it oddly comforting. I mean with all the toil, heartbreak, disappointment, frustrtion and even tragedies we go through in life, it sometimes is very exhausting to continue existing even when you want to continue doing so. An eternal sleep or diseappearing of consciousness would almost seem like a relief. Plus, it's not even like you would have any time to react to no afterlife the second you finally do pass away. There would be no more perceptions or thoughts, and thus no more anxiety or despair
ReplyDeleteLol I know that may be kinda dark and depressing, but I mean any guesses we make about what happens after we die (including denial of one) is speculation because of our current limitations like you said. I mean even the people who say something like "everything will just go dark" seem to picture something like a black abyss, I wonder in response what if it's actually a WHITE blank void? You wouldn't know either way after permenently dying, you certainly wouldn't know while alive and even if they're correct, you wouldn't even have the satisfaction of telling me "I told you so." haha
Thee Bible seems to only talk a little about life in Heaven and even then is poetic and vague about it. It would still be good getting glorified and renewed bodies, because I think that would similarly mean no more anxiety or despair, but difference is we'd still be able to feel pleasurable emotions in paradise with God and likely live on without the capacity to be mentally or physically fatigued.
Anyway, I think I'm just brain dumping lol. It's been a while since we've spoken so I wanted to just share my candid thoughts about this subject!
Now that I'm halfway through my 20s, I can definitely relate to having either of those attitudes towards the possibility of no afterlife. Even smaller trials can really wear down on people as years go by. Ironically, the smaller trials have never really bothered me like that except in the shadow of the bigger trials, but it sounds like we've both had plenty of experiences like that. Sometimes I'm still genuinely surprised on one level that non-rationalists even find the motivation to continue living at all. Some of the phrasing you used in that first paragraph really reminds me of Ecclesiastes, which makes me want to read it again soon! Haha
DeleteI've never thought about the white void idea before! Now that I think about it, pretty much everyone I've seen who describes a lack of afterlife, whether in a movie or show or as a general concept, does say or imply they think it's a black, matterless void. Even then, like when someone in entertainment like Game of Thrones dies and resurrects to say that there was "nothing" after death, they would still either actually have experienced something to even perceived this "nothingness," and thus it wasn't "nothing" at all (and logical truths and empty space would still exist anyway), or they could have lost their memories of whatever else could have been experienced.
I've wondered why there are so few Biblical details about heaven when even the minimal details about hell, other than things pertaining to justice or annihilationism or it being created for demons, are more common. Paul's statement in 1 Corinthians 2 about how no eye has seen or ear has heard what awaits the saved at least suggests it will be incredibly fulfilling on an objective and subjective level. After all, an eternity of enjoying ANY nonsinful pleasure, from relishing self-awareness to spending time with friends to being in the more immediate presence of God to enjoying sexuality and beyond, would be the ultimate paradise! And Revelation saying that every tear will be wiped away does certainly have ramifications even for the lack of physical and mental fatigue you mentioned.
As always, I love your brain dumping and look forward to it every single time! Was your Christmas alright? I hope 2022 is going to be a much better year for us than these last two years of ridiculous world events have been! I would love a less year of less ridiculous events or poor reactions to such events. Lol Also, I'm so sorry it took me this long to actually reply!
Haha I actually did read Ecclesiastes relatively recently. It's for sure my favorite book from the Old Testament. A lot of the wisdom in that one is timeless and definitely reasonates with me.
DeleteHonored to know I gave an original idea for you to work with haha. But no, you're right with how the "infinite blackness" is usually portrayed in media. Maybe people do seem to think that's what it could be like but perhaps it's also that way because it perfectly captures the overwhelming anxiety one may feel when confronting that idea.
That verse by Paul is definitely on the money. Heaven very well may be way more than what we're expecting now, not some kind of "fluffy clouds with harps" land. I think there was a time where even the thought a good eternity made me kind of uncomfortable, but probably only because I can't fully comphrehend infinity and assuming that I'd still exist and feel as I do on Earth currently. Someone raised a plausible point that maybe the afterlife isn't spoken alot about in scripture because God wants us to prioritize living a flourishing and good life NOW, instead of letting it pass us by waiting for "the better part" or avoiding being consumed by anxiety over our own mortality.
My Christmas was fine! Thanks for asking. Hoping yours was a good one as well. Definitely hoping next year is a nice change of pace from all the insanity as well haha. No need to apologize by the way, it's all good!
Ecclesiastes is one of my favorites, and it doesn't get enough recognition from general Christians despite being one of the most relevant to people across different points in their life. Now I really am going to need to reread it!
DeleteYou're the only person I know who has ever brought that up, which is pretty cool! Since you mentioned that, I've thought about how a void could be practically any color even if no one existed long enough to perceive it. Now I'll be hyperfocused on these details the next time I hear anyone talk about this aspect of the issue. Lol
The harps and clouds idea of heaven is such an unbiblical concept. If anything, heaven would be more like Eden, a place of psychological bliss and heightened spiritual/social intimacy. Eden isn't described as thoroughly as it could have been either, but it's the best comparison from the Bible that we have. It is far more important that we understand and fulfill our moral obligations than it is that we know the details of an afterlife that probably awaits us, so that's very likely why there isn't much information about heaven, but anticipating a composite mind-body existence free of physical decay, mental illness, and hopefully even epistemological limitations as well does make Christian life so different from expecting a literal extension of current emotional difficulties and personal trials.
You're welcome, and mine was good too! I've just got a lot going on with my family outside of Texas for now. If 2022 is just as intense as 2020 and 2021, I'm going to be so disappointed. Haha