Everyone looks to the afterlife with fear. We all wonder whether we're going to Heaven or Hell. Our images of these places are shaped by our churches, our parents, and certain books (i.e. Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy). But what if the afterlife is actually the result of our own imagination. We've all learned the general premises of Heaven and Hell and we generally have opinions about who might be going where. What if you go where your conscience leads you to and not just your soul?
There is no definite prose, doctorine or gospel that gives us a definite picture of what Heaven or Hell is like. The Greeks depicted Hades, Dante depicted Hell, Purgatory and Paradise. Those are the only visions we have to go by. What if those are just guidelines?
In my eyes, when you get to Heaven or Hell, you will see the people that you imagined would be there before you left the earth. If you beleive in God and Heaven, you will most likely make it there. If you haven't defined a path for your life in your beliefs, it might be more of a challenge.
Heaven is the final Utopia and oasis of this life. It is the divine place where everything is perfect. It wouldn't really be perfect if your best friends and heroes weren't there, would it? It seems like you will go wherever it is you imagine you will go. Even though your friends may not have been meant to be at your side, their soul and memory will live on through a series of synthesized memories that will reform to play out for an eternity.
Since we draw our own images of Heaven and Hell in our minds, it would seem right that they would end up how we all imagined, no matter how different our opinions are. Every version of the afterlife will be different. Maybe our imaginations merely distort the real image of Heaven. But I don't think that Heaven and Hell are preset places where our souls are plugged into for eternity.
thank you so much for this. its good to see people with open minds, open hearts, and open spirituality.
I dont know if youve seen a movie called "Waking Life" but i recommend it to everyone. Theres a portion of the movie that may interest you...it talks about our dreams that seem to last for days, but in reality when you wake up its only been a few seconds. And they discuss this being the possibility of what heaven is...simply an eternal dream state.
Im always open to thoughts like this, so i thought it was quite interesting.
btw, i love this line:
Heaven is the final Utopia and oasis of this life.
i've never heard it put that way before....and i think i'll borrow that phrase from time to time :) hehe because its SO true and works in whatever religious aspect you are viewing from
peace2u~~kt
Not everyone looks to the afterlife in fear (i.e. atheists, those who, through their faith KNOW they're going to heaven-'know' meaning, they believe according to their faith).
I'm a Catholic and I personally don't fear death/the afterlife, either. It comes to everyone eventually, and I believe that we're all meant to die in certain ways. There's no telling of when, where, or how it will happen, so I don't fear it if I can't stop it.
actually....atheists dont believe in heaven or hell...they dont believe in any kind of afterlife or supreme being at all....
also...i think the point they were trying to make is that a lot of people DO live in fear of the afterlife....if they didnt there wouldnt be as many nice people as there are..... some people are only nice and accepting and spread/live with faith in fear of what happens if they dont. Theyre worried whether they are doing the right or wrong things every day.
they don't believe in heaven or hell, which is PRECISELY why they have no need to fear an afterlife. That was my point.
-_-
And I do understand what their point was. I was just making my own point, for the sake of making a point.
>atheists, those who, through their faith KNOW they're going to heaven
sorry i just got confused cuz if they dont believe in heaven how do they know theyre going there?
hehe dont worry, im not trying to be a smart ass....i just may have been mis reading or somethin maybe? i dunno :)
It should have read: "atheists, AND those who, through their faith...", lol. O.o
ooo i saw that movie!! i loved it and have seen it numerous times!
but yeah, there was scientific research done on religion. those studies say that it is essential for human survival because without concepts of heaven and hell, man would have nothing to live for. they would constantly tremble at the thought of death and that their lives are meaningless. if we didnt have religion or spiritual philosphies, we would be living like the ancient anglo-saxons that believed that the only afterlife was by word of mouth; so they had many battles and conquered many places to keep their legacy alive -- thats all they had to live for. there would be chaos if we didnt have religion.
ironically, richard dawkins, wrote a book about religion and how it is essentially useless and that it brought more problems than solutions -- the crusades to the war in IRAq.
i like your concept of heaven and hell. i used to think like that back when i was optimistic. read my version of heaven in one of my blogs entitled: sex: our purpose in life.
>There is no definite prose, doctorine or gospel that gives us a definite picture of what Heaven or Hell is like.
Here's just some of the verses that I found.
Hell:
Matthew 13:42 - Pain & Sorrow.
Matthew 25:41 - Everlasting Fire.
Luke 16:23-25 - A Place of Torment; Hell is hot.
Revelation 14:11 - No rest.
Revelation 20:10 - Hell is everlasting.
Revelation 20:15 - The unsaved will go to Hell.
2 Peter 2:4 - Hell is dark.
Heaven:
John 14:2 - There are mansions.
Revelation 7:16 - Heaven's not hot.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 - Forever with the Lord.
Mark 16:19 - Jesus sits by God.
Luke 15:7 - Heaven Rejoices.
Revelation 21 - A whole chapter describing heaven.
I looked all of these up in the KJV Bible.
but again, thats the bible (which is not the only form of doctrine/gospel in the world)....thats only one perspective...and theres no PROOF that that is the one true view of heaven....this post gives a definition that covers all views.... that is the definition we should all be seeking.
well i saw on a documentary before that the reason we associate hell with fire and ash and the like is because when jesus was lecturing his students, the best way for him to describe hell was to compare it with the dumpsite they had far away from their town. here, they would burn all the waste -- it was hot, it smelled bad, there was a lot of smoke. so from here we get those popular images of what hell is supposed to be.
well, that. and whatevers in revelations -- the lake of fire, the whores mouth, etc.
I really think everyone will go to Heaven or whatever they believe. I personally don't fear death because I "know" that it is just a phase in a continuous cycle. I'm actually excited about it, not that I expect to die anytime soon.
"But I don't think that Heaven and Hell are preset places where our souls are plugged into for eternity."
I agree
I'm surprised that I haven't received any negative comments on this post. There's always that one...
Just kidding
lol ^_^
Haha. Thanks for that. I saw it coming, but sadly enough I posted it anyway. But it's good to see someone out there still has humor.
wherever I am.
*Misfitmaryjane* well I grew up in the church, and was actually raised southern baptist so you know all fire and brimestone (interesting comming from the liberal bisexual haahahah) anywhore and so I was taught hell was for a place of eternal torment reserved for those who either deny God or do not accept him as their savior, but my idea of hell differs somewhat. I believe that we make our own hell, that if we do go to a hell that it will be the most painful moments of our life replayed over and over for all eternity. However I am not on good terms with god at the moment and am in no way claiming to be any source of authority on the subject.
Hell must be real hellish, if one considers the fact that many as we speak are living hell right now not even reaching the age of 5… But probably there is also an explanation for this in that bestseller.
I don’t recall who wrote that book but I hope he’s enjoying hell right now!
In my heart I hope hell really exists and that we all end up there to have a taste of what we ignore and inflict upon our own species by turning our backs and look the other way.
Shame upon all of us!!!
If you have no clue what I’m talking about, go and see for yourself….
One in six African children dies before the age of five. Most of these deaths could be prevented.
Shame upon all of us!!!
I love how you throw around the word "fact".
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It Changes
screwwed up, sorry