Do you believe in heaven/Hell?
I have to say not sure!
Yes
No
Not sure
Do you believe in heaven/Hell?
I have to say not sure!
I say yes.
Yes.
I think that life is hell and when we die it can only get better........does that make sense?
Not sure either, I mean Iam spiritual but I guess we won't know until the time comes or maybe we will never know. I agree that life can be hell on earth and I truly hope there is something beyond this. But then how can we explain what ghosts are? If there is such a thing then why can't they move on? Oh so many mysteries of life!
Yes. Not 100% about Hell, but I believe in heaven.
I thought this was hell!
Guest
Heaven....yes
Hell....hope not
I was torn over how to vote, since I do believe in Heaven but not in Hell. To be precise, I have often felt that this existence is our "hell"....not to say that I'm not making the most of it....but I just have an expectation of something wy better to follow. My lack of belief in hell as defined by Christianity is based on who's to say who suffers for eternity? Sure there are folks who I've fantasized & even suggested go to hell but....I just don't buy into it.
This is all you get folks. If you make hell out of it, it's your own damn fault.
Neither exist, IMO. What we have here is what we get, so make the best of it.
I believe there is a Heaven or some better place we go but I dont believe there is a Hell.
This is all a revolation to me. So many people believe in something good to come but not something bad. Whatever makes you feel good I guess.
Believe me, I won't argue with you on your death bed.
Nope, I'm a non-believer. But if I'm wrong, I'd rather go to hell, its a damn sight warmer.
I just sometimes wonder if when we die thats just it?
Like sleeping forever!!??
I Sure hope not...but I guess We will all find out one the day the answer to this question!!
I'm a non-believer but I've lived a life I can justify if I'm someday judged.
im a strong believer, and nobody can sway my thinking im going to heaven when i die
I think life here on earth is our hell and when we die we go to a better place.
yes. and i'm doing my love of best to make sure I get in good with the man above. I was a REAL piece of shit when I was hooked on dope. and I am trying to make up for all the bad I did by trying to be the best person I can be now.
logic tells me NO... teachings tell me YES. I've always favored logic... so NO.
I believe in God, in The Bible - so yes.
I believe in both places, but in the Biblical sense. More of a relationship aspect than actual physical locations.
The Bible says there is a Hell and a Heaven. So I beleive there is.
George Carlin tells me there is no God... so I guess him and I will be sitting in hell.
I'm Wiccan and Kemetic Orthodox (worship of Egyptian Gods), so Heaven and Hell don't compute in my religious beliefs. That's Judeo/Christian/Islamic stuff, as is Satan. Both Wiccans and KO believe in an afterlife of sorts, but it's not divided up. I know Atheist Wiccans, though. They basically believe in the power of nature and its cycles, but they figure you become mulch after you die- no afterlife.
Cheers,
Amy
Guest
I think I would be more into believing in heaven/hell if there weren't so many other opinions based on different religions. One gets to think Heaven and Hell will be like Grand Central Station, what religion are you? ok you need to be on the 5 train. Ya know, it's just too much to convince myself of... almost feels like brain washing after a while.
Yes I do
I kinda think we are in Hell now
I don't believe in either, so I voted no.
Yes, I believe in Heaven.
I think the value of a person is more than just their physical body.
I feel the spirit of a person, that certain "thing" that can make you love them, that thing that makes them who they are is eternal. There is a spark of life in people and in my mind, that is who we really are.
I respect the opinions of all people on this board but please don't criticize my beliefs and my faith in God by saying He is just a Santa Claus or a pink unicorn.
I am not a buffoon, I am not a moron, I have a personal faith ( am not a born again or anything of that sort) that I hold dear and I by no means belittle the non-believers. Please do not degrade me.
You are not your name, not your social security number or that face you see in the mirror. You are an eternal being having a human experience and not a human being having a spiritual experience.
Last edited by Tugboat25; 11-02-2007 at 03:20 PM.
I'm not convinced it's worth spending time worrrying about what other people believe. If someone wants to declare that God is equivalent to Santa or a pink unicorn, (?) why not let them? As the old saying goes, it's no skin off your nose, right?
I saw a movie earlier today (well, I guess I actually saw it yesterday) and there was an expression used in it that's stuck in my mind. The expression was "Prove all things. Hold fast that which is good."
I'm not convinced that God wants us to go around blindly believing in him. I think he wants us to come to him out of our own Free Will. And as the saying above says, we have to prove all things so that we're comfortable making them a part of our life. And some people just haven't reached that stage yet.
This is not to say that such people are necessarily any "better" or "worse" than people who have reached that stage. I view coming to God as learning to tie your shoes: the fact that you have learned to tie your shoes doesn't make you a "better" person than someone who hasn't learned to tie theirs. It just means you've acquired something that they haven't picked up yet.
At any rate, I can understand why someone might compare God to Santa or to a pink unicorn: they simply haven't seen enough proof to convince them of His existence yet. I feel that all I can do is earnestly hope that they will obtain that proof, and soon.
Again, I can understand your frustration with someone else mocking and scoffing at a set of beliefs that you hold dear. All I'm saying is that their doing so doesn't actually take anything away from you. And that there's every possibility that they may find themselves where you are at some point in the future, but they need more proof before they can advance along the path they must follow.
I also think that Jesus' sense of humor is vastly underrated and that he would have a lot of fun with someone comparing him/his Father to Santa or, yes, even to a pink unicorn. But that's just me. [shrugs]
I don't think I could live this life if I didn't have something to look forward to later, after I die.
My faith comes out through my heart. I have a very loving personality, and am very accepting of others.
When I am troubled, I can ask for comfort from my Heavenly father. If I am in pain, I can ask for my pain to be tolerable
If you have nothing to believe in, I suggest you seek out the answers. The easiest way to put is, if you were leaving one house, would you not search for another? Why would you want to leave this earth, without having a place to go.
Well, a person may choose to believe in nothing but there is one side note to that.
There is no scientific proof that nothing exists after death.
Very often people want hard data. They want scientific analysis one way or another.
There hasn't been any research data that states that there is nothing on the other side of life.
It's easy to just say "No". It may be small evidence but the truth as it stands now is that there is more proof that something happens as opposed to not.
Just something to think about.
I must say, I'm impressed that no one has gotten on their soapbox to try and brow beat anyone else into believing their way is _the_ way. Religious discussion can get very heated and personal (well, it _is_ personal), and I'm glad no one has ridiculed anyone else, at least on the board, and I hope they haven't in private, either.
I'm happy to know some wonderful, loving people of all religions. I've of course met pompous, righteous jerks of all religions, too. I've met some great, enlightened Atheists who live each day to the max because for them, hey, this is it! The truth is, we just don't know, so it's all about what interpretation of the great unknown comforts and inspires you the most. And that's you, personally, and whatever like-minded people you've congregated with either in a church or elsewhere.
I hope we can all continue to treat each other with respect on this subject and other personal ones.
Cheers,
Amy
I would love for all of you to go to heaven with me, but the best way to turn a person off is to try and force things on them.
My belief has never changed, but my understand has. Those who brow beat, are the ones, who do not follow what they preach, in many cases.
I have a picture in my mind of people standing around in Heaven, and seeing all the people who didn't make it, and those who made it, who were told they couldn't go, because they were Gay, or sinful.
Whether you believe in him is your choice, but you are all God's children, whether you like it or not. He has a place for you when you die, if you choose to follow him. I choose to follow, because I would be terribly upset to know that this was it. I want to live where there is no heart ache and pain.
I believe our energy lives on.....but I also believe in reincarnation.....as far as hell goes, I think this little thing we call " life " can be a perfect example of it......we make our own hell most times.....we have various assholes along the way that might help it out, but on the whole, I think life is what we make it
I had a near-death experience in 2001 and saw for myself what's over there. I cannot dispute what I learned while I was there and there is no question that for that brief period of time I was definitely and clinically dead.
Tell us about it, if you can.
Beautifully put, Amy! You ROCK!!! I echo your sentiments & am so glad to have this group of unique & diverse folks to exchange thoughts & ideas with. We all share some common interests, as death hags. Live & let live and while we're here, enjoy our community. ~Peace, Dennis
Yes, I believe in both and I choose to be a good person because it makes me feel good about myself, not because I'm scared of going to hell. The thought of seeing my loved ones who have passed and spending eternity with them all healthy & happy is what keeps me going when I lose someone.
stated perfectly. i am with you on this in every way. we are a bunch of cells and i dont think we are going anywhere besides back into the ground. as for our soul leaving and going somewhere else... first off, what is soul? its hard to explain. and what about other life forms? bugs? dogs? cavemen (they were around before religion was)? do they go to heaven and hell? or is it only those with reasoning? i personally think heaven and hell were created to give those on earth comfort in feeling that there is somewhere else we will go in the end and that we will be reunited with those we love. it is lovely to believe and i wish i could but i just can't.
i went to a catholic school (and still do.. i'm lazy and the college is literally 3 minutes away and i only needed to take 2 religion classes, which would be easy by now lol), but i think that by learning so much about it, i've questioned so much more. i really believe that people who do not know as much in depth information about the bible find it easier to believe. after learning the bible had which books to be put in it chosen by a counsel and since it had been put together and written so much longer after events occured i find it hard to believe it as true. what about the stories that weren't chosen to go in it? and there are so many interpretations of it, whose to say whats 'right' and whats 'wrong'? what about the pope saying unbaptized babies are all of the sudden accepted into heaven and no longer in limbo??? i guess that can just change over night..? also, science is really surpassing more than imagined and i'm on science's side. this topic could have me going on forever really..
also, this is kinda related... if we are supposed to be so respectful about others' religions, why do we go around digging up mummies and taking them out of their tombs and putting them on display? there was much consideration put into how they were buried because of the effect it had on their afterlife and so much done to keep them preserved that i don't understand how everyone is so accepting of this. i haven't heard any opposition for these doings. (i find no problem with this since i dont believe in heaven and hell or an afterlife of any sort and personally find it interesting to learn about them.) What if archaeologists were going around digging up bodies from a few years ago to put on display? i just think its weird. i understand that it is believed that just the soul leaves, but others may not. i just was wondering if anyone else had an opinion on this.
(of course this is my opinion, not meant to be offensive to anyone and i'm sorry if i was, religion can really get me going lol
This is what I experienced when I died, I wrote it up once for a minor publication and am glad to share it here. I make no attempt at all to convince someone to believe as I do, this is just a personal experience that truly affected me deeply.
On Christmas Day 2001 I made a rather extraordinary journey, to death and back. It all started on Christmas day just after we had all eaten dinner. I was enjoying the company and moved from my place at the table to a soft chair nearby to be more comfy. Gradually, I began to feel and sense a gray mist rolling in, and a few minutes later I wasn't there anymore. Oddly enough, I distinctly remembered that my sense of hearing was the last to go and I heard everything sharply before I left. I didn't see my body in the chair, it was more like looking toward where I was going. There were very very big angels where I ended up, shimmering white light but seeming to wear purple robes. (I was allowed to know that purple robes are worn by very advanced spirits and beings there) I met up with my mom who has been dead since 1990, and my beloved pets who have gone beyond too. I was "briefed" on what really matters and what doesn't. Most of the piddly stuff here that we fret over doesn't matter one jot. Jesus was there and I could see for myself through first hand knowledge that he really IS God. He's a really wonderful loving brother and friend and I have a whole new understanding of Him now. Seemingly before I knew it, I was back in my body, with my family trying to revive me. My husband had taken hold of my head and said that I had absolutely no pulse at all, I was that pale bluish color of death, fluids and solids left the body and I was flat out dead as a mackerel. My family was so sure that I only had the flu that they wouldn't call the ambulance. My husband told me that he thought for sure he had become a widower that day. It took a couple of days before I felt fully connected to this life again, like you were away on a trip and haven't fully gotten back into your home routine yet. I have a whole new appreciation for life and the lessons we must learn here. I also noticed that my gifts have gotten a lot stronger since then, the channel is wider open than ever before.
A few questions: If you saw Jesus, what did he look like? How long were you gone? What ended up "killing" you?
Jesus looked like the pictures we see of what we think he looks like. He's much cuter of course and he's a really nice guy with a laid-back personality. He's not all uptight and constipated like some preachers would have you think. Nothing all hellfire and damnation about him at all. He hugs nice too. I was gone about 10 minutes of our time. They think it was something to do with my heart that caused the problem but they still don't know for sure. I was only 42 so I wasn't old either.