Current Events > Are you a believer of an afterlife?

(+) Yeah! (+)

do you believe there is one?

I see no reason to act as if there is one.

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Im doubtful, but existence itself is enigmatic so who knows.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOXR2q8regE

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I don't think you can be sure of anything, The reason faith exists is that it is a separate entity from absolute certainty.

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Medussa posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOXR2q8regE

so some of you don't even want there to be one?

eternity should scare the shit out of anyone.

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Medussa posted...

eternity should scare the shit out of anyone.

why?

dolomedes posted...

true.

idk, i think that's pretty hardcore

I answered "I don't think so". It's not an impossibility in my mind, but I'm very skeptical, especially in regards to the typical idea of heaven and hell.

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dolomedes posted...

not hardcore. realistic.

what do you mean? you seriously don't want one? what about your loved ones?

Yes. The idea of nothingness is depressing.

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People who claim or act like there is for sure no afterlife are always incredibly arrogant about it. I don't think it's a coincidence.

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Damn_Underscore posted...

People who claim or act like there is for sure no afterlife are always incredibly arrogant about it. I don't think it's a coincidence.

what about the people who say for sure there is one?

Nope

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Your life in this universe never ends so there can be no after life.

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KazGT6 posted...

what about the people who say for sure there is one?

On the internet people like this aren't that common.

They probably aren't that different though. Communities like r/atheism get angry that religious people hate them for being atheist and then they turn around and act like atheist versions of fundamentalist religious people.

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I'm very doubtful
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KazGT6 posted...

what about the people who say for sure there is one?

Their afraid, that's the very reason for religion in the first place.

That despite how super special awesome they and humanity are they will eventually die, and then that's it.

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Until there's actual evidence, my answer will be no.

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dolomedes posted...

are you sure about that?

They certainly aren't common on the communities I visit. Maybe they hang out on facebook or something.

None of that changes the rest of what I said, though. You yourself called the idea of an afterlife a fantasy.

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it's always amusing seeing believers so incredibly desperate to spin nonbelievers into being just the same as they are.

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Theres just no compelling evidence for it, and what we do know of death seems to suggest the contrary.

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Prestoff posted...

Until there's actual evidence, my answer will be no.

I don't like this argument because you can say the same thing about aliens yet we believe that they exist solely because of how fucking insanely massive (understatement) the universe is and nothing more.

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Medussa posted...

it's always amusing seeing believers so incredibly desperate to spin nonbelievers into being just the same as they are.

Being an atheist doesn't make it okay for you to be an asshole.

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Sada_Pop posted...

I don't like this argument because you can say the same thing about aliens yet we believe that they exist solely because of how fucking insanely massive (understatement) the universe is and nothing more.

that's not the same. we know with 100% certainty that life exists (*waves*). that knowledge then gets extrapolated out into the unfathomably large, but still also factually certain universe.

there is no evidence of an afterlife. there is no unfathomably large universe where an afterlife could form.

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Damn_Underscore posted...

Being an atheist doesn't make it okay for you to be an asshole.

telling you i believe differently than you is not being an asshole. it's not my fault that theists wrap so much of their self worth in their beliefs that any questioning is seen as a personal attack.

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I think for sure there's an afterlife. Being alive right now is evidence. You were born once so why not again?

I want to believe there is a heaven. I mean there's got to be some kind of reward for being good in this world. Otherwise whats the point? Sometimes I think we will be stuck in eternal limbo after we die.

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Medussa posted...

telling you i believe differently than you is not being an asshole. it's not my fault that theists wrap so much of their self worth in their beliefs that any questioning is seen as a personal attack.

If you are an atheist on the internet, I'm sure you spent some time on r/atheism even if you don't go there anymore. This is the largest community of atheists on the internet.

Calling religious people's beliefs fairy tales isn't telling you believe differently, it's being an asshole. Atheists are very much capable of being fundamentalists and avoiding intelligent discussion of religion.

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I have no idea.

Reincarnation is the only way that I can conceptualize what happens after death, so I tend to go with that if I need to think about it. But I'm not a spiritual or religious person to begin with.

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Medussa posted...

that's not the same. we know with 100% certainty that life exists (*waves*). that knowledge then gets extrapolated out into the unfathomably large, but still also factually certain universe.

there is no evidence of an afterlife. there is no unfathomably large universe where an afterlife could form.

nuclearratchet posted...

I think for sure there's an afterlife. Being alive right now is evidence. You were born once so why not again?

See what I'm saying? Like I'm sure he's kidding but the argument can be made. We exist and we only have theory as to why.

I guess I just don't get how one can be right and the other can't be but we can only use our existence as proof of one but not the other. Very convenient...

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nuclearratchet posted...

I think for sure there's an afterlife. Being alive right now is evidence. You were born once so why not again?

That's not really evidence. That's a failure to conceptualize an alternative. Which isn't an insult, by the way (look at my other post in this topic).

Also, all you've really said is that the idea of an afterlife is not inconsistent. That doesn't mean it needs to be true.

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Sada_Pop posted...

See what I'm saying? Like I'm sure he's kidding but the argument can be made. We exist and we only have theory as to why.

is reincarnation actually considered an afterlife? i guess i can see it, but it doesn't really feel like what most people are talking about.

and besides, if reincarnation wipes the slate clean, what's actually the difference between it and oblivion?

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dolomedes posted...

personally i have always been against what i refer to as 'capital-a atheism,' which is what you're referring to. i typically avoid discussions of religion, you called me out itt.

Well that's good. The reason I mentioned r/atheism is the worst fundamentalist religious people do give their religions a bad name, and I think more moderate people of those religions should call out the fundamentalists for their behavior.

The same thing applies to atheists.

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Damn_Underscore posted...

Being an atheist doesn't make it okay for you to be an asshole.

I strongly agree with this.

The modern ashiest should transcend the burden of hate towards religion. We almost have a responsibility to.

I do not believe in an afterlife. Where the "spirit" or spark that makes us sentient beings goes after it leaves the body is anyone's guess. Nobody really knows so why live life claiming something that cannot be proven?

I actually find comfort in believing that there is not an afterlife. Existence is exhausting and often tragic.

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Medussa posted...

if reincarnation wipes the slate clean, what's actually the difference between it and oblivion?

That's a big "if". There are different schools of thought on that.

The difference is between a mind ceasing to exist and a mind being wiped of all memory and development. We can conceive of the latter because it actually happens to people (except the physical size stays the same, I guess), while the end of existence almost by definition is impossible to imagine.

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I'm not scared of dying but I am scared of not existing after the deed
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well i, for one, never ever ever bring these topics up unprovoked. you'll have to take my word on that, but it's true.

i may have strong opinions on the subject, but i won't share them unless asked. edit: well, i try not to, anyway. sometimes tangents happen and they get away from me before i realize it. which might be what happened here.

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i dont remember anything before i was born, so i doubt there will be anything after i die

people don't seem to see that

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