Heaven, hell and reincarnation

Published on January 22, 2008 By dynamaso In Philosophy

I had a thought. Yeah, I know, there is probably a bunch of you typewriter comedians with a bunch of great lines you could throw at me so if your idea of a good target is a soft one, and you will feel better after it, then go right ahead. Otherwise, let me go on. The thought I had was with respect (and I do mean that in the truest sense) to numerous recent discussions regarding religion generally and Christianity in particular.

I was baptised and raised as a Catholic, raised to believe in heaven and hell, Satan and Jesus and the New Testament. Subconsciously, I believe I was weighed down with sinner’s guilt all of us are supposed to carry around despite doing my first Confession, Communion and Confirmation. As I was taught, I would find my way into God’s arms and I didn’t doubt it. I was an altar boy, attended Mass regularly and even, in my mid-teens, considered becoming a priest. Soon enough, I realised I was basing my beliefs not on faith but on the gullibility of a boy as opposed to the informed decisions of a man. Not too long after, my beliefs started unravelling as I started to see massive chinks in the armour of this particular faith.

It took many years for me to unravel this particular ball of confusion and then another bunch of years of following different threads until I found what I was looking for, spiritually. Even now, though, my beliefs are tenuous at best not because I don’t have faith but maybe because I have too much faith and I constantly question it in order to gain greater counsel from it. Personally, I believe blind faith is as naïve as blind trust and a true seeker constantly questions everything about themselves, including their faith.

The basic, bottom-line struggle for me is my inability to reconcile, in my own mind, the idea of heaven and hell. Quite frankly, I don’t believe in either, which makes it particularly hard to believe in any existing religion that holds to this belief. Heaven, as one song says, is where I make it. So, if this is the case, it is also safe to assume that hell, too, is where I make it. This makes much more sense to me than the idea of heaven being all fluffy clouds, cherubs and harp music or of hell being pits of tar, devils and pitchforks.

Last year, Sodaiho wrote an article titled ‘What’s In Your Moment’, where he says:

“heaven and hell are not in the afterlife, as if an invisible clone of ourselves leaves our body upon death and is either rewarded or tormented, they are our present reality. They are the exact same state of being with one degree of separation.” (See the whole article here: Link)

In a very simple sentence, he nailed a concept I had tried to put into words many times myself about the importance of this life, right down to this very moment. It seemed to me so many spent (and still spend) so much time concentrating on making sure they’ll get into heaven they forget about the life they have now. The contradictory, hypocritical nature of some of these ‘true believers’ went completely against the idea I had in my mind of what people of faith should be like. The tenets of forgiveness, compassion, understanding, humbleness etc., seem to be only applicable to those who are of the same beliefs. This smacks of a very large, very ripe hypocrisy. I’m am sure that if the man called Jesus actually existed, he would be shocked at how his words of peace have been so twisted around.

Then there is the question of those who don’t believe being judged by ‘true believers’. Non-believers are often called faithless, amoral and lost forever, all very compassionate and understanding (yes, I am being sarcastic). Having faith is fraught and can open up the faithful to ridicule, abuse and worse (just look at the what the Chinese have been doing to Falun Gong practioners recently for an up-to-date example). There are many stories, both fictional and historical, to illustrate this point. Yet it never stops anyone from having faith and from practicing their faith.

Why is it, then, if I profess to have faith, I am told my faith is of little value or even worse, I am judged based on what I choose NOT to believe as opposed to what I chose to believe? Why can’t my faith be manifest in me in the guise of optimism for the future of mankind now as opposed to optimism for MY future in the great hereafter? It is an interesting question and one to which I don’t have any answer.

As I see it, those who believe in the idea of heaven and hell are being selfish without even being aware of it. Why should they be concerned with how the world will be after they die, if only to make sure the place is still around for their children? They’re going to heaven so they won’t have to worry about it. Why should they concern themselves with such silly things as compassion and understanding for others of different beliefs when they have a church full of people who believe the same as they do?

I don’t have children and I’m not a Christian. But I want to see the world survive. I want to see it get better, cleaner, healthier and more compassionate. I am also realistic enough to know I may not see any of these things happen in my lifetime. But I want this generation, my generation, to be remembered as they ones who kick-started changes to make the world a better place. In this, I have faith.

Comments (Page 2)

dynamaso

on Jan 23, 2008

We have that saying here too.

Cool... It is nice to know some things are the same no matter where you are in the world.

foreverserenity

on Jan 30, 2008

I don't have anything much to say other than that I agree with your views and what you say is very valid! I wish that many people (and Churches) who do call themselves Christians, would remember what Jesus was really like when he was on this earth, and to practice being that way in their daily lives.

dynamaso

on Jan 30, 2008

Serenity,

practice being that way in their daily lives

Yes, I agree. I don't know how some people can reconcile their faith with themselves when they call themselves Christian yet show very little compassion, tolerance or forgiveness.

RoyLevosh

on Jan 30, 2008

I stumbled upon and read an interesting quote the other day Maso. It went:

It's not so much what you believe, but how you believe.

(sorry I'm late to this one. How did I manage to miss it?)

dynamaso

on Jan 31, 2008

Heya Roy, good to see you mate, regardless of whether it is late or not.

As for the quote, I agree completely. There is so much about the world today that is built on what an individual believes but very little on how people choose to believe. The only thing a lot us seem to practice with any regularity is hypocrisy.

Zoologist03

on Jan 31, 2008

The only thing a lot us seem to practice with any regularity is hypocrisy.

Say true, say true.

Actions speak louder than words and from what I see, they shout nothing but hypocrisy. (That has poem potential..maybe I'll run with that)

~Zoo

dynamaso

on Jan 31, 2008

Zoo,

I await the results of your poetic pursuit with eager anticipation...

Zoologist03

on Jan 31, 2008

I await the results of your poetic pursuit with eager anticipation...

I'll get on that, hopefully soon. After that little crazy bit I just wrote, I need stable, sane poetry.

~Zoo

dynamaso

on Jan 31, 2008

Ah, there is nothing wrong with a little bit of craziness, just so long as it doesn't take over everything else. You can go nuts but not be nuts...

Zoologist03

on Jan 31, 2008

Ah, there is nothing wrong with a little bit of craziness, just so long as it doesn't take over everything else. You can go nuts but not be nuts...

Well that's good.

By the way, I have written my piece...check it out when you get the chance.

~Zoo

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