Lots of things run through my head when cycling. My latest thoughts revolve about the lies of religion and heaven. My own belief is that both the afterlife and god is total bobbins. Neither can be measured or quantified using any methods we currently have at our disposal and so cannot physically exist. When debating about the existence of God the notion of an afterlife is always tied up as well but can the two be seperated. Can you believ in heaven but not believe in God? and if there is an afterlife will they have section set aside for athiests?

The concept of a heaven always raises great emtion in people. It gives people a lot of comfort to think that people who have died go on to a greater life, espicially if they have been ill close to death. But there is no heaven, we have simply evolved to have sentient thought and we are no more important that the slug. Do slugs go to heaven? I get so angry at people who just seem to choose not to think about or address these issues and blindly stumble on. There is no heaven you fools, make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

elevenses already?

Neither can be measured or quantified using any methods we currently have at our disposal and so cannot physically exist.

Given the historical evolution of science, that’s a very weak argument.

but where do all the calculators go?

Holly didnt believe in Silicon Heaven but as his IQ declined his faith became unshakeable

but where do all the calculators go?

exactly! It just doesn’t add up.

I get so angry at people who just seem to choose not to think about or address these issues and blindly stumble on.

Why on earth does it matter to you what other chose to think about?

It just doesn’t add up.

5318008

Fairy stories told to children to encourage them to behave nicely, interpreted literally by raving barmpots

i reckon dying is like when they put you to sleep for a operation, but without the nice warm drousy bit when they bring you round after.
i hope it is anyway. it is not a bad feeling. 😀

Ahh but only due to them being fitted with the ‘Belief Chip’

There is no heaven you fools, make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW

It is possible to believe in heaven AND make the most of this life.

being dead will almost definitely be a lot like not being born.

Its not real, which is why it requires faith, but it gives many people comfort to think that they will see all their loved ones again and that all wrongs are righted in our heavenly father [sic] kingdom*

* not sure about sexism/homophobia mind given what it says but hey who am I to question

Puts in grant funding with neal to develop the soulotron and heavenmajig to scan the universe for these things

make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

Why?

I agree, and some daft buggers go around killing others because they believe in god, its just twoddle.

CFH you missed the first 5

we die, then rot. our DNA is passed on in modified forms to our progeny (perhaps), our molecules will become all types of different things, and our atoms will outlast the planet.

or you go to a cloudy place and fly around on wings and that, whatever.

I know which one is better.

Puts in grant funding with neal to develop the soulotron and heavenmajig to scan the universe for these things

Game on.

I love a challenge.

Ps. I’m not disagreeing with his main point, just saying that just because science can’t explain something it doesn’t mean it can’t exist. Lots of stuff existed before those old timey science dudes could measure or explain it.

Gravity
Oxygen
Melted cheese*
Magnetism.

*hungry.

Lots of things run through my head when cycling!

I think you need to ride in a group so you can do less thinking! 😉

The concept of a heaven always raises great emtion in people. It gives people a lot of comfort to think that people who have died go on to a greater life, espicially if they have been ill close to death. But there is no heaven, we have simply evolved to have sentient thought and we are no more important that the slug. Do slugs go to heaven? I get so angry at people who just seem to choose not to think about or address these issues and blindly stumble on. There is no heaven you fools, make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

I don’t have faith like I used to but I have hope that there is something afterwards because I’d really like to see my Dad again.

bigrich has it

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iJ6mLb8r00[/video]

Its the opposite really science has disproved the religious claims
geoocentric universe
age of earth
Evolution etc
I see little reason to assume the biggest claim may be true just beacuse we cannot prove a negative

What if you die to find out you are actually part of a super advanced alien race and your entire ‘life’ has just been a Virtual Reality experience?

yeah I agree also Neal, that’s why I said ‘using any methods we currently have at our disposal’ afterall, we have no way of knowing what will or might be invented in the future, so as we stand at this time, they cannot be proved. I’d love to be proved wrong and for there to be an afterlife….. where every hill would be a downhill. Weeeeeeeee

There is no heaven you fools, make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

What ??

Paulhaycraft beat me to it … but just because you believe in heaven doesn’t mean you can’t live your life now

In fact I’ve found it completely the reserve

A belief in God has allow me to find heaven is a place on earth

yep I’m Belinda Carlisle … 😀

I’m not a frying panthesist

@rosey – maybe that was badly worded on my part, but I conceed you’re right.

Do slugs go to heaven?

Of course they do.

is that a specific slug heaven full of leftover vegetables and a place where salt doesnt exist?

kimbers – Member
CFH you missed the first 5

Wasn’t aiming for …less! Think of it more as an I than a L….

There is no heaven you fools, make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

Good advice, so why are we all still here?

anyone?

Anyone?

HELLOOO!

my mistake cfh

i suppose boobies=heaven, well maybe if you are a breastfeeding baby

we are no more important that the slug

If this is the case then….

make the most of every single second you have of this life you have NOW!

….why would I bother with this.

I get so angry at people who just seem to choose not to think about or address these issues and blindly stumble on assume their views are correct to the exclusion of all others.

Good advice, so why are we all still here?

because we can only observe a narrow linear path through multidimensional space time Magic.

Have no interest in another religion debate (and can take being called fool!) but will share a random anecdote with you. I visited my Dads grave several times over the weekend as it was All Souls Day. On the last occassion I was alone. When I reached the grave, I leant down to give the old fella a pat and just as I touched the grass the church bell rang. Gave me a real fright. 😉

As I left, I said some parting words and everything was still and quiet. But as I finished saying what I wanted to say, the wind came up and rustled the leaves in the tree behind the grave. A few seconds later it all went quiet again.

I am not reading anything into either co-incidence but it did feel strange!!!!

So Jekkyl which one of us is

blindly stumbling on.

Becuase I’ve seen the light bruv …. have you ?

At the risk of immense ridicule I have to say I tend to go with the after life concept, but not necessarily in the context of established religion as such. There are two main threads to that one being the purely scientific issue of the destruction of matter, i.e. you can only convert it into energy or a different form. So your mortal remains go on after you are gone and you can follow that thought quite some way. However perhaps the more meaningful is the passing on of genes and acquired attributes from parent to child.

Its taken a long time but I’ve come to the conclusion that the meaning of life is summarised by its a relay race, and the deal is you just try to pass the baton on in a better place then when you received it.

That is all

@ rosey – Well I suppose I was thinking about people like my sister. She got married in a church, 2 kids both baptised but she doesn’t go to church regularly and does these things just because it’s what you do. For me if you’re standing there in a church in front of your family at a baptism saying ‘I renounce evil, I turn to christ’ you should wholeheartedly believe what you’re saying, otherwise there’s no point. Those are pretty strong words and doesn’t seem that some people really consider what they are saying, that’s why I get angry at them. People are free to believe what they want, but have some conviction about it.

So your mortal remains go on after you are gone

the ingredients that made us go on but we do not

For example i could eat you and your energy has been transformed
its hard to see how you have gone on in this [ extreme] example

I could melt my bike down and make a necklace but my bike has still gone

Why on earth does it matter to you what other chose to think about?

Because their thoughts often lead to actions, and homophobia, subjugation of woman, torturing of animals, and child genital mutilation are all evil. And because “tolerance becomes a crime when applied to evil” and “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”.

But of course you knew that, as any decent civilized human being would.