Do you believe in life after death? - If you post ...

Yes i do believe, i have never doubted God either, the suffering in the world isn't caused by him and if he was to intercede to stop all suffering then what would be the point of heaven. I think its unrealistic to have earthly expectations of God who isn't "earthly" itms. It's my belief we are on this earth to learn

Yes, I do believe. I have had many experiences since my grandmother and mother and then friend died. Each one was amazing, beautiful and felt so real. I feel I have had plenty of evidence.

I do not put these instances on the internet for them to be mocked, they are too personal and only relevant to me.

For people to say they 'know' there is nothing after this life is arrogant as no one knows the mystery of life, it is not all about science, there is much more to life and we do not understand. Far better to acknowledge that one doesn't know and therefore keep an open mind/do more research. My mind is open and I accept what I have been shown.

If someone has not had experiences then they will not know what those who have are saying, until it happens to them. Sad not to have faith and belief or glimpses into the mysteries of this world.

I agree with you bluebird, it's fine not to believe but i always think it cruel when people categorically state "there is no God" rather than "I don't believe
in God" . It seems they want to unsettle those who gain much comfort from their faith.
Earths position in the Universe is all the "proof" we should need. If the universe had not been made with the most exacting precision, we could never have come into existence. To me it requires a far greater leap of faith to believe that the universe and consequently man, could have possibly have come about by chance. .

If you are a Christian and believe in Jesus Christ then you will know that there is life after death as He promised. I have no doubt that He was who He said he was, and that He came to earth to give His message that all who believe in Him will have eternal life.
He was without sin and suffered and died and rose again. There were many many witnesses to the truth.
If this is not true, then who was Jesus? Was he a liar, a cheat, a fraud, a madman? It has to be one or the other.

He was a chancer, a bit like the snake oil salesman, a character in a story book. The bible wasn't written whilst 'Jesus' was alive, it was a story passed down by word of mouth and we all know how stories get distorted over time.
We are not descended from an omnipotent being, we are an accident of nature.
If it pleases you to think that there is something overseeing every aspect of your life then go for it but I prefer to think I am responsible for my own destiny.

Nobody said we are descended from God, but that we are created by him. To be an "accident of nature" you have to accept odds so high as to be impossible. I'd love to hear an accurate and believable account of how atheists think the universe started.

For the record ... the bible is not one big story, but a collection of books that cover law, history, poetry, letters and much more, including the first five books of the Jewish Torah. New Testament scholars and Eastern historians widely agree that Jesus was an actual historical figure. He was most likely born a Jew, and someone who became a respected teacher / social activist depending on how you interpret writings about him - of which there are many, including non-biblical sources. He certainly doesn't seem to have been 'a chancer.'

That aside, whether people believe in God or not, a common theme on this thread seems to be inexplicable experiences involving sightings of people who have died. And these have been experienced by people of some faith and / or none. There does not have to be an equation of: I believe in God , therefore ...

harrigan how many snake oil salesmen have as many followers as Jesus? If he was just a snake oil salesman we would never have heard of him, people would not have died for him. My belief stems more from a feeling inside than from what I have read in the bible. I have not come from a religious family so had no coercion to feel this way but I have done so since I was a child.

Several people have mentioned an out of body experience. I had one once where I was just looking down on my body from the other side of the room. It wasn't frightening but it did make me aware that the body is a shell- rather like seeing the body of the dead person when it is quite obvious the person is missing.

harrigran I'm interested in how anything in nature can be described as an accident...

Harrigan, that is an awful thing to say. Jesus lived and died for us. No one person has had a greater effect on the world than he. Every day we are reminded of him when we look at the date, calculated from the moment of his birth, who else could have that effect on the world, so to just say he was a chancer who was willing to suffer an agonising death is an insult to a good person, whether you are a Christian or not, would you suffer that to make a point.
Imperfect, your post made me cry, to lose your do beautiful daughter . I believe what happened to you must have been such a comfort and a sign to carry on in hope. I wish I did believe in life after death, I believe this life is a journey and we learn along the way, maybe reincarnation, I don't know but our minds and soles are so unique and nature wastes nothing, so can't see that this is all there is, hope not, because of all the good people that suffer here on earth, would like to think they had hope eternal.

Luckylegs thank you for your kind words.

harrigran and others interested in exploring the idea of whether nature is/is not accidental - you might like to explore the following as a starting point:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teleological_argument

The basic idea is that nature is so complex and intricate that you can argue for the existence of a creator God / an intelligent design and purpose behind the universe - an argument that is pre-Christian and challenges Darwin's theory of evolution.

Personally, I don't see faith and science as diametrically opposed. Taking it at a most basic form, who's to say 'God' wasn't behind the 'big bang'?

Nonne of us know the answers, but I think we can be respectful of what is sacred to others even of we don't agree with some viewpoints.

Thank you Paddyann for more stories

Sussexgirl I too had an out of body experience. My husband & I went out to Africa just after we married to open 'Sun City' We worked 18hr shifts for a whole 2 months or more to get it up and running over the Xmas time. We had a 2hr break between our double shifts. Towards the end of this long stretch we had our 2hr break in which time we had to change into another outfit, eat and have a little rest. I got home [lovely little house in the grounds of Sun City] was sooo tired I decided to just lay on the bed and sleep and not eat, I had already lost tons of weight, didn't have scales, but must have lost about 2 stones, I did buy a pair of shorts in the hotel shops, which I still have and they are tiny! Any way my husband said it was time to return to work, but I just couldn't move! My husband left without me, it was this evening when I had my out of body. I floated up into the corner of the room and looked down on myself, after a while I thought I must go back as I need to unlock the door, so husband can get back in!

Still to read last page ......

Paddy I remember sitting with my GrtGrndMa whilst she lay in bed and all the stories she would tell. Her best friend would visit, Mrs Willard, and always gave us a threepenny piece. There were 4 generations living in my Grandmother's house at one point, which included my M&D and baby brother [& sis in mum's tummy]. Hearing these stories of Grandmothers etc. makes me so, so sad about my estrangement from my beloved D & GC

I wish to amend that last sentence re: estrangement to: Lost Grandchldren & Daughter as I find estrangement such an ugly word, giving connotations of my being some part of it, which I wasn't, just the victim of it

For those of you who like ghost stories, I have another one. As I've mentioned in my other posts, I lived in Venezuela for a time where there was no shortage of hair raising stories.

My old neighbor Irma, once told me that as a young girl she and her sister spent a summer with their grandmother in Maracaibo. The house was an 18th century (authentic) Spanish castle near the lake. The old castle was stereotypically creepy, damp and gloomy, but what kept the two sisters awake at night was the constant, loud hammering that came from the direction of the courtyard out front. When they looked out from the balcony however, the noise stopped and there was nothing to see but the lake, the empty street and the lamp lights.

One night the hammering stopped only to be replaced by chains dragging and men screaming outside, yet still there was nothing and no one outside. Frightened beyond words they would huddle together and pull up the covers until the sun came up.

She asked her grandmother at breakfast the next day, if she had heard anything during the night. Her grandmother put down her coffee with a grave expression. Yes, but I'm used to it by now. I had hoped they would not be keeping you awake.

"My dear, this house and the Main Plaza are older still than the church itself. The Plaza is the place where they used to hang prisoners from the gallows. A notorious Spanish pirate once lived in this very house and he was executed in the Plaza. It is said that he was dragged out of the house, screaming and cursing all the way to the gallows. It's been over two hundred years yet the spirits return every night to erect the gallows and hang the prisoner. Just before the sun comes up you can hear his screams, the sound of the trap and then silence."

Needless to say, they never spent another summer in that house again.

Willa