Exactly how can any of "us" back-up your claims without presenting any objective evidence that can support any of your extraordinary claims? Which of you can back it up? I, on the other hand can bury you under the weight of objective evidence, demonstrating what happens when you're dead. Both body and mind. NDE is just that "near death", not "near life". Since you have no evidence supporting an afterlife, it is only your belief.
All you have is evidence that the body and mind dies. The mind dies because it is associated with the brain, and when the body dies, the brain dies. But the soul lives on past the death of the body...
You are right that this is a belief... There is no objective evidence of the soul because it is not physical. One can have objective evidence only of the physical reality.
And, your only evidence is based on faith and ignorance. When we die we are not aware of anything. Are you suggesting that I will somehow become aware that I was wrong and you were right? If this is true, then I won't be dead or unaware anymore. Wouldn't that be a win-win for the both of us?
It is based upon a belief and a faith in that belief, but it is a reason-based faith, not a blind faith. Blind faith is faith with nothing to back it up. I have plenty of evidence to back up my belief.
That is exactly what I am suggesting. When you die, you will realize you are not dead at all. I have some depictions of that experience if you are interested. It is not from my religious scriptures but I think it is fairly accurate because it is congruent with the beliefs. Let me know if you want to see it and I will post it.
About the win-win, yes and no. There are good reasons why it is better to believe in God and the Messenger of God before you die than waiting till after you die. Let me know if you want to know more about this.
I do not know if an afterlife exist or not, but I do know that in death there is no life. Why would you waste 5 years of your life trying to convince rational thinkers, that science fiction and the WWE are real?
That is a straw man because I have not been spending 5 years of my life trying to convince anyone of anything. It is against the teachings of the Baha’i Faith to try to convince anyone of what we believe. The first principle of the Baha’i Faith is
independent investigation of truth, which means everyone has to do their own research and come to their own conclusions. I can answer questions and tell you where to look for the evidence, but I cannot and do not want to convince you of anything, because then it would be MY belief and not YOUR belief. The days where preachers sought to convert people and the days where clergy spoon fed people the Bible are over. This is a new age, the Age of Reason. All people can now think for themselves.
What is this soul you speak of? There is no evidence supporting its existence. Just more made up nonsense that enjoys the protection of being unfalsifiable. Science doesn't care what is unfalsifiable, only what is falsifiable. I am certainly not interested in your contorted, convoluted, and fantasy model of where you think this metaphysical soul resides, in our non-metaphysical body. This alone defies logic 101.
You can choose to believe it is made up if you want to. It does not defy logic 101; in fact it is completely logical that a non-physical entity cannot be proven by science... The soul is a mystery.
“Thou hast asked Me concerning the nature of the soul. Know, verily, that the soul is a sign of God, a heavenly gem whose reality the most learned of men hath failed to grasp, and whose mystery no mind, however acute, can ever hope to unravel. It is the first among all created things to declare the excellence of its Creator, the first to recognize His glory, to cleave to His truth, and to bow down in adoration before Him. If it be faithful to God, it will reflect His light, and will, eventually, return unto Him. If it fail, however, in its allegiance to its Creator, it will become a victim to self and passion, and will, in the end, sink in their depths...”
Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, pp. 158-159
Your religion is not special, or exclusive. You are the one making extraordinary claims. You have the burden of proof to support those claims. Your claims are not even based in a material reality, they are based in an immaterial fantasy. They are not based upon any natural phenomena, they are based upon unnatural phenomena. The only other stage of existence, is the one you have created in your very creative mind. What happens when the entire Universe ends, will all the souls simply move to a new dimension? No one is ever prepared for death, no matter what they do. I have accomplished every goal in my life. My wife and I will never want for anything. My children will also never want for anything. I am still loved and respected by family, friends, colleagues, and students. What more can you ask out of life? It is a time to reflect on a life of quiet achievements, sacrifice, love, modesty, kindness, and many moments of joy and happiness. I have done my part for science and society. Let the younger and more inquisitive minds take over. I think that a little time spent with Jack and Jim might even do you some good.
My religion is special but it is not exclusive, it is inclusive. I am happy to hear that you have gotten what you want out of life. Not all people are that fortunate. I had a difficult childhood so much of my life has been struggle to recover from that, but I did. I never had many goals, except to complete college and have a career. I acquiredvarious college degrees but my career did not go as I had hoped. I have no children or family, except a brother and my husband. I have a wonderful job with wonderful people to work with but I only secured this job for the last eight years of my career. The previous years were less than optimal. I have more money and assets than I will ever need and I could retire today, but I am not ready yet. I could enjoy the rest of my life, travel around the world, etc., but I have more important things to do.
“For indeed if thou dost open the heart of a person for His sake, better will it be for thee than every virtuous deed; since deeds are secondary to faith in Him and certitude in His Reality. XVII, 15.”
Selections From the Writings of the Báb, p. 133
I spent most of my adult life worrying about the material world and money, what I could amass, which is why I have so much. The last five years I have woken up and realized what is really important in life. I know that I will have an afterlife and I want to be prepared by acquiring spiritual virtues; but more than that, I think other people matter more than I do, since most people are truly lost. I was blessed to stumble upon the Baha’i Faith 47 years ago, but I spent most of those years not doing anything with it and shunning God. Now is the time to turn the ship around and anyone who wants to hop on board I am willing to assist. That is how I plan to spend the rest of my life. I have done the rest; colleges, career, real estate investments, travel, the whole lot.
Did you know that 47 out of the 50 top grossing movies of all times are fantasy movies(avatar, superman, avengers, justice league, batman, wonder woman, etc.). Wonder if this implies that we are willing to pay top dollar to watch our fantasies, rather than embrace our reality? What are some of the other stages of existence, and what is your evidence? I also don't accept teachings without the evidence to back them up. Whether an afterlife exist or not, what I do know is that this life will end. It is irrelevant what happens after that from my perspective.
It won’t be irrelevant when it happens. Logically speaking, if there is a reason for this life and it is preparation for an afterlife, it will be very relevant. But I am not trying to convince you, I am just here with a helping hand if you want one. If not, there are plenty of other people who need one and want one.
“What “oppression” is greater than that which hath been recounted? What “oppression” is more grievous than that a soul seeking the truth, and wishing to attain unto the knowledge of God, should know not where to go for it and from whom to seek it? For opinions have sorely differed, and the ways unto the attainment of God have multiplied. This “oppression” is the essential feature of every Revelation. Unless it cometh to pass, the Sun of Truth will not be made manifest. For the break of the morn of divine guidance must needs follow the darkness of the night of error. For this reason, in all chronicles and traditions reference hath been made unto these things, namely that iniquity shall cover the surface of the earth and darkness shall envelop mankind. As the traditions referred to are well known, and as the purpose of this servant is to be brief, He will refrain from quoting the text of these traditions.”
The Kitab-i-Iqan, pp. 31-32
I was truly blessed, so it is my duty to pass that along to those who are interested. I did not want this grave responsibility and that is one reason I turned away for so many years, but I cannot turn away anymore because I know what I have is the truth from God. Of that I have no doubt.
Maybe I sound just like a Christian to you, but if you
really understood what the Baha’i Faith is, you’d be singing another tune.