A hiper-hyper-hoper-hypothetical

Straha · Post by **Straha** » 2005-06-23 02:28am

Suppose you gain (through whatever form of insight) the absolute of the following facts:

1. There is a god (or goddess, or multiple gods)

and

2. There is a paradisical afterlife whose admittance is determined on how well you meet that god's (or goddess's, or pantheon's) standards of living.

Nothing more or less, just those two facts. What would you do?

Faram · Post by **Faram** » 2005-06-23 02:30am

Do I get to pick and choose witch God or gods there is?

Zero · Post by **Zero** » 2005-06-23 02:31am

I'd wonder what the hell was going on. As is, I'm quite sure that I've died before, so reincarnation isn't a belief for me, so much as something I'm quite certain of. Discovering something contrary to that might be quite confusing, and would lead me to question what happens if you're not let in to this paradisical afterlife. I would also wonder what the benefit is.. if you're going to exist forever, then it's certain that all things that ever can happen will. And will happen infinite times. That'd get pretty dull...

Post by **Surlethe** » 2005-06-23 03:00am

Probably convert ASAP. Of course, this depends on the alternative to paradise: is it hell, or is it just blank nothingness, or is it a sort of limbo?

The Grim Squeaker · Post by **The Grim Squeaker** » 2005-06-23 03:04am

Break out the old Yarmulka.
Would entrance to heaven be gained by consistent moral behavior and faith or by following contradictory statements in a holy book or be based on ultra fundie orthodox interpretations?

Sriad · Post by **Sriad** » 2005-06-23 05:29am

Straha wrote:Suppose you gain (through whatever form of insight) the absolute of the following facts:

1. There is a god (or goddess, or multiple gods)

and

2. There is a paradisical afterlife whose admittance is determined on how well you meet that god's (or goddess's, or pantheon's) standards of living.

Nothing more or less, just those two facts. What would you do?

Try to get some answers to the Big Questions before I commit to anything. What happens to the failures? Why? What are the Standards and why those? Does the afterlife include personal growth toward infinity (this would counter Zero's issue. If there is growth, more complex experiences than those which came before will always be possible.)

...if I can't get all my answers I would probably convert anyway; there'd always be time to fall (autoeuthanize, whatever) if I found some sufficiently profound moral flaw in the course of eternity.

Basically, I'd give it a shot, but brown-nosing to an asshole god Forever would really taint paradise.

Lord of the Abyss · Post by **Lord of the Abyss** » 2005-06-23 12:13pm

Given the attitudes usually attributed to deities, I'd push hard for more funding for life extension.

Ideally, I'd achieve physical immortality; failing that I'd have myself frozen so I never actually "die". The last thing I want is to be eternally stuck in an afterlife controlled by a megalomaniac.

Steven Snyder · Post by **Steven Snyder** » 2005-06-23 12:29pm

I would request more information before making a decision. Without knowing the tenets of wishes of this deity, I don't have enough information to predict what I would do.

But if such tenets were reasonable, I would expect to make a full conversion.

Straha · Post by **Straha** » 2005-06-23 12:57pm

Steven Snyder wrote:I would request more information before making a decision. Without knowing the tenets of wishes of this deity, I don't have enough information to predict what I would do.

But if such tenets were reasonable, I would expect to make a full conversion.

You can't, all you know is the bare facts stated in the OP namely that there is/are deities (or a singlie deity) and that there is a Heaven as a reward to the people who follow the beliefs of the deities...

SPOOFE · Post by **SPOOFE** » 2005-06-23 03:53pm

Nothing more or less, just those two facts. What would you do?

I'd probably dwell a lot less on the horror of nonexistence. Other than that, I doubt I'd change much, but then, it's hard to predict these things.

darthdavid · Post by **darthdavid** » 2005-06-23 03:57pm

I geuss I'd no longer be an athiest. Other than that no changes. I live my life by my standards. If those make some sky pixie happy, good for him/her/it (and by extension me) and if not he/she/it can fuck off.

Junghalli · Post by **Junghalli** » 2005-06-23 04:24pm

I'd probably keep living as I am now. It would really be helpful to know which God is the true one, cause as it is the odds are thousands to one against true salvation. So in that case I probably wouldn't change anything; not worth the bother since for all I know my God is the real one.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2005-06-23 04:31pm

Become a Zoroastrian. Ahura Mazda is just as likely to be the one true god as anyone else, and he's about the most pleasant diety I know of.

Darth Raptor · Post by **Darth Raptor** » 2005-06-24 05:47am

Not a lot would change. Without knowing which god is real and which religious law I should follow I'd probably be my same old hedonistic self. Only now I'd be a pantheist and extremely paranoid.

Vicious · Post by **Vicious** » 2005-06-24 11:59am

I wouldn't change. If God (or whoever) doesn't like me the way I am, he sure ain't gonna want me hanging around for Eternity, and I refuse to change 'cause some Sky Pixie gets his undies in a bunch about my habits. I wouldn't be an Atheist, obviously, since I can't credibly claim the non-existence of a higher power, but I still wouldn't "convert" to any organized religion. Let God (or whoever) judge me on my merits.

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2005-06-24 12:09pm

With no more facts out there other than knowing -a- god exists, I simply keep on doing things the way I have been. If I don't know what that god expects its followers to do why should I change anything in the random hope of getting it right, when I could just as likely be wrong in which god I choose? Given that. . .there are like, hundreds of gods out there. (thousands if you include the Chinese pantheons).

Post by **Gandalf** » 2005-06-24 12:14pm

I'd basically carry on business as usual. Just be good to everyone and hope that's all you need.

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A hiper-hyper-hoper-hypothetical

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