I Don’t Know

It is perfectly rational for the sentient mind which has recognized and accepted its impending death to wonder what the experience is like. It is perfectly irrational to fabricate some sort of scenario. For centuries Christianity has purported to know the answer, and it is not alone. One of the great creature comforts that religion seems to offer is an explanation of what happens when we die. Reincarnation, escaping the wheel of life, myriads of virgins and streets paved with gold are but a few of the visions put forth by the various religions of the world. And yet, to be empirically honest, no one knows. Let me repeat that: no one knows. I am highly suspicious of anyone who claims otherwise. Even the resurrection of the Christ (which most progressive scholars distinguish from the resuscitation of Jesus) does not provide any details concerning what happens after death. At best, Christianity joins many other faith traditions in asserting that death is not the end and that something—again, nobody knows what—continues on. This is the assertion that finds scientific credence in the law of energy conservation. Science does not speculate on how energy is transformed from one state to another, only that it is, and we mortals would do well to do the same. So, the truth of the matter is that each and every human being is faced with a choice: do I believe that death is the absolute end, or do I believe that death is the beginning of something else? I close today by suggesting that every person on the planet is consciously or unconsciously driven by their answer.