What is the point of religion if you go to the afterlife no matter what?
If am wrong please correct me.

Hi Inventech,

You go to the area of the afterlife that most matches your beliefs.
(If you had no religion, what would form and encourage your beliefs--TV commercials? Buddies?  "I believe I'll go get a pizza for supper.''  ;)  )

Religions teach us and remind us of our highest convictions, or are supposed to do so. (Anti-religions use fear rather than reminders of faith.)  

If your beliefs and convictions don't match any religion you've found, then you are hopefully a seeker, and what you seek will lead you to your place in the afterlife.

Bets

ok so correct me if i am wrong....bets...if i believe il go to a place which is full of gardens n lovely and humerous ppl...wud i go there after i die?...and if yes...how long do i stay in tht...BST(i think thats the word for it yes?) :-?

We are consciousness, which is basically an information system. Consciousness is continually evolving with the purpose of improving itself and has developed processes that facilitate its growth. Our existence within the greater system is a part of that process. The greater consciousness system has evolved into a brilliant being of love because that is the most beneficial way for it to grow and evolve. Out of this greater system has evolved countless belief systems (religions) that facilitate spiritual growth in the same direction that the greater system is evolving, our learning to BE love.

Randomness and duality are very much a part of the evolving system. Duality (good/evil, right/wrong, love/fear, etc.) is a very effective and efficient system to promote spiritual growth. The seed of the greater consciousness (God) is carried within each of us at the core of our being. This is our example, this is what tugs, pushes, nudges us to grow spiritually. Opportunity to grow is always right in front of us no matter what situation we find ourselves to be in.

What is important to our growth is our intent. When our intent is love based and not fear based we grow spiritually. Everyone is always doing the best they can at any moment in time. Spiritual growth is a process, an evolutionary process of which we each participate in.

Kathy

Here's an experience I had this morning. It was some what of a cross between a lucid dream and an out of body experience. I won't share about all of it, just the part that is relavent to this conversation.

After I went out of body I flew away from this earth and into space. A guide was with me that I sensed rather than saw. I understood that I was having an out of body experience and decided to try to go to where Jesus is. While seeing a lot of densely packed stars, I first went through a realm where I heard what sounded like Tibetan Buddhist chanting. I found it puzzling that this was taking place in the spirit World. Next I flew through a realm where I heard like Islamic chanting. But I never got to where Jesus is. Instead I returned to this earth and did some other things.

I believe the point of this experience is that Christ doesn't belong to any particular religion even though some people claim that he does. I figure he believes in the universal religion, which is love.  As Kathy suggested, we go through all kinds of experiences including different religions in order to learn whatever it is we need to learn.

The experience I had might've been a symbolic representation of what's possible, rather than an experience of actual realms.

Albert

Inventech,

50% of NDEs are hellish according to cardiologist Maurice Rawlings.  Many astral explorers have confirmed the reality of hellish planes.  Basically, New Age perspectives on what traps souls in hellish planes are little more than mindless dogma, fueled by wishful thinking and poorly reinforced by a few alleged retrievals, which, even if genuine, barely scratch the tip of the iceberg.  

World religions contradict each other on the criteria for entrapment in a hellish plane.  But you would agree with me, I'm sure, that it is crucial to learn as much as possible about the truth behind this mystery.  The claims of the various religions are clearly relevant and based on direct experience, even if you ultimately decide they are false!  Just don't quickly dismiss what  you don't understand and haven't researched.  

Don  

Inventech5 wrote on Apr 8^th, 2009 at 10:03pm:

What is the point of religion if you go to the afterlife no matter what? If am wrong please correct me.

This is a question I've often asked myself.  This is why I don't believe in any religion.  I'm more of a spiritualist.   :)

Religion is not necessary for happiness to flourish.

wrote on Apr 21^st, 2009 at 3:26pm:

Religion is not necessary for happiness to flourish.

You can say that again....Oh...you did.  
I quoted it.  ;D

An ocean is always beautiful - a living jewel.


Old Dood wrote on Apr 21^st, 2009 at 3:49pm:

wrote on Apr 21st, 2009 at 3:26pm: Religion is not necessary for happiness to flourish. You can say that again....Oh...you did.   I quoted it.  ;D

betson wrote on Apr 9^th, 2009 at 8:56am:

Hi Inventech, You go to the area of the afterlife that most matches your beliefs. (If you had no religion, what would form and encourage your beliefs--TV commercials? Buddies?  "I believe I'll go get a pizza for supper.''  ;)  ) Religions teach us and remind us of our highest convictions, or are supposed to do so. (Anti-religions use fear rather than reminders of faith.)   If your beliefs and convictions don't match any religion you've found, then you are hopefully a seeker, and what you seek will lead you to your place in the afterlife. Bets

Isn't believing that there is an afterlife enough?

I am not religious at ALL! But highly spiritual. I find that the more I delve in this area, the more "aware" I become.

I had my first OBE the other day and I shared the experience in the OBE forum. I am 99% convinced that I did and it was amazing. I hope to be able to do so again!

But to the topic at hand, I don't think you need to be apart of any type of religion.

The more spiritually aware you are before you die, will help you when you cross, regardless of religious identity. So if you don't "land" where you think you should, you will have the knowledge to help you get where you want to be.

I hope that made sense. :D

Inventech-
There is no point to organized religion when you can see beyond it, of course. All those hollow heavens are --hollow. Not the real thing, not complete. Jesus said nothing about church at all (that was all Paul, much later). He spoke of love and forgiveness, and if you truly walk the walk and talk the talk, who needs some old man behind a pulpit?

They just don't want you to find out.

Thomas

Is "some old man behind a pulpit" sort of like a man behind a curtain, ala Oz?

I'm sure this response will tick a few people off. I think all religions are nothing but tools used to control people. The original teachings of religions have been so distorted they have become nothing but a blockage to development. But free will is what it is and I leave people alone that have such beliefs. I used to think Jesus was a last timer, here for one more trip before finally leaving, but now I don't know. I would think a last timer would never let itself be known while still helping people.

There's no 'old man in the sky', in my belief system, not unless you want one. I've had a 'memory' of a person who found himself in a 'heaven' on his own piece of land 'somewhere'. There was a 'God' who talked to him, from the 'sky'. He heard the voice inside his own mind.

I think you can have that sort of "God" if you really want to do so, if you need to do so. But that's really up to you. At least, that's how I see it.