Questions tagged [afterlife]
Relating to questions about heaven, hell, limbo, purgatory, and all states after a person dies
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Is the afterlife mostly populated by embryos?
Just about every branch of Christianity teaches the human soul becomes implanted in the embryo somewhere before birth. Many branches also believe the human soul is immortal.
At the same time, I've ...
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According to LDS, does Joseph Smith contradict Jesus saying to the thief on the cross you will be with Me this day in Paradise?
The text is from Luke 23:43,
And He/Jesus said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be
with Me in Paradise.
The following are the words of Joseph Smith:
There has been much said by ...
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If a person thinks there is no afterlife, why should he choose to be righteous?
I have seen people resort to arguments such as "if there is no afterlife, why be good (or religious)?". Counterarguments to living in sin during this life include final judgment and the ...
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How do members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints reconcile an unchangeable God with the concept of eternal progression?
Book of Mormon 9:9-10 states,
9 For do we not read that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and in him there is no variableness neither shadow of changing?
10 And now, if ye have imagined ...
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Does the "Oh My Jesus" prayer support universalist beliefs among Roman Catholics?
Particularly, "Lead all souls to heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy" implies a belief that everyone will eventually be saved. After all, who is more in need of God's mercy ...
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How do people in Hell survive? [closed]
How do people in Hell survive it? In traditionalist circles, Hell is the full wrath of God, infinitely hot fire and brimstone, and extreme pain, suffering, torture, and it is called eternal death. Now ...
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Do You Remain a Human after Death?
In the afterlife, is one still a human? Or is an angel (or whatever you are after death) something other than a human? Obviously, according to Christian views you would not be an animal, but would ...
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Is Hell a physical place in mainstream Christianity?
In the Bible Hell is always referred to in physical, concrete terms. Descriptions include a lake of fire and brimstone, a weeping and gnashing of teeth, darkness, and physical pain. The rich man in ...
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Can you explain purgatory and how to get out?
We have the concept of purgatory. I read in different places that purgatory happens after death. But what should be stated clearly is whether they mean physical death or spiritual death when ...
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How do Swedenborgians understand Jesus' words on marriage in the resurrection in Matthew 22:30?
At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. (Matthew 22:30, NIV)
Jesus here seems to pretty clearly indicate that marriages from ...
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Did Swedenborg believe in a bodily resurrection?
When Jesus died he apparently took the repentant thief with him and in the spirit flew to paradise. Besides an instantaneous resurrection of the soul and the spirit at time of death, 2–3 days later ...
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What is the Biblical basis of the view that you must believe in Jesus BEFORE physical death? [duplicate]
It seems a very common belief that you must believe in Jesus / to be saved before physical death in order to have salvation.
However where is this stated in the Bible?
According to this view, why is ...
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According to LDS can an unmarried person be exalted equally with a married person or at all?
From an LDS article on marriage:
The covenant of eternal marriage is necessary for exaltation. The Lord revealed through Joseph Smith: “In the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees; and ...
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What is the difference, if any, between "unclean spirits" (Mark 5:2) and "demons" (Matthew 8:16)?
I realized today that when I used the word "demons" I was thinking of evil spirits of all varieties, including human beings that work evil from the spirit world. But others believe the word &...
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What is an overview of Christian viewpoints on the afterlife of aborted babies?
What does the afterlife look like for an aborted baby?
What happens to their consciousness (if any)?
What happens to their spirit/soul?
Since these are presumably controversial questions, I'm ...
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Does Jesus Christ explicitly deny transmigration or explicitly state there's only one birth?
Mainstream Christianity does not subscribe to the belief of transmigration or rebirth as a real phenomenon.
And the popular reference to this is
Hebrews 9:27 English Standard Version
27. And just as ...
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How do believers in eternal conscious separation/torment reconcile their belief with Jesus' words at Matthew 10:39?
Matthew 10:39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
Jesus has just warned His disciples of the hardships they will face if they choose to follow ...
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How do advocates of an intermediate state explain that the Old Testament seems to be unaware of the existence of the Bosom of Abraham?
Proponents of an intermediate state typically regard the story of Lazarus & the rich man (Luke 16:19-31) to be informative on the realities of the underworld. According to the story, Hades / Sheol ...
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What did the Apostolic and ante-Nicene Fathers believe about Sheol/Hades?
What did the Apostolic and ante-Nicene Fathers believe about Sheol / Hades?
Did they believe that it was a real supernatural place that houses the spirits of the dead?
Did they believe that it was a ...
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Did the Apostle Paul believe in the immortality of the soul?
The Apostle Paul used to be a Pharisee at one point, and Pharisees believed in the immortality of the soul [citationneeded], but then Paul became a Christian through a dramatic conversion, and I don't ...
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What is the biblical & patristic basis for the belief that the saints go to Heaven instead of Sheol after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus?
As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words:
(source)
The above link already makes some good arguments, but considering that the linked site could go down for unexpected reasons and that other ...
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According to soul sleep advocates, did the Apostle Paul ever abandon his Pharisaic beliefs about the afterlife after becoming a Christian?
Paul was a Pharisee:
6 Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to ...
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What if God instantaneously moves people from one time to another? [closed]
If God exists outside of time and space, he isn't bound by their physical laws.
In particular, he may be able to ignore the flow of time, experiencing different places and times in non-sequential ...
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What is the view of soul sleep adherents on statements from the Apostolic and ante-Nicene Fathers that seem to support post-mortal consciousness?
Inspired by the answers I received to my previous question What did the Apostolic Fathers believe regarding the state of the dead and the afterlife?, I'm very curious about what proponents of Soul ...
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How do Christians who believe that the saints enter a blissful state as soon as they die explain David, Isaiah & Job's pessimistic outlook on death?
I'm specifically talking about the following passages:
David
“What profit is there in my death,
if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you?
Will it tell of your faithfulness?
[Psalm 30:9 ESV]
...
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What is an overview of Christian beliefs on the current state and location of Old Testament saints?
Where and how are the Old Testament saints right now?
Here are some possibilities (not exhaustive by any means):
They are temporarily in a state of non-existence.
They do exist (where?), but are ...
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According to soul sleep adherents, what's wrong with an "Occam's razor" interpretation of 1 Samuel 28 (Saul and the Medium of En-dor)?
By an Occam's razor interpretation of 1 Samuel 28, I mean an interpretation that is as straightforward as possible, which doesn't require making unnecessary assumptions or special pleadings in the way ...
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What did the Apostolic Fathers believe regarding the state of the dead and the afterlife?
In the context of related debates such as:
Bipartite vs. Tripartite natures of man,
Soul sleep vs. Consciousness during the intermediate state, and
Annihilationism / Conditional immortality vs. ...
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According to believers in post-mortal consciousness, do animals also remain conscious after death?
Short version
If humans remain conscious after death, do animals also remain conscious after death?
Longer version
I'm trying to figure out if there is any fundamental difference between the spirit of ...
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How do believers in the dead being conscious explain the absence of reports about afterlife experiences by Lazarus and other resurrected individuals?
The Bible records several accounts of resurrections. A gotquestions' article titled How many people were raised from the dead in the Bible? lists several examples:
The widow of Zarephath’s son (1 ...
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What is the biblical basis for the belief that the spirit of a person remains conscious after death?
What is the biblical basis for the belief that the spiritual part of a person remains conscious after their bodily death? In other words, what is the biblical basis against Christian mortalism / 'Soul ...
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How do those who believe that the dead are conscious explain passages in Psalms that seem to suggest otherwise?
I'm specifically talking about the following passages (courtesy of this very insightful answer):
Psalm 6:5 "For there is no mention of You in death; In Sheol, who will praise You?"
Psalm ...
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According to 'Intercession of Saints' adherents, is two-way communication between the dead and the living possible?
Simple question: according to adherents of the doctrine of Intercession of Saints, just like the living can communicate with the dead, is it also possible for the dead to communicate with the living? ...
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Why is believing the correct thing important? [closed]
Islam and Christianity (or at least the most common forms of each) seem to have in common this idea that believing the correct thing about the Nature of God, his revealed Holy Books, and perhaps a few ...
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What do Latter Day Saints believe happens to persons who have rejected Christ Jesus?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints says this in their third article of faith:
We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ...
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Do dead souls have the ability of travelling in time?
Can human souls, having been separated from their bodies, travel in time and see their childhood or other periods of their life in their bodies?
What do Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church and ...
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Can people who don’t believe, yet don’t not believe in Jesus Christ, still make it into heaven if they’re a good person? [closed]
My boyfriend and I have gotten into many discussions. He’s mentioned “I don’t get it. I don’t not believe it him, but I can’t say I’m a whole hearted believer. Who’s to say I won’t go to heaven if it’...
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C. S. Lewis' description of heaven and hell contrasted with Catholicism
I was going through The Great Divorce by C S Lewis and was wondering how much in line with Scripture his descriptions of heaven and hell are. I've heard very different descriptions coming from saints ...
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What is an overview of Christian viewpoints on what happens to humans after death?
My (rather superficial) understanding is that most Christians would agree that human beings are composed of body, spirit and soul. Now, I'm aware that the terms "soul" and "spirit" ...
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How do advocates of Christian mortalism (aka "Soul sleep") interpret passages that suggest that humans remain conscious after leaving their bodies? [closed]
There are several passages in Scripture that suggest that human beings are still alive/conscious after being separated from their bodies (because of death or due to some sort of out-of-body experience)...
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Is disembodied heaven better or worse than embodied heaven, according to Catholicism?
According to Catholicism, immediately after death someone either 'goes' to heaven (or purgatory) or hell. This is the first, or 'particular' judgment.
Then, at some unknown point in time, there will ...
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What are the teachings of Catholic Church on the implications of gender-change by individuals, in their life-after-life?
We read at Gen 5:1-2:
""... When God created humankind, he made them in the likeness of God. Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them “Humankind” when they were ...
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Does Reformed Baptist Protestantism reject Annihilationism?
John Stott argued against the eternal punishment of unbelievers whereas J I Packer argued for the view that Jesus Christ warned of the eternal punishment of those who reject himself and his gospel.
...
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Will the people, who end up in heaven, gain additional glory for each soul that profits from their writings?
Will the people, who end up in heaven, gain additional glory for each soul that profits from their writings?
For example, St. Augustine wrote many good books. Now he is in heaven. To this very day, ...
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Who gets treated better in the afterlife? [closed]
What sort of people get treated better in the afterlife ?
And how much do the little things weigh(like praying every evening, or occasionally swearing) in comparison to the bigger ones ?
Even if it ...
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Predestination and human knowledge [closed]
Is there any denomination that claim to know it is possible for humans to know where a human is predestined to go after death?
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Hades or straight to heaven? [closed]
A lot of modern Protestants (typically evangelical protestants) don't really teach an intermediate state or holding place. Many of the major protestant churches, Catholic, and Orthodox churches teach ...
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Does Catholicism teach a physical 'New Earth' or is it only a state of mind? [duplicate]
In my Catholic catechism classes, I have always heard that a Christian's ultimate aim is to reach heaven with the Lord and that heaven is not a physical place but a state of mind.
But in Revelation ...
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Origin of the adage, ‘He went to be with the LORD.’?
This is a popular saying in Christian circles at funerals or when a person has recently died. Is there a biblical basis for this phrase?
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What is the Biblical Basis for saying that we "go to heaven"?
I have found hundreds of Bible verses with heaven or heavens in them. But none of them said we "go to heaven".
We pray for the kingdom to come here. Revelation has the new Jerusalem descending to ...