Will we be weird in the afterlife?

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I was going to say one thing but looking at the posts so far maybe I should say two things.

First thing I was going to say - Bardo, place between reincarnations. In that case no - you won't likely be that much weirder than anyone else, unless really liking that mode of operation is in your character and if that's the case who knows; that could be part of the 'real' you that sticks around. Main idea of what I mean here - there's no guarantee of overlap between this personality and who you really are.

Second thing - New Jerusalem of Revelations. Answer there - you probably wouldn't know, nor would anyone else. Staring at God, at least per what I'm gathering from the bible, is like being off your face on pure MDMA so you'd probably be nearly too geeked to be fully aware that there's someone next to you let alone whether they're weird.

I never mentioned any grapes or harps.
What I meant was a feeling of adoration and being loved(the one you feel when someone honestly tells you "I love you just the way you are"), lasting forever. There is no "plenty to do" because there is no feeling of "need". A state similar to Nirvana.
That's the only way I can logically accept the existence of heaven as somewhere I would like to end up in.
Anything else seems like boring hell to me. I would be bored to hell if I were to eat grapes for all eternity and forking for all eternity also doesn't seem nice when there is no point because everyone is happy anyway. Solving problems and fixing what's broken is what I thrive for, my reason to exist. There won't be any problems, broken things or "needs" in heaven because those involve negative feelings. "Need" and "want" are negative feelings - "lack of something important". And they are what make people wan to do anything and improve themselves, help others etc. Because they "need"/"want" to.

How does "We will all become idiots" fit or apply there?

You become a non corporal being. And everyone communicates telepathically.

So there are no issues like "not looking me in the eye when you speak to me", and you don't hafta worry about having one shirt tail tucked in, and the other not, and stuff like that.

Geez, it's a wonder he decided to change his ways, quoting that, like that----cuz, that way, it basically says: "Go ahead and steal some more----there's no need for you to continue working, so hard". Punctuation, as you've just shown, is SOOOOO needed / powerful, IMO.

It's been wonderful talking to you about the Bible----I've long wished for this conversation, on here..... If you don't mind my asking, how did you come-by your faith? With me, my grandfather and great-grandfather were Southern-Baptist preachers----and then, growing-up, aside from attending church every Sunday (and then, later, teaching Sunday School, as well), at least half of my friends were Catholic, and all of my mother's friends, were Jewish; so, coming-by faith, for me, was, pretty much, inescapable.

But, you just said that "there is no feeling of need", so you wouldn't be bored, IMO, because you wouldn't feel like you "needed" to be doing anything----and, your "reason to exist" ("solving problems and fixing what's broken") would no longer be, as well. I'm thinking, going-by what you've just said, that..... You know that feeling you have, when you have solved / fixed something----that feeling of completion / satisfaction / relief, etc.----I'm thinking that might be a good way to describe it.

He was saying that only to illustrate a little of how he used to think, not his current thinking.

As to your question about my own faith: My maternal grandparents were missionaries and the locals nicknamed my mother "Ta Zuru" when she was born in Zuru, Nigeria. The congregation of my childhood was part of a Protest-ant denomination broken off from an ultra-conservative Anabaptist (Mennonite) denomination over the matter of evangelization (missionary work) and where no musical instruments had been allowed and everyone was required to sing in unison (no harmonizing). Through the years I was president of our youth group and then later our youth director as well as a Sunday School teacher, board member and gospel singer...and then even the president of that entire denomination has no answers for me when I found myself dying of alcoholism at 31. It was at that point that I was presented with the original A.A. (much different than today's AA), and then that and some other things ultimately led to my non-sectarian observance of Torah as best I might understand it and be able today.

Wow!! It brings me such joy, hearing-of someone's spiritual path, when it includes God, the Bible, etc.----NOT that I don't find joy in hearing EVERYONE'S story (cuz, as long as I'm learnin', I'm happy), but.....

Anyway, first-off..... Why did you write Protestant, that way (Protest-ant)----or, were you not writing "Protestant", but something else?

Secondly, I know you said "evangelization (missionary work)", but it made me think-of one of my eldest sisters' denomination: Evangelical (she was Pentecostal), and I understand "strict" (conservative), as her denomination was like that (for instance, women couldn't wear pants / makeup). I can't remember about the singing / instruments----cuz, like you, my sister and I sang Gospel (her soon-to-be husband, at-the-time, ran a Gospel radio show [and later, my sister owned a Gospel radio station], and I was "made" [I didn't really mind] to sing with her, when I visited her church), but I can't remember if we had / used instruments, or not.

Next, it's quite disturbing to me, that the "president of that entire denomination" had no answers for you----I'm thinking he must not have been very knowledgeable of his faith, if he couldn't help you. 'Course, there always seems to be those, supposedly "Christian" people, who look at others, like alcoholics, with such disgust, and disdain, etc., and that just always friggin' blows my mind, cuz, like, one of the cardinal rules of religion, IMO, is to NOT judge. Also, people like that seem to also be the very same people who are sinnin' their butts, off (NOT that we all don't sin)----and, you know, I'm always thinkin' "Let him who is without sin, cast the first stone", and all that. I'm so sorry that happened to you----it's GOOD that you found "A" faith, but it just stinks that he was like that; but, it seems like you grew in spite-of that (or, maybe, BECAUSE of, because you were determined there was something more, or whatever).

It's interesting that you said "non-sectarian"----cuz, I'm, pretty much, like that, in the sense that I don't go to church, but study the Bible.

It's also interesting that you said "observance of Torah" (aka Pentateuch), because as I said, before, I got religion comin'-at me, from every direction; but, the parts that clung to me, the most, were my Southern roots (Pentateuch), and my new-found Jewish "roots" (the Torah). My mother taught me that it was important to know the order of the Torah and Jewish Law, and so-forth, and my eldest sister is Jewish (by blood, cuz her father was Jewish; and, by faith, cuz she converted), and we have had some BEYOND FABULOUS conversations, about the Bible; so I LOVE that you consider the "Jewish side of things", so-to-speak.

Yeah, we all, who are faithful, can only do our best, to understand----and, I'm thinking that's what's most important: that we try (that's why I was so happy to hear your interpretations of things, cuz they were different than mine, and that gave me food-for-thought).

Oh, I forgot to ask you, leejosepho: Did you like teaching Sunday School?

One of my favorite things, aside from sharing my joy of God, obviously----and because I've always, for as long as I can remember, been interested in the psychology behind things (what makes people tick)----was that at the end of reading the Bible / Bible lesson, when we had the children, then, draw a picture, for instance, about what they had just heard / learned, I was always fascinated by the children who chose to come to my group (I have always been a pretty strict disciplinarian), and the ones that chose the other teacher. I don't know what that means, if anything----and, it doesn't really have anything to do with anything----I just felt like sharing it, with you..... LOL

I like to view the afterlife as preparation for neo-life where you are stripped of your name, ego, memories and traits to become a pure being once more. After that you're pushed through the tunnel of love -spat back out into planet earth world as an entirely different person 100 years distant from your previous life.

If we have a 'Soul', is the Soul really even what we think it is? Is it the same thing as our 'Mind'?

Or do we shed both the body and the mind and the Soul is just the minimal but vital spark that animates us?

I avoid worrying too much over terminology. I think there's either "Oh...weird, I just died and I'm 'here', wherever that is, to say so!", some degree of just instant knowing of what's happening, or ............................

The thing that's held somewhat persistent even in the west is that when people actually have NDE's, deep subconscious experiences, etc.. the narrative that takes shape typically says something about reincarnation and some kind of phase between. Same for mysticism, mediumship, pathworking, ceremonial magic, etc. etc.. and typically a very platonic view of the universe starts to take shape.

I have no clue on what we shed or keep, I was mostly trying to stick with truisms in the post you quoted but the few times people seem to be pretty sure of themselves on this point they'd usually suggest that most of the bodily personality doesn't stick. That could mean a lot of things. It could mean that just not a lot is remembered, or it could mean that its overwhelmed/overshadowed by something so much more vast in scope (for example the person's lived 1,000 lives) that it barely makes a dent. You also have doctrines of multiple souls inhabiting one person, one soul inhabiting multiple people, etc., etc.. We've got no way to check up on any of that so I usually don't worry myself too much with it.

There is no reason to do anything nor think because everything is already complete, you only have one big feeling of fulfillment/happiness/being loved - and nothing else.
Therefore everyone is an idiot. They don't even think, they don't solve problems, don't learn, don't do anything(no motivation - everything they could have wished for is already there before they even could think about it). They are simply drowning in a mindless pleasure for eternity. Like drug abusers with endless drug source, just without the side effects.
They are happy idiots. Fulfilled idiots. But still idiots. Because they no longer think, learn or use their knowledge. Because they feel a constant satisfaction that normally is supposed to come after you figure something out and last only for a moment.

I don't say it is a bad thing - as long as people in heaven are happy it's fine. I could live like that.
But the theory about having "plenty to do" in heaven doesn't fit the theory about feeling constant pleasure because to do anything you need to feel a need or want first (whatever it is the need to stop being bored, need to learn, need to improve yourself, need to know (aka curiosity), want to feel pleasure, want to feel useful, want to feel satisfaction etc). If all the needs/wants are provided before you even do anything why do anything if you aren't even bored of doing nothing? There is nothing to do in heaven and even if there is "plenty to do" there is noone willing to do that because they have no motivation at all.

To say "Pro-tes'-tant" rather than "Prah'-tes-tant". I spent over 30 years being a "Prah'-tes-tant" without ever knowing the origin of the term and what we were allegedly protesting.


Those people only knew about Billy-Graham-style decisionism -- getting "saved" and being sanctified -- and nothing about helping broken people at their points of need. So, nobody knew anything beyond "Keep coming back and we will keep praying for you."


With my maternal ancestors having been German and Dutch, I suspect I might have some kind of shirt-tail connection there. But either way, I greatly relish and cherish non-sectarian fellowship and sharing.

Concerning Sunday School: I had a small class of young boys, and yes, I enjoyed trying to be helpful to them...but they were scrappers and thought I was a bit strange when they learned I had never been in a fistfight.

To say "Pro-tes'-tant" rather than "Prah'-tes-tant". I spent over 30 years being a "Prah'-tes-tant" without ever knowing the origin of the term and what we were allegedly protesting.

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You were Protestant all of your growing up, but never heard of the Protestant Reformation?

Wow!

Many thanks. I hear your logic and I have no argument against it, but neither can I see that as how things will be. I believe our "heaven" will be here on a restored earth where the lion and lamb peacefully lie together and we can have gardens and eat even though we will not actually need any food. I have not tried to think all of this through, but I do not even try because I already sense it is as "complete" as you have mentioned (just presently unknown and unknowable) and even if not in precisely those kinds of ways.