You guys are all a bunch oh hypocritical sycophants. You realize that this is not a new concept, right? This song just reflects a sentiment first written in Ecclesiastes (the Old Testament, you know, the pre-Christian part of the Bible) about 3,000 years ago. Look it up. Or better yet…
“1 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:
I saw the tears of the oppressed–
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors–
and they have no comforter.
2 And I declared that the dead,
who had already died,
are happier than the living,
who are still alive. “ — Ecc 4:1-2
MissNeurotic, “yeah, religious people are fools. Death is scary, 'cause after that there's nothing but dreamless sleep forever and ever... ”
Can you even REALLY fathom the concept of endless, dreamless sleep? I don’t think so. That’s why it’s scary, as you admit. In fact, who’s to say that’s what it is? Even BR leave an opening for the possibility that there is something more in the wording they use. These guys aren’t as dumb as that. No, instead, they say, "In the end you MAY find…”, not WILL find. And then they go on to ask “Why”
Noimnot “Why do we pity the dead? I think this is a question posed to religious people. For example, a good christian who has passed away should be enjoying their afterlife in heaven by now, correct? Then why, christians, do you pity them? Why do you wish they were back in this place, with all its "disease, suffering and decay"? The "logic that swirls up in your head" would refer to realizing that the ones who have passed away are not experiencing anything anymore. As modern_man mentions, the fact that the dead now experience nothingness is a reason for us to pity the dead, and I believe that Greg does pity the ones he has lost. However, people who believe in an afterlife contradict themselves by having pity for the dead”
Again, this was a question posed BY a religious person over 3k years ago, the fact that you don’t recognize that immediately means you are rushing to judgment on something that you don’t even understand. This is further proven by the fact that, ...NO, Christians don’t believe that their loved ones who have passed are already in paradise. Most EDUCATED Christians who have read the Bible (crucial point there) believe that none of the dead will see paradise until judgment day, or the day of the Rapture, when all of the saved will be taken at once. If you admit that you think that GG probably has pity for the ones that he’s lost, Why? Is it because he misses them? Don’t confuse pity for the dead with sadness for the loss that their life causes in your life. I don’t know a single TRUE Christian who would ever say that they pitied any of their deceased loved ones who were saved before dying. I’m guessing they might miss them a lot, and feel sadness for the loss in their own lives, but are comforted by the knowledge that they will see them again one day in Paradise. No, instead they pity those who passed away before being saved, who they would consider an eternal loss, and thus pitiable. If I believe in an afterlife that requires certain parameters to attain paradise or otherwise suffer an eternity in Hell, how exactly am I contradicting myself by pitying those who I loved but know weren’t saved? In fact, I would be remiss if I didn’t pity them.
This question is posed to you and other atheists/agnostics. So ask yourself, “Why do We Pity the Dead?” It’s not titled we do they pity the dead! Why is it scary? Why DO you pity them? In all of my research, meditation, thinking, reading, praying (whatever you want to call it and in every combination) on the subject, the best answer I’ve been able to come up with was given by the first man that ever posed the question. “10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart…” — Ecc 3:10-11.
Take the “God” part out for a second, and take the last part of that for what it’s worth. That eternity was “written” on the human heart. This would explain why religion, as a generality, has been persistent and universal throughout human culture since recorded history and before. We fear the unknown and thus we try to cling to what we know. Life. Then you just need to decide why you think it is that we, as humans, almost universally and throughout history have had eternity written on our hearts? Why? Now, put God back in the statement and quit being a robot who mindlessly repeats what they heard “someone say” and start learning to make some decisions of your own, based on your own experience, research, thoughts, and beliefs. All of you!!!
Do you really think GG wants you as his robot army? Maybe, after all, he did say “I want to conquer the world, give all the idiots a brand new religion….”
You guys are all a bunch oh hypocritical sycophants. You realize that this is not a new concept, right? This song just reflects a sentiment first written in Ecclesiastes (the Old Testament, you know, the pre-Christian part of the Bible) about 3,000 years ago. Look it up. Or better yet… “1 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed– and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors– and they have no comforter. 2 And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive. “ — Ecc 4:1-2
MissNeurotic, “yeah, religious people are fools. Death is scary, 'cause after that there's nothing but dreamless sleep forever and ever... ”
Can you even REALLY fathom the concept of endless, dreamless sleep? I don’t think so. That’s why it’s scary, as you admit. In fact, who’s to say that’s what it is? Even BR leave an opening for the possibility that there is something more in the wording they use. These guys aren’t as dumb as that. No, instead, they say, "In the end you MAY find…”, not WILL find. And then they go on to ask “Why”
Noimnot “Why do we pity the dead? I think this is a question posed to religious people. For example, a good christian who has passed away should be enjoying their afterlife in heaven by now, correct? Then why, christians, do you pity them? Why do you wish they were back in this place, with all its "disease, suffering and decay"? The "logic that swirls up in your head" would refer to realizing that the ones who have passed away are not experiencing anything anymore. As modern_man mentions, the fact that the dead now experience nothingness is a reason for us to pity the dead, and I believe that Greg does pity the ones he has lost. However, people who believe in an afterlife contradict themselves by having pity for the dead”
Again, this was a question posed BY a religious person over 3k years ago, the fact that you don’t recognize that immediately means you are rushing to judgment on something that you don’t even understand. This is further proven by the fact that, ...NO, Christians don’t believe that their loved ones who have passed are already in paradise. Most EDUCATED Christians who have read the Bible (crucial point there) believe that none of the dead will see paradise until judgment day, or the day of the Rapture, when all of the saved will be taken at once. If you admit that you think that GG probably has pity for the ones that he’s lost, Why? Is it because he misses them? Don’t confuse pity for the dead with sadness for the loss that their life causes in your life. I don’t know a single TRUE Christian who would ever say that they pitied any of their deceased loved ones who were saved before dying. I’m guessing they might miss them a lot, and feel sadness for the loss in their own lives, but are comforted by the knowledge that they will see them again one day in Paradise. No, instead they pity those who passed away before being saved, who they would consider an eternal loss, and thus pitiable. If I believe in an afterlife that requires certain parameters to attain paradise or otherwise suffer an eternity in Hell, how exactly am I contradicting myself by pitying those who I loved but know weren’t saved? In fact, I would be remiss if I didn’t pity them.
This question is posed to you and other atheists/agnostics. So ask yourself, “Why do We Pity the Dead?” It’s not titled we do they pity the dead! Why is it scary? Why DO you pity them? In all of my research, meditation, thinking, reading, praying (whatever you want to call it and in every combination) on the subject, the best answer I’ve been able to come up with was given by the first man that ever posed the question. “10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart…” — Ecc 3:10-11.
Take the “God” part out for a second, and take the last part of that for what it’s worth. That eternity was “written” on the human heart. This would explain why religion, as a generality, has been persistent and universal throughout human culture since recorded history and before. We fear the unknown and thus we try to cling to what we know. Life. Then you just need to decide why you think it is that we, as humans, almost universally and throughout history have had eternity written on our hearts? Why? Now, put God back in the statement and quit being a robot who mindlessly repeats what they heard “someone say” and start learning to make some decisions of your own, based on your own experience, research, thoughts, and beliefs. All of you!!!
Do you really think GG wants you as his robot army? Maybe, after all, he did say “I want to conquer the world, give all the idiots a brand new religion….”