Do I believe that paranormal things happen around us? The answer is quite simple: yes I do. I was brought up to believe in god and I choose to keep that faith, even though there is no evidence of him existing. Furthermore, I believe that every person has a guardian angel looking out for them and that the spirits of dead people continue to exist in the afterlife.
As Joram has stated in his post, people often choose to have faith, because it provides a brighter prospect for the human being after death. I strongly agree with this view. However, I have a few things to add.
The reason I believe in God is not just because I want to get into heaven, but also because it gives me a reason to be a good person in life (sort of). Even though I realise that wars and deaths are results of people having too much faith in their religion, I also see the positive side. The ten commandments have set clear moral rules, and the thought of being punished by God keeps a lot of people on the right path.
My guardian angel functions as my conscious. It prevents from doing what I know is wrong (usually) and it guards me from making stupid errors. Each time I nearly get hit by a vehicle, but manage to see it (just) on time, I feel that it was my guardian angel who alerted me. This can be rationalised as ‘reason’ or ‘reflex’, but again, it is my choice to believe in this protective spirit.
The afterlife is merely my motivation for living. I don’t want my life to end in ‘nothingness’. I want to have a reason to get out of bed and to be a productive person. For me, that reason is the thought of getting to a better place after you die, providing that you work hard and live decently. Some people say that life itself should be the reason, but the things I like doing in life aren’t productive at all. If I didn’t have faith in the afterlife, I would be lying in bed all day, enjoying the hell out of my current life, knowing that I wouldn’t be punished for it.
This entry has been mostly about religious beliefs, rather than general paranormal activity. That’s because I simply don’t believe in ghosts and stuff. They don’t give me any motivation to live good, and therefore they’re useless to me. As a result, I choose not to believe in them.
Btw, my apologies to Hannah, for stealing her day.
That's an interesting point. I think it's very impressive that you have managed to keep your faith, and i absolutely agree on the valid point that you made on the ten commandments etc. The values in any religion are indeed very often straight-forward and good.
ReplyDeleteOne funny similarity is how you state that religion gives you a reason to get out of bed, in my case the absence of religion is that cause. Because of the prospect of an imminent "end" i have the feeling that one needs to make the most out of their time here on earth.
But most of all i've always had my doubts on the notion of hell and punishment. I don't think i'm a bad person at all, but i'm still an atheist, so that means i'll end up in hell? Probably so...
@joram: Let's say that God is a pretty smart guy, and maybe even pretty just, I'd say you WOULD go to Heaven. Because isn't it far more impressive if someone has been "good" all their life, when he/she didn't even believe there'd be an afterlife/punishment? At least more impressive than someone who's scared of hwat comes next, and because of that keeps away from doing bad shit.
ReplyDeleteBut that's just my opinion, theoretically speaking that God is awesome.