Death, Grief and Beliefs
Death is inevitable. The one sure thing. Yet, we almost always are unprepared for it - ours or anyone else's. The passing of a loved one always brings grief, a sense of loss. And no matter what our beliefs are, we do wonder about the "other" side and hope that our loved ones are "with Jesus," "in the bosom of the Lord." "in Paradise," "with Allah," or wherever we believe is the best place to be on that side of eternity. Satanists and Devil worshippers will probably hope their loved ones are in hell - and they'd mean that in the best way!
Christianity, Islam & Judaism - Monotheist religions, all three descend from the same source I think - teach the existence of Heaven & Hell. The Catholic - the original Christians - believe in Purgatory (though I still cannot understand where that came from - I do not recall seeing it anywhere in the Bible. But it is a good concept.) I guess we can include Satanism as a monotheist religion? After all, Satan is their ONLY god, right?
Dante Alighieri, a 14th century poet, gave us the vivid, and possibly the most famous description of hell in his poem "Dante's Inferno." Later books were "Purgatorio" and "Paradiso." (He was obviously Catholic, being Italian and all.)
No one wants to go to hell, or think of his or her loved one going there (except maybe the Satanists/Devil Worshippers for whom Hell is their idea of Heaven.)
By all accounts, hell is a nasty place to be - eternal fires, anguish extreme, agony indescribable. On the flip side is heaven, paradise, streets paved with gold and in the eternal presence of the Almighty.
The Catholic idea of purgatory resonates with me: the in-between place for those not worthy of heaven and unsuitable for hell, where a soul suffers for the sins that have made it not quite ready for paradise; apparently, it is the agony of being dead but not being in the presence of God that causes the suffering.
My father believed in the existence of hell and heaven but also believed that the mercy of God was so great that only the truly evil souls go to hell. I tend to agree with him.
I have always questioned the rigidness of religious beliefs, of doctrines that teach the superiority of a particular creed or faith to the exclusion of any other viewpoint. What makes MY faith superior to that of an "unbeliever" in my doctrine? What makes us believe that OUR way is THE way and why do we forget to realize that just as we think our faith is superior, the other person thinks exactly the same of their faith!
Why are we so literal in our interpretation of the doctrines passed down by the creators of the religion or faith of which we are followers or believers?
Did you know that monotheist religions are the most intolerant? Only THEIR God is THE God. I can only imagine how the ancient Chinese felt at being told by the Christian and then Muslim invaders that they were "pagans/infidels" and their religious practices were inferior and their Gods "dead" and unreal. Seriously?
Anyway, I digress. Or do I? Am I writing about death, grief or religious beliefs? At this point, probably all, because they are intrinsically linked. Without death, there wouldn't be grief and if neither existed, would we need to believe in anything beyond ourselves?
I am Christian - a Catholic and so, I believe in one God, the Trinity, the divinity of Mary the Mother of God the Son, the existence of Saints and the efficacy of the intercessory prayers made, beseeching the Saints & our Holy Mother to help us pray to God and His Son Jesus to answer our prayers. I believe Jesus died for my sins. I believe in heaven, hell & purgatory. I believe that Jesus IS the way & the truth - but for me, that means embodying his practices and ways of kindness, love, forgiveness and piety. As an aside, I believe that an uncomfortable majority of Christians have lost sight of what it means to be a follower of Christ. We are more of followers of the "Acts of the Apostles" and have elevated Jesus to the status of the Father. Yes, Jesus is part of the Trinity, but never did he elevate himself to the position of the Almighty Father, did he? I have no issue with the worship of Jesus - after all, he is part of the Trinity. But, like the Jews, we have made him into something he is not. BUT, that's just my view. I do not condemn others for their belief, nor feel they deserve to die for it. Judgement is of God, right?
I also believe in ghosts (yup!) and the existence of realms - and not all evil - other than the physical and the spiritual spoken of by Christians and other believers. I believe in the possibility of reincarnation (so did the Jews, obviously, otherwise they would not have wondered if John the Baptist was Elijah "come again"). I believe that everyone has the right to their beliefs but no-one has the right to judge another's belief.
I believe we are not alone in this universe and others and that it would be stupidly arrogant of us to think so. Like children we think that because we cannot see them then they are not there. Because we have no "evidence" and because the terrestrial "atmosphere' in space cannot support life, earth must be the only inhabited planet. Crap!
Death brings grief. Why? Because we cannot hear the voice of the departed, we cannot touch them, we can't see them. And because, in truth, we are not certain where the person has gone. And since that passage is a one-way door - save for those who have had near death experiences - we cannot go to visit or talk to the dead to continue that communication we crave.
So, we grieve for what is lost, what we wish for and the knowledge that, really, we do not know where they have gone or if they are okay.
Wherever they go, God (mine, yours or theirs) rest their souls and grant them peace.
Christianity, Islam & Judaism - Monotheist religions, all three descend from the same source I think - teach the existence of Heaven & Hell. The Catholic - the original Christians - believe in Purgatory (though I still cannot understand where that came from - I do not recall seeing it anywhere in the Bible. But it is a good concept.) I guess we can include Satanism as a monotheist religion? After all, Satan is their ONLY god, right?
Dante Alighieri, a 14th century poet, gave us the vivid, and possibly the most famous description of hell in his poem "Dante's Inferno." Later books were "Purgatorio" and "Paradiso." (He was obviously Catholic, being Italian and all.)
No one wants to go to hell, or think of his or her loved one going there (except maybe the Satanists/Devil Worshippers for whom Hell is their idea of Heaven.)
By all accounts, hell is a nasty place to be - eternal fires, anguish extreme, agony indescribable. On the flip side is heaven, paradise, streets paved with gold and in the eternal presence of the Almighty.
The Catholic idea of purgatory resonates with me: the in-between place for those not worthy of heaven and unsuitable for hell, where a soul suffers for the sins that have made it not quite ready for paradise; apparently, it is the agony of being dead but not being in the presence of God that causes the suffering.
My father believed in the existence of hell and heaven but also believed that the mercy of God was so great that only the truly evil souls go to hell. I tend to agree with him.
I have always questioned the rigidness of religious beliefs, of doctrines that teach the superiority of a particular creed or faith to the exclusion of any other viewpoint. What makes MY faith superior to that of an "unbeliever" in my doctrine? What makes us believe that OUR way is THE way and why do we forget to realize that just as we think our faith is superior, the other person thinks exactly the same of their faith!
Why are we so literal in our interpretation of the doctrines passed down by the creators of the religion or faith of which we are followers or believers?
Did you know that monotheist religions are the most intolerant? Only THEIR God is THE God. I can only imagine how the ancient Chinese felt at being told by the Christian and then Muslim invaders that they were "pagans/infidels" and their religious practices were inferior and their Gods "dead" and unreal. Seriously?
Anyway, I digress. Or do I? Am I writing about death, grief or religious beliefs? At this point, probably all, because they are intrinsically linked. Without death, there wouldn't be grief and if neither existed, would we need to believe in anything beyond ourselves?
I am Christian - a Catholic and so, I believe in one God, the Trinity, the divinity of Mary the Mother of God the Son, the existence of Saints and the efficacy of the intercessory prayers made, beseeching the Saints & our Holy Mother to help us pray to God and His Son Jesus to answer our prayers. I believe Jesus died for my sins. I believe in heaven, hell & purgatory. I believe that Jesus IS the way & the truth - but for me, that means embodying his practices and ways of kindness, love, forgiveness and piety. As an aside, I believe that an uncomfortable majority of Christians have lost sight of what it means to be a follower of Christ. We are more of followers of the "Acts of the Apostles" and have elevated Jesus to the status of the Father. Yes, Jesus is part of the Trinity, but never did he elevate himself to the position of the Almighty Father, did he? I have no issue with the worship of Jesus - after all, he is part of the Trinity. But, like the Jews, we have made him into something he is not. BUT, that's just my view. I do not condemn others for their belief, nor feel they deserve to die for it. Judgement is of God, right?
I also believe in ghosts (yup!) and the existence of realms - and not all evil - other than the physical and the spiritual spoken of by Christians and other believers. I believe in the possibility of reincarnation (so did the Jews, obviously, otherwise they would not have wondered if John the Baptist was Elijah "come again"). I believe that everyone has the right to their beliefs but no-one has the right to judge another's belief.
I believe we are not alone in this universe and others and that it would be stupidly arrogant of us to think so. Like children we think that because we cannot see them then they are not there. Because we have no "evidence" and because the terrestrial "atmosphere' in space cannot support life, earth must be the only inhabited planet. Crap!
Death brings grief. Why? Because we cannot hear the voice of the departed, we cannot touch them, we can't see them. And because, in truth, we are not certain where the person has gone. And since that passage is a one-way door - save for those who have had near death experiences - we cannot go to visit or talk to the dead to continue that communication we crave.
So, we grieve for what is lost, what we wish for and the knowledge that, really, we do not know where they have gone or if they are okay.
Wherever they go, God (mine, yours or theirs) rest their souls and grant them peace.
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