CHRISTIANS - out of respect to you I would request that you hit the back button on your browser as I will not entertain your answers at all. I'm not bashing you, so please don't come here to bash, give me scripture that I have already read many times, name call or harass.
Many believe that reincarnation is the evolution of the soul...that through experiences our soul grows. If we evolve as a species might we also not evolve spiritually? Could we be in a never ending chain of lives? Where would it end? Could we all not be "god", or rather pieces of god, experiencing mortality and striving to reach spiritual perfection to be rejoined with the source? In this case god would exist, but in what form...unconscious energy? Similar to a deist belief....that god is not involved....but possibly is us?
I know I'm rambling, but if anyone has serious ideas, theories or theologies along any of these lines to share I would love to hear them!
2006-10-18 09:32:10 · 9 answers · asked by Medusa 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Please don't assume! I'm an atheist simply desiring knowledge of beliefs that are foreign to me.
2006-10-18 09:37:45 · update #1
I think we're here purely for the experiences we can't obtain in a non-corporeal state. I think learning is involved too, but mainly it's about the experience.
I agree with the person who said that we can no more understand completely what the Ultimate Knowledge or God is, any more than a kindergartener understands the complexities of physics. I think we are all part of a network of souls all linked to vastly wiser and more knowledgeable entities in a dimension we cannot really comprehend at this point while we are earth bound. I have wondered what the end point of it all is, too-- if it is simply an eternal process-- but my mind can't encompass the idea any more than it can encompass the idea of a never-ending universe with no borders and nothing beyond it.
I think organized religions such as Christianity (with it's encouagement to maintain an immature outlook on life -- i.e. when you mess up, Daddy-God will forgive you if you believe in him as your savior, etc) are all meant to be something we overcome in this life to reach a higher understanding, which is that God isn't about believing in certain things or worshipping anything, but about simply loving each other, which is the hardest thing to do, sometimes.... a lot of the time, really.
Love and compassion is basically what it's all about, in my view.
Nothing else is as soul-satisfying. You know it when you experience it. Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you. It's the truest line in the Bible and the only line that really matters.
2006-10-18 09:46:19 · answer #1 · answered by grrluknow 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I'm a Reincarnationist — one of those weird kids who was born with vivid memories of a past life. There's no doubt in my mind whatsoever that I have lived before. Have you read any books about Edgar Cayce? He was a devout Christian (which I am *not*) but he had interesting ideas about the evolution of the soul from a bible-based concept, i.e. overcoming the "flesh" with our inner "christness".
I agree with you, the soul evolves through its life experiences. I believe in "God" in the sense of the Cosmos, of which we are all a part: we are star stuff, as Carl Sagan said. In this sense we are all part of "God" as we are "becoming" "God" in a very real way.
You might enjoy joining a group on the subject, which is basically rather irreligious but is spiritual in the important ways. It's called The Sensible Reincarnationist:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/the_sensible_reincarnationist/
2006-10-18 09:45:37 · answer #2 · answered by Sweetchild Danielle 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The concept you describe of attaining spiritual perfection through re-incarnation is basically Hinduism. The term for the spiritual reunion you describe is Nirvana, the goal of all Hindus, or, for the Buddhists, enlightenment, the becoming of a Buddha yourself. There is a little known European Religious leader, Pythagoras of Samos (c 580 bce - c 510 bce) who taught that after your death you went before the Gods and looked at your self with their Divine insight, and saw all your flaws and imperfections, you then designed your next life to give you obstacles and setbacks the overcoming of which would help your soul grow in the manner necessary to your development. This didn't mean your life was pre-ordained and fixed, however, since free-will, both yours and others, meant that, generalities aside, you can never have control of your environment since you can never have control of the other people in it. You're doing good to have any control of yourself. There are plenty of good websites on re-incarnation based religions, if you have questions for me, personally, you can e-mail through yahoo answers. Good luck.
2006-10-18 09:53:55 · answer #3 · answered by rich k 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Dr. Ian Stevenson of the University of Virginia has done field research into the field of Reincarnation (through childhood past-life analysis), and it is really quite interesting. I'm not sure I buy it, but it is definitely worth reading.
This, of course, does not comment upon any system of beliefs or theology that might be associated with such; rather, it is an examiniation into the phenomina itself with the examination of existing evidence to determine the potential for such a phenomina.
2006-10-18 09:35:42 · answer #4 · answered by Blackacre 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
as far as a religious or spiritual belief goes. i do believe that we are reincarnated many times.
the soul is immortal. but needs the experience of living to gain wisdom and knowlege that it cannot gain in Heaven or nirvana or summerlands (whatever you wish to call the afterlife)
i do not believe that we are reincarnated untill we "get it right" i believe that we are reincarnated when the soul is ready for more
growth.
2006-10-18 09:46:18 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
You first have to prove we have a soul and that reincarnation exists. It's all debatable. I happen to think our consciousness is tied directly to our brain functions, and when that ceases to work, we are gone forever. But we procreate to continue life on Earth.
2006-10-18 09:36:37 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Simply put - those are all nice theories and any, some or all of them could be true. But what evidence to you have? What proof? Simple because you want something to be true doesn't count.
Believe what you wish - but I suggest to you that nobody has any REASON to believe any of those things.
A
2006-10-18 09:35:44 · answer #7 · answered by Alan 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
We don't go to Hell just because we don't believe. We go to Hell because we reject His Son, His Presence, and His Love.
2016-05-22 00:17:24 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
God loves you, dear. He is waiting for you to come to Him with your questions.
2006-10-18 09:43:27 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 4⤋