How can you have an absolute belief about an unknown event?

Question

Is it like arguing about what's inside of a sealed box? When no-one arguing has seen the contents?

I"m talking about death. Interpret it however you will.

Answer 1

How many senses do you have? I'll give you a hint: most people answer this question wrong.

A typical person will quote the oft-cited five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. But a careful inquiry reveals that a typical person recieves inputs from a dozen other sources.

Kinesthetic sense is a good example. It allows you to feel the position of your body (some people lack this, and can't walk without looking at their feet). There are special nerves to detect internal and external temperature and pain. People have a sense of verticality from their inner ear. And there are easily dozens of different biochemical variations that can be detected in your own blood (blood sugar, certain chemical contents, total volume). There are even a few people who can use cells in their nose to detect the Earth's magnetic field (link 2).

Nor can those five 'standard' senses be considered even vaguely uniform either. Most people can detect only four different 'tastes', but some can detect a fifth (umami - link 1). Some people can see into the infrared and ultraviolet spectrums. And many people lack even a rudimentary sense of smell (it's the most commonly absent sense).

So why am I nattering on about senses? Try experimenting with your own kinesthetic sense. Most people don't know how this works... the just 'know' the information from it. They couldn't tell you how they know. They just do.

And some people say they KNOW what happens after you die. Are they right? I can't really say. All I can say is that I've tried, and I can't detect magnetic north with my nose no matter how hard I try. So I'm willing to allow that other people can sometimes know things directly in a way that I can't. This hardly means that I'm going to believe something just because someone else says so. But I have to allow the possibility that they 'just know', right?

Answer 2

You shake the box. Death is the box, and the only way you will know is if you've been near there and tested it.

You cannot have an absolute belief, but you can think you do. It's all a matter of how you think and your personal beliefs. Everybody secretly knows that they may or not be right.

Answer 3

Here is the logistics step by step to why I believe what will happen to me when I die. Im going to have to summarize my whole belief system to explain though.

1. Laws of nature. Something cannot come from nothing. So the universe either had no beginning or something made the universe, and that something had no beginning.

2. The universe as far as we know it with our system of math shows that infiniteness or eternity is an impossibility within it's own physical laws. Therefore the universe itself cannot be eternal into the past, hence the Big Bang.

3. Something has been around for all eternity and exists outside of time and space therefore created time and space.
4. That leaves 2 options:
a. some unintelligent force or dimension randomly and accidentally created time and space and the universe for no ultimate reason.
b. some sort of god or gods created time, space and the universe for a purpose

5. A god (or gods) seems much more plausible because he/she/it or they could intelligently explain itself and could explain eternity. Also, A supernatural intelligence reflects human intelligence.
-untintelligence cannot create intelligence
-the huge amount of factors that would have to be perfectly fine tuned to create an environment (such as the earth) that can withstand life as it is are too perfected to be just acts of mere random accidents. There must have been an intelligent being that fine tuned the universe for life to work, or even for life to begin.

6. out of all the different gods and religions that are out there, christianity seems to have the most evidence in my opinion based on my research to back it up
a. Jesus seems to have left the biggest impact on the world compared to any other historical figure there is
*Interesting side notes
-the calendar is centered around his birth. It's been 2007 years since he was believed to be born. Why him?
-Why has his name been used as a way to curse over any other religous figures name, exapmle; "Jesus Christ this sucks!"

7. Jesus gave us in great detail examples of how to live life in accordance with who God is and what God says will happen to us after death.
a. Therefore I believe that when Jesus says "no one gets to the father except through me", it's the truth.

8. Through having a personal relationship with Jesus/God the Father, He has proven himself to me time and time again.

could I be wrong, yes (anybody could be wrong about anything). Do I still base my whole life on the belief that I am right, yes. Will I argue that I am right over anything that says otherwise, yes. Because I believe I am arguing to save the eternal lives from an eternity without God... hell. If I didn't argue to prove myself then I don't really believe what I say I believe.

I base my beliefs on what I have researched through philosophy and science, they both seem to point me to the God of christianity. I realize that almost all of these statements are easily challenged, but that's because I tried to summarize as best as I could and cannot explain in depth why I find all of them to be the most plausible explanation for the beginning of life as well as the end of life.

Answer 4

Imagine walking up to the edge of a frighteningly high precipice. From your vantage point, you cannot see bottom. Most rational people would never consider jumping; your question reveals the difficulty in such an act.

However, as some have already pointed out, unquestioning faith involves just such belief, and allows few of us to actually leap without fear or concern. By definition, faith requires that we do not question or investigate, that we trust completely without prior knowledge or proof of any kind.

Of course, your analogy makes this seem ridiculous. Indeed, the argument alone is the ridiculous part; one's beliefs without prejudice or the threat of imposition are not. Nor are they hard to understand.

For my part, I have an absolute belief that my wife is faithful. Without proof or any desire to verify this belief, I am comforted.

Answer 5

In life or after it you cannot have an absolute anything. That is what makes life bearable. Imagine what your life would be if you knew the manner of your death was to be boiled alive? Yes it did happen to some.

Answer 6

Is this a question about the official version of 9/11 ?

Answer 7

Infected by the faith gene, which is a major component of the gullible (also known as suckers!) ;-)
People readily conditioned. Read Edward T. Hall's books, they explain this in detail. Also check out William Sargant's 'Battle for the Mind'.

Answer 8

Dinosaurs existed. I believe it, I wasn't there. A Meteor hit earth and the Dinosaurs didn't exist. I believe it, I wasn't there. Earth was once covered heavily with ice. I believe it, I wasn't there. You can believe anything you want or not. It is up to you.

Answer 9

It is known as The 6th Sense.Psychic understanding.

Answer 10

That is what faith is for - believing in something that cannot be proven or seen with the eyes.