like the loss of a loved one? I'm asking because I have prayed for others & I'd like to believe that there is something more than what we experience here.
I'm not a very religious person...but I do believe in something greater than just ourselves.
What gives you comfort when you experience loss?
2007-04-18 18:25:54 · 25 answers · asked by Ivyvine 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I remind myself that I am complete within myself and that I am my own savior.
2007-04-18 18:29:23 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋
Atheists don't quite believe in the existence of God whereas Agnostics are doubters of today's religious beliefs. I have a book written by Clarence Darrow, an Agnostic, and in his essay on "The Myth of the Soul", he wrote:
"Is the belief in immortality necessary or even desirable? ... Upon what evidence, then, are we asked to believe in immortality? There is no evidence. ... During [an individual's] term of life millions of cells in its body are born, die, and are replaced until, through age, disease, or some catastrophe, the cells fall apart and the individual life is ended."
If the loss of a loved one is due to a painful illness such as cancer, it helps to remind yourself that death was a good thing. The person's suffering has ended and you should be glad.
If the loss of a loved one is sudden (for example, if he/she died young or in an accident), the only comfort we can find is from ourselves. Sometimes things that happen to some people may seem unfair, and if you're not religious, you'd probably believe that we have free will, God doesn't always intervene and not everything happens for a reason.
Finding support from friends and family helps, but the real comfort comes when you accepted what has happened and feel strong enough to move on. And it's alright to think about the good times between you and that person who passed on, because that's all that's left of him/her.
I don't quite believe in the idea of having a soul or the existence of afterlife, but anyway, this is just my opinion. Showing my loved ones that I really care about them only matters while they're still alive because after they've passed on, they can't hear what I say to them in the cemetery, they can't see the flowers I bring or hear me weep.
"When we fully understand the brevity of life, its fleeting joys and unavoidable pains; when we accept the facts that all men and women are approaching an inevitable doom: the consciousness of it should make us more kindly and considerate of each other. This feeling should make men and women use their best efforts to help their fellow travelers on the road, to make the path brighter and easier as we journey on. It should bring a closer kinship, a better understanding, and a deeper sympathy for the wayfarers who must live a common life and die a common death." - Clarence Darrow, the last paragraph from "The Myth of the Soul"
2007-04-18 20:18:57 · answer #2 · answered by Bonna Feeday 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Honestly, I'm not a very emotional person. When someone close to me dies, I don't cry in my pillow at night praying to some supernatural being. I learned to accept death as an inevitability a long time ago. If I ever feel like I need comfort, I talk to friends and family. For the most part, however, it doesn't bother me too much....
2007-04-18 18:38:22 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
If the loss is a person, I think on how fortunate I was to have had time with that person.
If the loss is financial, I take a deep breath and get back on the horse.
If the loss is my own youth and hopes and dreams, I use heroin.
2007-04-18 18:47:35 · answer #4 · answered by grammartroll 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I deal with death the same way I deal with life. It happens. Learn from all that person did and be the best person I can be. And sometimes bad things happen to good people. That's just nature's way of thinning the herd, so to speak.
I take comfort in my children's smiles. That's really all I need.
2007-04-18 18:53:47 · answer #5 · answered by Kat 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Perhaps it is best to try and think of this answer yourself. If you did not believe in a god, what would you do during the death of a loved one? I do not believe in a god, perhaps there is one, perhaps their is an afterlife, but I do not know. Rather than rely on belief to calm myself, I think of how much pain and suffering that there was in their life before they died. Whether or not there is an afterlife, at least they will not have to be in pain any more.
2007-04-18 18:32:25 · answer #6 · answered by Elerth Morrow ™ 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Having learned to accept reality, I don't need quite so much comforting.
I understand that I am a single entity in a world of many actors - some good, some bad, some indifferent.
I also understand wanting to believe something does not increase the probability that it is so.
2007-04-18 18:36:28 · answer #7 · answered by Brendan G 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
When I loss a loved one I was 4 years old and probably didn't really understand.
If I were to have a close family member die I'd simply grieve and move on (hopefully), just like everyone else. But without God.
Why?
2007-04-18 18:31:12 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
When I dad pass away leaving two younger siblings and a schizophrenic mother when I was 15, I bite my teeth and worked 3 jobs to bring them up.
What give me comfort? Seeing my younger siblings who had since grew up to be good people.
2007-04-18 18:36:15 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
Athiests are usually great humanists with great love for their family and friends. This would give comfort as it does to all people, regardless of spirituality or religion or lack of.
2007-04-18 18:31:07 · answer #10 · answered by Christine S 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I seek comfort in familiar and comforting music, time spent with loved ones, or doing my favorite hobby. I channel my worries and frustrations into creative endeavors.
2007-04-18 18:35:46 · answer #11 · answered by Rogue Scrapbooker 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋