Fear of death with religious people !!!?

Question

Why are people that are religious, i.e. Christians, Muslims, Jews, ... so afraid of death?

In all these major religions there is life after death and so one should not be afraid of death.
So the only people that should be afraid are Atheists.

Answer 1

How many people have you been around who are actually in the last moments of their life? Since your question is based upon a anecdotal generalization, I will respond in kind. As a physician I have been with many people who are facing death, and by and large, those who are grounded in the convictions of a religious tradition, are far more at peace with that experience than those who lack such a thing. This is not evidence or proof that their convictions are true, but this experience seems contrary to your perception that religious people face death with fear.

Answer 2

Well, you are assuming that most people fear death, which it not true. But the will to live is the strongest, single trait that any animal has and it is hard to overcome that. Survival is what the brain dictates and this is not something that the human mind can easily bypass.

Still, it is more about the pain, the phyical pain, then death itself. All animals fear pain, of course. we all know we are going to die, but the fear of how death comes about, is the fear you speak of, again not death itself.

But many religions are matter of fact about death, such as, the Amish. After the Amish school shooting in PA, an Amish elder said, " Since we believe in the hereafter, therefore the dead are better off then the living."

Answer 3

I can't say that I am overly fearful of death. Just because we know what is waiting for us after death does not mean we should be anxious for death.

God put us here for a purpose. We should be doing what we can to work towards His goals and as part of that, should maintain our bodies and work to stay healthy and alive.

However, once we are in a situation where medical knowledge can no longer support our bodies, I believe that it is the Christians, not the Atheists, that are then accepting and more at peace with their eventual death.

Answer 4

I don't fear death because I will never experience my own death, I may be aware of the run up to death and I hope it's not too excruciating, but when death comes I'm out of the picture. We can only experience the loss of loved ones when they die before us and that is painful enough.
I've been in serious accidents and the body seems to go numb in those situations as the mind speeds up with the pumped adrenaline this makes time appear to go into slow motion...so with any luck the same might apply to dying but I won't know till ...

Answer 5

It is not so much of fear of dying but more of grieving for those who will be left behind. Each one must be prepared for death for sometimes, it comes like a thief in the night. As I don't believe in life after death, would that mean I have to be afraid like the atheists whom you presumed should be frightened too? I am a Christian but my belief is different from those you mentioned. I am not frightened of death, not because I believe in life after death, but because I believe in the promise of eternal life in Paradise.

Answer 6

People seek out religious cults because they are scared children looking for meaning, order and stability in a chaotic world. To fear the unknown is natural and in their hearts even the cultists know that they don't truly know what happens when they die. So it is easy to see why they still fear death.

Answer 7

its is a certainty that whatever your faith or religion or lack of the aforementioned that we will all travel down the same path when we die . the journey we either take or dont take is personal and different for each but the laws are the same.
people are afraid of loosing their identity, not existing and not being concsious of the next step.
it is the unknown that scares people and because it is undecided by the majority we remain fearful of what we dont know and or understand .

Answer 8

Most people don't what to die regardless of religious beliefs.
Christian are assured of Resurrection in the bible
Some believe in going to heaven and most other religions believe in life after death in one form or another.
Regardless of what you believe i think dieing is scary

Answer 9

I'm religious (Jewish), but I'm not afraid of death.

I'd rather be alive though . . . . maybe it's the comfort of the familiar.

My belief system doesn't include details of what an afterlife would be like. Frankly, I really don't think much about it.

Answer 10

I'm a Christian, and I've NEVER been afraid of death.