What Happens Next?

Religion is rooted in different societies and cultures and these differences influence how various cultures see death and the afterlife. For some cultures, the afterlife means heaven and hell, while for others; it also includes places like limbo and purgatory. For me, I see our world is a reality of all human beings with their cultural histories and beliefs intertwined. Seen from this viewpoint, religion is a human and mundane actuality. Because of this, I often wonder if the belief in an afterlife is a coping mechanism that allows us to endure our awareness of our eventual death.

I am not a deeply religious person; however, I know that I would be lost without my basic beliefs about God, the Bible, death, and the belief in an afterlife. I feel it is important for societies and cultures to have something in which to believe in and something to which they can focus their faith. Having spiritual faith, which is a fundamental part of religion, in something or someone, gives individuals the will to live, soothes their fears in times of death, nurtures their spirit and gives hope and meaning to their life.

I do believe that basically, all religions teach that if you live a good life, you can earn your way into your God’s good graces. For the western believer, the physical death means the biological cessation of a person’s breath, bodily functions, and heartbeat. The second part of death occurs when the soul and spirit leave the body and pass on to some place else. Generally, for a western believer, that could indicate that you may go to heaven. However, some eastern believers think that it means they will cease being reborn and they will become one with their god.

Various cultures around the world practice their religion differently, but I feel we practice it for the same reasons. I think that most religions lead to the same place and same God and that eternal life does not necessarily mean heaven. Eastern believers believe that the kingdom of God is not heaven where we seek to end our journey after our time on earth, but that it is our world we currently live in because it was designed for us so that we could live our lives to the fullest. I believe eternal life is living without end, and it is about truly living the life you have been given.