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How to deal with death without the belief in a metaphysical paradise where everything is good and delightful?
From my point of view, it is like having a father who you love very much. And he divorces your mother and tells you that he will keep in touch, but you never hear from him again. Dispite the fact that you think of him and love him, it dawns on you that you will never see him again. It is painful, and you cry, and you get over it. You still tell stories about him, and you might have conversations with his picture, but he's gone. He eventually becomes a fond memory and nothing more, because that chapter is done.
I have gone to my share of Orthodox Jewish funerals, and from time to time, a member of the family who wll be sitting shiva will say "so-and-so is probably looking down at us right now saying...", which causes a lot of discomfort to those who don't believe in a heaven, but there are growing segments who embrace such an idea because they DO find it comforting even though the majority will squirm but keep their mouths shut at the event because of the tradition that you let the grieving ones say whatever they want and you keep your mouth shut unless specifically asked.
Anyhow, the maintaining of fond memories, uploading photos as an honorarium with stories, was how I dealt with the death of my father several years ago. Even before I was an atheist I could not conceive of a Heaven or Hell, so it was not that big of a leap for me.
Again, Welcome to the Forum.
How to deal with death without the belief in a metaphysical paradise where everything is good and delightful?
From my point of view, it is like having a father who you love very much. And he divorces your mother and tells you that he will keep in touch, but you never hear from him again. Dispite the fact that you think of him and love him, it dawns on you that you will never see him again. It is painful, and you cry, and you get over it. You still tell stories about him, and you might have conversations with his picture, but he's gone. He eventually becomes a fond memory and nothing more, because that chapter is done.
I have gone to my share of Orthodox Jewish funerals, and from time to time, a member of the family who wll be sitting shiva will say "so-and-so is probably looking down at us right now saying...", which causes a lot of discomfort to those who don't believe in a heaven, but there are growing segments who embrace such an idea because they DO find it comforting even though the majority will squirm but keep their mouths shut at the event because of the tradition that you let the grieving ones say whatever they want and you keep your mouth shut unless specifically asked.
Anyhow, the maintaining of fond memories, uploading photos as an honorarium with stories, was how I dealt with the death of my father several years ago. Even before I was an atheist I could not conceive of a Heaven or Hell, so it was not that big of a leap for me.
Again, Welcome to the Forum.
“I've done everything the Bible says — even the stuff that contradicts the other stuff!"— Ned Flanders
