A New Take On Heaven

Heaven: "doing over" life with one caveat.....we are all of us reincarnated as our current day antagonists. At which point we finally understand and see validity in many of our conflicting actions and viewpoints. As a result, the dilemmas, contradictions, insanities and absurdities inherent in any and all views are completely apparent to everybody! In which case the only winning move for peace's sake is not to fight and argue and be in conflict at all. What is this purported "peace" of heaven we all seem to seek?

Perhaps this: imagine a bully and his "victim". Whereas the "victim" would be reincarnated as a bully knowing what it is like to be bullied, he will thus abstain from bullying. The bully, on the other hand, will be reincarnated as a "victim". With bullies no more, however, how will he ever understand what agony his bullying caused in the previous life? Well, he need not know what it's like being a "victim" of a bully to dissuade him from being one because he is one no longer! In this sense, the "victim" reincarnated as a bully understands (because he experienced this as a "victim" in his previous life) the adage "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". As a result, he abstains from bullying. On the other hand, the bully reincarnated as a "victim" does not understand (this is why he was a bully in his previous life) the adage "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". But he doesn't need to understand because he is a bully no more! See how the "conflict" evaporates with the changing of roles?

"Victims" of evil dictators and other heartless and cruel sorts, reincarnated as evil dictators and other heartless and cruel sorts, will obviously understand (because of their previous experience with being victimized) the vileness of this lifestyle and thus abstain from it in heaven. On the other hand, the former evil dictators and other heartless and cruel sorts, reincarnated as mere "victims" of evil dictators and other heartless and cruel sorts, need not understand what it is like to be victimized because they are vicious and cruel no more! See how the "conflict" evaporates with the changing of roles?

Capitalists and socialists switch roles and are finally able to see that their previous view(s) actually did have blemishes just like their antagonists' view(s), this realization curiously absent in their former lives. As a result, there is much more understanding and less argument and conflict because the dilemmas, contradictions, insanities and absurdities inherent in any and all views are completely apparent to everybody! Once again, see how the "conflict" evaporates with the changing of roles?

I hereby offer a nice corollary to the concept of grace and mercy. Whereas most of us instinctively live by the creed "vengeance is sweet", those reincarnated as evil oppressors and other heartless and cruel sorts avoid exacting vengeance because they know what it's like being one of its "victims". THIS IS GRACE AND MERCY, without which heaven will simply repeat this life's iniquities! There will only ever be peace where there is grace and mercy. However, far be it from me to even say peace should be humanity's ultimate endeavor.....my own suspicion is that we NEED argument and conflict and perhaps above all vengeance. It's that pesky ego!

Think Think

Is double think any less insane than going about murdering people simply out of prejudice? Any sort of ideological militant driven by a pathological propensity to commit murder or some other such dehumanizing act is insane, in my opinion.

On the other hand, what about one who claims to uphold grace as the ultimate law of God who then goes on to claim these militant criminals should be judged to the full extent of the law? How can one uphold the ideal of grace yet simultaneously believe these criminals should be judged maximally? This, among many other sentiments, is double think.

Since it is wholeheartedly believing 2 opposing ideals, is this thinking not clearly insane as well? Certainly much less destructive than fanatics going about committing their egregious acts. But insane nonetheless.

In much the same way it is often said that “sin is sin”, perhaps “insanity is insanity”!

Blasphemy Of The Masses

Many believe it is blasphemous to equate God to a de facto vending machine. As in, “God, I'm going to be really good and in return I want, nay I expect a red Ferrari and a hot girl! On second thought, make that a super hot girl!”

But those critical of this type of thinking go on to do just the same, however subtly. How so? Well, by what protocol do the most fervent believers, or anybody for that matter, wish God would use to “regulate” the outcomes of tragedies? If one is faithful/good, God should spare him. On the other hand, the less faithful/bad should slip from God's saving grace.

To digress slightly, if the faithful are spared and the unfaithful are not, where is the grace? In any case, it is wished that God would “look over” the faithful/good like a devoted shepherd. This wish implies that God is or at least should be a vending machine. One should be spared because he is good. On the other hand, it is easy to wish for an evil wretch not to be spared because he is bad. Put in the proper amount and you will receive your just reward. Put in too little and you will receive your comeuppance.

This is of course not how things work in reality, at least not always. In instances where God seems to apportion fate by this wished for protocol, many are happy the faithful/good are spared but not the unfaithful/bad. But what about the many instances where, sadly, this wished for protocol fails miserably?

For instance, many wonderful people fail in spite of their efforts and many terrible people succeed in spite of their wretchedness. Why doesn't God always honor the wishes of wonderful people who expend tremendous effort in their endeavors? Conversely, why doesn't God always sabotage the wishes of the most determined wretches?

In instances such as these, it appears God is not a vending machine but it causes a dilemma nonetheless. If God is in the business of sabotaging the wishes of the good and endorsing the wishes of the bad, how does this make Him good? Of course many will resolutely claim God only allows these unfortunate outcomes, He does not instigate them!

Quibbling over this detail, however, does not mitigate the dilemma at hand. He still appears to be one “o” short of good. Of course it could easily be claimed that neither wretched people succeeding nor wonderful people failing has anything to do with God. But then why should it be any more assumed that God's hand is involved in wonderful people succeeding or wretched people failing?

Whatever the case, this assumption essentially implies God is or at least should be a vending machine. And why should He not? What is the point of “worshiping” said God if He is not a vending machine?