Poll, Would the Lack of an Afterlife Impact the Value of Life?

[PsychoSarah]

Just curious, because I have heard people say that without god/an afterlife, then life itself is pointless.

 

[Paradoxum]

I get why some people might think it makes life pointless. If everything we do will be lost, in death we end up in the same position as if we had never been born.

In reply you could say that you can still have an affect on the world, and that affect will have affects until the end of the universe. Or say that relieving suffering and making people happy are good in themselves.

You could also say that life is more meaningful if it ends. The fact that we will die makes our life more unique and precious.

On the other hand, if technology allows us to reverse ageing, then I'll probably take that route if I can. Maybe let myself die after having done all the things I want to do.

I voted that the value stays the same, since I doubt we can objectively say it goes up or down. It's a personal thing.

 

[GoldenBoy89]

Personally, I feel life is way more valuable when you know there's only so much time to live. Especially when you consider the fact that some people die before they even get to do anything at all. There are babies that die the very same day they were born and at the same time, there are people who live to be over 100 years old.

Since no one truly knows when their time will come and no one truly knows that there is an afterlife, the only thing you can really bet on is this one life you are living right now.

Make it count.

 

[Davian]

Personally, I feel life is way more valuable when you know there's only so much time to live. Especially when you consider the fact that some people die before they even get to do anything at all. There are babies that die the very same day they were born and at the same time, there are people who live to be over 100 years old.

Since no one truly knows when their time will come and no one truly knows that there is an afterlife, the only thing you can really bet on is this one life you are living right now.

Make it count.

Indeed. This life is all there is, it is not just a doormat to the next.

 

[Eudaimonist]

Just curious, because I have heard people say that without god/an afterlife, then life itself is pointless.

I'd say that it's precisely the opposite. It's an eternal life that is pointless.

With the possibility of non-existence, that means that the goals that you pursue and the actions that you take may have direct or indirect life-or-death implications, which is to say: they point to either your existence or non-existence. The goals that you chose matter to your existence in an objective way.

Life as an activity is self-sustaining. When this self-sustaining aspect is gone, life ceases to exist. Life as a phenomenon is fundamentally about activities that perpetuate more of the same or similar activities, until the breakdown of one's biology in old age.

If life were absolutely guaranteed and eternal, then nothing could really matter in this objective way. Any values almost become a matter of taste. If you want to be lazy and do next to nothing for a few billion years, why not? Purpose would become rather arbitrary.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[Sayre]

I'd say that it's precisely the opposite. It's an eternal life that is pointless.

With the possibility of non-existence, that means that the goals that you pursue and the actions that you take may have direct or indirect life-or-death implications, which is to say: they point to either your existence or non-existence. The goals that you chose matter to your existence in an objective way.

Life as an activity is self-sustaining. When this self-sustaining aspect is gone, life ceases to exist. Life as a phenomenon is fundamentally about activities that perpetuate more of the same or similar activities, until the breakdown of one's biology in old age.

If life were absolutely guaranteed and eternal, then nothing could really matter in this objective way. Any values almost become a matter of taste. If you want to be lazy and do next to nothing for a few billion years, why not? Purpose would become rather arbitrary.


eudaimonia,

Mark

Yep pretty much this. Which is why Paul warns us not to "have your cake and eat it too" or "sin because grace aboundeth".

If everything gets fixed in the afterlife, why bother being good in this life?

If the afterlife is perfect, this life, by pure necessity, has negligible value in comparison.

 

[poolerboy0077]

Value relates to limits of time and amount. Just like if diamonds became abundant, their value would decrease, a life that would go on forever would lose its meaning in a sea of infinity. A valued life must have limits. Notice those who come close to death. Their lives become more precious after learning their own fragility.

 

[Sayre]

Value relates to limits of time and amount. Just like if diamonds became abundant, their value would decrease, a life that would go on forever would lose its meaning in a sea of infinity. A valued life must have limits. Notice those who come close to death. Their lives become more precious after learning their own fragility.

Yes - that last part is really interesting. I've seen that observation used as a partial defense for the problem of evil, because (some) suffering increases the value of life.

 

[David Gould]

I believe that life only has value/meaning/purpose (not that I am happy with any of those concepts in any case, but it is hard thinking of a better way to express it) in each moment, which means that whether it is a short life or an eternal one is besides the point.

The joy you bring or the suffering you cause exists now. Whether you live for 10 more minutes or 10 trillion, trillion more years, that joy or suffering in the now is not erased.

 

[thelordskingdom777]

It would be worth less since their would be no reward in the end and no more memories from this one.

 

[durangodawood]

It would be worth less since their would be no reward in the end and no more memories from this one.

I think the afterlife was more appealing, even psychologically necessary, back when this life was much more hard, and much less free.

 

[Eudaimonist]

It would be worth less since their would be no reward in the end and no more memories from this one.

My rewards are found during the journey of life, not at the end of life.

Memories are irrelevant. It isn't memories of one's life that give it value, but the activities of life, even past activities.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[bhsmte]

My rewards are found during the journey of life, not at the end of life.

Memories are irrelevant. It isn't memories of one's life that give it value, but the activities of life, even past activities.


eudaimonia,

Mark

Wouldn't past activities in include memories?

 

[Eudaimonist]

Wouldn't past activities in include memories?

Yes, they may, but it is the activities themselves, not the fact that they are remembered, that have value. Nothing in your life ceases to have value simply because you no longer remember the activity.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[Gottservant]

That's like saying would the lack of the law of the conservation of energy, make a difference to the energistic integrity of the Universe...

...of course it would!

 

[David Gould]

Rewards?

Seems a bit greedy. For what, exactly, are you being rewarded? You do not get to heaven by works, so eternal life cannot be a reward for being good. Or maybe you do get to heaven by works - Christians cannot agree on that, as the Bible contradicts itself on that point. And, to reverse a popular argument, an eternal reward for a set of finite good deeds hardly seems reasonable in any case. Assuming you believe in deserving and undeserving people, do you really believe that you deserve to go to heaven?

 

[Ken-1122]

Just curious, because I have heard people say that without god/an afterlife, then life itself is pointless.

I would say the opposite. I say if there were such a thing as an eternal afterlife, THIS life would be pointless. I would rather spend 70 -80 years as a robot without free will, forced to do what God wants me to do and spend eternity in paradise than to have freewill for a few years and take a chance on spending eternity tortured; wouldn't you? If the afterlife many christians discribe were real I would rather not even be born, but if I had to be born I would rather be born an insect, animal, or some type of creature that has no chance of eternal torment.
But knowing there is no afterlife I feel comfortable making the most of this life because this is the only chance I get.

Ken

 

[Ken-1122]

Opps

 

[Ken-1122]

Value relates to limits of time and amount. Just like if diamonds became abundant, their value would decrease, a life that would go on forever would lose its meaning in a sea of infinity. A valued life must have limits. Notice those who come close to death. Their lives become more precious after learning their own fragility.

I don't think you can compare life to diamonds, part of the appeal of diamonds is to have something few others have, but life has it's own appeal. If there were only 1 diamond left on Earth, it would become extremely valuable. If there were only 1 life left on Earth, that life would have no value at all.

Life has it's own value; the more lives around you the better; the same can't be said for diamonds. If life lasted forever, you can find value in your life everyday because everyday presents a new challenge.

Ken

 

[poolerboy0077]

I don't think you can compare life to diamonds, part of the appeal of diamonds is to have something few others have, but life has it's own appeal. If there were only 1 diamond left on Earth, it would become extremely valuable. If there were only 1 life left on Earth, that life would have no value at all.

Life has it's own value; the more lives around you the better; the same can't be said for diamonds. If life lasted forever, you can find value in your life everyday because everyday presents a new challenge.

Ken

You're misusing the analogy, though. The comparison is between a limited life to an infinite one. A limited one has more value because it constrains your subjected experiences to a limited set of year, which are also unknown.