We have received comments from readers who tell us that our ideas caused them to be distressed or depressed. If you are one of those readers you need to consider the following. As human beings become anxious they often lose their focus and objectivity, and misinterpret what they are reading. If you understand what we are saying, there is absolutely no reason to be depressed by our ideas.
Why not? First, our conclusions may be right, we may have a permanent non-physical consciousness which gives meaning to life. Second, we may be wrong, life may have permanent existential meaning and value without a life after death. Third, if there is nothing after physical death you are free to live a life filled with both pain and joy, knowing that when you die the “pain” will be as if it never was.
No matter which of the three is right, depression and suicide may destroy the possibility of finding the meaning and purpose which may in fact exist in each and every human being’s life, and the possibility of living a joyful life after physical death. We are a small part of the whole. Unless the answer is revealed to us by the whole, we can never know during our physical lives what really happens when our physical life ends. Life may have physical or non-physical meaning and value right now that we do not, and perhaps cannot during our physical lives, recognize and understand.
Beyond the fact that we cannot be sure we are right, nothing we have said changes the fact that all human beings can choose to do that which is good and live as positive a life as they can with the belief/faith that life may have meaning and purpose. This fact is extremely difficult to accept if you are searching for meaning in your life, you do not believe that there is a life after death, and you are discouraged or depressed before you start reading.
If your mind is not receptive and clear, when you read our ideas they may touch raw nerves and you may stop understanding what we are saying. If you do not agree that the possibility of “nothing” absolutely eliminates suicide as an option then carefully reread our book, including “Afraid of Nothing”, and this section until you understand why our conclusion is true.
There is no reason at all to reject the possibility that each of us has some kind of permanent physical or non-physical consciousness. There is no reason at all to reject the possibility that each of our lives may have meaning and purpose. There is no reason whatsoever not to search for an alternative to nihilism, to search for a reason for living, to seek meaning and purpose in our lives. We believe there is no reason not to search their heart, mind, and soul and choose to have faith, as we have faith, in a non-physical consciousness and life after physical death.
There is absolutely no reason whatsoever not to live for the possibility, however remote you may believe it to be, that you can make choices now that will lead you to a positive life that has meaning and value. It is very important to understand that every person can live a positive life for the rest of their lives, loving their neighbor, doing that which is good, with the hope that physical life does have existential meaning and purpose or that there is a life after death. There is no reason whatsoever to be depressed, there is every reason to do that which is good.
For help now, call 988 on your phone to reach the nationwide Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
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Eternal Sin
We have readers who indicate that they are distressed and depressed by the possibility that they may have committed the eternal sin. If God exists and if there is an eternal sin, then God gives us the choice to commit the eternal sin or not to commit the eternal sin. It would seem that those who have not committed the eternal sin would be distressed if they believed that they might have committed the eternal sin. It would seem that the very fact that someone is distressed by the belief that they may have committed the eternal sin may suggest that they have in fact not committed the eternal sin.
Physical and mental disorders cause extreme anxiety and depression and may lead a person to believe that they have committed the eternal sin when in fact they have not. If you are distressed and depressed by the possibility that you have committed the eternal sin, you need to talk with religious counselors. Talk to several people, especially mental health professionals if there is any possibility at all of psychological or emotional influences or problems, so that you may better determine what you have and have not done.
It can be very difficult to find qualified professionals, and even when you do find them, it can be very difficult to tell them about your fears. Find qualified professionals and talk to them. You need to overcome any reluctance you may have to talk with those who might help and be willing to allow them to help you decide what you really believe is true. Seek professional help now!
For help now, call 988 on your phone to reach the nationwide Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
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Our book, LOVE - In Search of a Reason for Living, is available in FREE eBook editions on our website LifeNotes.org and in the Apple and Google bookstores ($1 from Kindle). Our book, LOVE - In Search of a Reason for Living, is available in FREE eBook editions on our website LifeNotes.org and in the Apple and Google bookstores (also in a $1 Kindle version). It is available in paperback from Amazon and other bookstores.
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