Philosophy of Life after Death Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Philosophy of Life after Death - Essay Example This paper illustrates that, first, the concept of dualism makes one belief in life after death. Dualism is a belief that people exist in both material and nonmaterial nature, which seem to be independent of each other. According to Taylor, dualists argue that human beings consist of body and soul, the latter being the center if the character and mental element. In dualist, thinking the body is less significant since it is only a carrier of the soul, which survives after the end of the body. Some activities in our lives, for instance, to detect, to will, to consider are totally independent of the physical being, which makes sense in believing in dualism. Descartes, as quoted in seven oaks philosophy website, argues, â€Å"considered the human soul simple, indivisible and indestructible, and thus able to maintain its existence after the death of the body†. One will tend to ask what form a body will take on the next life now that the body is no more. Dualism assumes that life af ter death is continuous and that souls and spirits no longer live in bodies. One measure to self is a solid form, which one must bear even after death. Therefore, dualism fails in this criterion in that the afterlife form do not have bodies to connect with, which means they acquire different forms all together. In the resurrection, Christians believe that sinners get their punishments in purgatory and the saints enjoy in heaven. The inquiry one will ask is how a sinner in the spirit body will feel the pain inflicted on him in hell, or how a saint will enjoy without the physical form. These questions arise because pleasure and pain come to the physical body and not to the soul. Assumptions in dualism prove that there is no life after death. Secondly, the philosophical believes of materialism is not a strong enough support in life after death. In materialism, persons are assumed to rejuvenate and receive the same type of body after death. The lives lived by the resurrected persons com pares with their early life on earth in many ways. They live in a perfect world where they do all they want: good food, walk on bright paths, do not become ill, do not sin, and they have ample possessions. The major concern that arises is how the older person compares to the new person. Can we still prove it is the same person? According to Barnes as quoted in seven oaks philosophical website, â€Å"we cannot imagine ourselves living in heaven or paradise and still being ourselves: if our flaws are corrected, our disabilities removed, our needs and wants to be satisfied, are we still in any meaningful sense the same person?† Assumptions in a materialistic approach to resurrection fail to meet the criterion of identity. The transformation of the persons who die to the new heavenly body without flaws, disabilities, or needs means that the two bodies are two entities altogether. To me, the process of life after death is an impossibility through resurrection. Consider a human bei ng who is a cannibal.