@feld
This is actually in my top 3 reasons why I consider christianity to be a dangerous idea.
@bot @feld
Please, be kind when responding. I will attempt to phrase my thoughts as well as I can, but I understand, that this is a sensitive topic.
Before we start, I am obviously an atheist. I believe, that the life I am living now is the only life I will ever experience. I also believe, that both suffering and prosperity of others is our collective responsibility as a civilization. No God will bring us Haven, but we can live a good life that we have.
So, the heaven/hell idea makes it, so people will not take this life seriously. Instead of working as hard as possible to improve this life, they have a much more important task of keeping the invisible morality points high enough to enjoy the real life, that will begin after their death.
Does this make sense?
If you're going to cease existing when you die, what difference does anything in this life make?
You live like a king, then you die, and it's like it never happened.
Or...You live as a slave, then you die, and it's like it never happened.
Then what difference does it make whether you live one way or another? You could go be the most heinous criminal who ever lived, or you could save the entire world from whatever thing you think is bad, but in the end...It's like it never happened.
Or you could sit here making posts on fedi. Or do your 9-5 job. Or learn something...Or not. It's all the same thing, and it leads to endless nothingness, if there's nothing outside this life.
I think, if you're honest with yourself, that's not actually what you believe, deep down, when you really think about it. You'd be having a 24/7 emotional breakdown mental crisis if you really thought that.
Do you remember what it was like before you were born? No. It'll be like that. "You" won't exist anymore. You won't have any processing capability to remember what life was like, or that it even happened at all.
Same goes for everyone you've ever impacted or will impact in future generations. Gone without a trace, consciousness eliminated, as if it never happened.