Still anticipating the FIRST person to return and tell us what it is all like.
Suspect I may be in for a long wait.

To Ateday,

Waiting for the first person who comes back? There are many people who say they've gone to the other side. Books written about it and about those people's experiences.

If you're waiting for the first you missed it a long time ago. The question from here isn't is people come back with an experience of an afterlife; instead the question is if any of those experiences are reliable.

the FIRST person to return and tell us what it is all like.
ateday,
I'm definitely not religious but I must say that from what I have read & heard, no mortal's said to return from the dead.

N_NS,
One K Packer did and I`d (almost) believe him.

ateday,
What, Kerry Packer is in hiding somewhere with Elvis ?

If there is an afterlife I hope it's nothing like the present one. Maybe what we call life is really Hell, and there is something nicer after it?

The Apostle Paul also had a problem with those who questioned the truth of the events of the New Testament.
In his letter to the Church at Corinth (Chapter 15) he lists the eye witnesses for the resurrection of Christ.

The Resurrection of Christ
1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,
1Co 15:2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
1Co 15:3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
1Co 15:4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
1Co 15:5 and that He was seen by Cephas,(Peter) then by the twelve.
1Co 15:6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.
1Co 15:7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.
1Co 15:8 Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.
1Co 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
1Co 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
1Co 15:11 Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

New King James Version

He then goes on to highlight the implications of the Resurrection.

The Apostle Paul goes on to highlight the implications for the Resurrection.

The Resurrection of the Dead
1Co 15:12 Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
1Co 15:13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen.
1Co 15:14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.
1Co 15:15 Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if in fact the dead do not rise.
1Co 15:16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen.
1Co 15:17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!
1Co 15:18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
1Co 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.
1Co 15:20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
1Co 15:21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.
1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming.
1Co 15:24 Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25 For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet.
1Co 15:26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.

New King James Version

LesP,

Quoting the bible is like quoting Harry potter to prove the existence of dragons.
Both are books of fiction.
There has been no evidence of the afterlife. If you could prove this wrong James Randi will give you a million dollars. If by some faint hope that there is i would like to go to heaven and see Jesus talking to Hitler.

Plenty of evidence but the love of sin prevents many from receiving eternal life. Explanations outside of the bible really are full of nonsense and hot air. No rational person could believe in the idiotic big bang theory or its cousin evolution. Why do you think god deniers push these fantasies so hard.

(Joh 3:19) And this is the condemnation, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the Light, because their deeds were evil.

(Joh 3:20) For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

As some who was clinically dead from a massive haemorrhagic stroke, who came back to witness. I believe I can confirm a life beyond this one. But then that is on the basis of knowing, rather than belief.

Belief, no matter how sincere and devout never ever made a round world flat. But inculcated belief has seen fully grown tribesmen sink into a malaise and succumb to death when the tribal witch doctor pointed the bone.

Jesus never ever claimed to be God, but when Questioned on his miracles said, it is not I who does these things, but the Father in me.

It has been the church and men who made him into a deity to be worshipped at an altar. And foremost of those men was Constantine, who imposed and mingled popular at that time, pagan religious belief.

And changed forever original esoteric Christian belief. Belief that did not include worship at an altar, Nor marriage as a so-called sacrament, nor the confessional or its so-called holy seal, nor celibacy. given many of the Apostles were married men with wives and families.

Take butchers at the historically accurate if dramatised, Pillars of the earth by, Ken Follet Available as a book or DVD mini-series, or Constatine and the cross and free to see on U tube?

The Church needs root and branch reform and a return to esoteric Christian principles, before those that were imposed at the first council of Nicosia by Constantine and his stooges! But only if wants to remain relevant and true to the master's teachings/evocation.

And where he was remembered, rather than deified!
Alan B.

Great humour, calmness and respectful here in this discussion, compared to others haunted by Alan B, Steel'da nut'Redux. Slander and character assignation is so boring!

Any way, on a tangential angle to the authors interesting article, here is one last piece of advice from auntie "pig-ignorant" Alison Jane (my latest slandering descriptor) before the “end-of-days” prophecy delivers into oblivion (CC cultist will of course be saved by Gaia/mother-earth:

“Careless movements cost lives”, should replace the “Careless words costs lives” in this " Chai-na virus COVID-19 wartime scarey world.

Hippo 'isolation and social-distancing' day to you all.

If there is an afterlife I hope it's nothing like the present one.
ttbn,
Well, if it is no different I might just ask what my options are !

I see that I was one of the persons who criticized Spencer's previous essays on the mythologies associated with Saint Jesus of Galilee.
Meanwhile once again why not check out this long essay which is a summation of the authors 50 year long in-depth investigation of the topic http://www.beezone.com/AdiDa/up/forgottenesotericismjesus.html

Next is the Death Message http://www.beezone.com/death_message.html

And then these two references which point to and describe what actually happens during and after the dying process.
http://www.easydeathbook.com/book-excerpts.asp
http://www.aboutadidam.org/dying_death_and_beyond/index.html

The Atheiest and Runner, good points, runner I never thought you would know wise words from the bible, given previous comments elsewhere, do particularly like the second one."(Joh 3:20) For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light, lest his deeds should be exposed."

Oh boy forget Jesus and Hitler conversation, what about the Climate Change Cultist in the devils dungeon!... that massive squirming que on routing to that tiny little guillotine and hammer.... to castrate their tiny-weensy little penis's and smash their juvenile little bollocks! As Steel red-nuts has already deemed me hell -fodder, I volunteer to run that particular massive CCC worshippers free of charge!

Aplogies to S Gear, as I said in a comment on Essery's article, the article is interesting and the discussion polite, until Alab B rocked in, "Thor"ium hammer swinging as per usual.

Individual, I concur with your options angle!

evolutionists (god deniers) have told us for decade that humans are evolving to a higher form of life. And then we have a massive amount of non thinkers who fell for the man made gw hoax. Many of them with multiple degrees. Anyone still pushing for open borders?

ttbn,
Sorry to hear that. I`ve pretty much always found life to be fairly good.
Much better I believe than what I`ve heard about the alternative.
Moslems might disagree.

The ‘rising from the dead’ after three days is nothing but an allegory about the rising of the sun back above the horizon. This at the change following the solstice or equinox I can’t remember which one.

It was the ancient writers way of explaining so many things they did not understand, the bible is full of these misinterpreted things. Many other ancient manuscripts have similar stories explaining real celestial events.

There is no God, and there is no afterlife. It’s just misguided belief. And, belief has absolutely no validity in fact, none.
Galen

Galen: If you've never been there or experienced it how can you say it doesn't exist. It's like early sailors believing the entire world was in the northern hemisphere and simply because they knew naught else.

A.J. Very revealing remarks. VERY REVEALING INDEED!

To all others, go to the spirituality on U tube for evidence from a man clinically dead for 11 hours, and what he saw during that time, which from my own experience, has a familiar ring to it and the ring of truth.

Just as belief in something doesn't make it reality! not believing in witness statements, just doesn't make them untrue!
Alan B.

I'd have thought once people are dead, they're dead, they don't come back. Clinically dead is only dead clinically, not dead dead !
I have heard people talking of ghosts & having been dead. Could it be that the neurons or whatever makes up our brains simply don't die as suddenly as other organs fail ?
I'm not disputing others' , I'm simply offering another view !

Is this some sort of joke?

ateday,

Much better then the alternative? The alternative is dead. I would be interested to hear how you learned about it:).

ttbn,
All rumour as no one I know has come back to tell me.

ateday,

<<Still anticipating the FIRST person to return and tell us what it is all like. Suspect I may be in for a long wait.>>

To the contrary, One has already done it as the FIRSTFRUITS, a religious offering of the first agricultural produce of a harvest.

For Jesus Christ, the firstfruits means:
+ Jesus is the first to come in time;
+ This means he is a pledge (hope) of a greater harvest to follow.

1 Corinthians 15:20-23 gives details that the FIRST person to come back from the dead has already happened. You have to wait no longer:

"But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep [died]. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him", http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+15%3A20%E2%80%9323&version=NIVUK

If you want to know what it is like after death, take a read of 1 Corinthians 15 and Luke 16:19-31, http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+16%3A19-31&version=NIVUK

ateday,

<<One K Packer did and I`d (almost) believe him.>>

'In late 1990, two months short of his 53rd birthday, [Kerry Packer] suffered a massive heart attack while playing polo in Sydney. Technically he died, when his heart stopped beating for seven minutes. But he famously came back from the dead when he discharged himself from hospital a week later and returned to the same polo field, where he abused photographers who were trying to record his recovery', Independent UK 2005, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/kerry-packer-520819.html

After this temporary 'death' he made an horrific, blasphemous statement in an interview with Phillip Adams. See: http://www.theage.com.au/national/kerry-francis-bullmore-packer-1937-2005-20051228-ge1hp0.html?page=fullpage

He died finally on 26 December 2005.

Now he knows for sure what lies beyond the grave: 'Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him' (Hebrews 9:27-28), http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Heb+9%3A27&version=NIVUK

ttbn,

<<If there is an afterlife I hope it's nothing like the present one. Maybe what we call life is really Hell, and there is something nicer after it?>>

There is no IF to it. It is for CERTAIN. These are some things to look forward to if you've been redeemed through Jesus Christ's death and resurrection:

+ There is plenty of room in heaven for those who come via God's way: '‘My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going’ (John 14:1-4).

+ We know there is no sadness in heaven: God 'will wipe away every tear from their eyes' (Revelation 7:17).

+ This is what Christians have to look forward to: "Then I saw ‘a new heaven and a new earth,’ for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.... He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death” or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away’ (Revelation 21:1-4), http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Rev+21%3A1-4&version=NIVUK

+ No sin of any sort will be in heaven: 'But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness' (2 Peter 3:13).

+“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

What a day that will be! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnvZL_zW2JI

ttbn, we have God's guarantee that the afterlife will be nothing like the unrighteousness we experience in this world

What a day that will be!
OzSpen,
Sounds more like a Religion's got Talent, nice tunes though !

individual,

<<What a day that will be!OzSpen,Sounds more like a Religion's got Talent, nice tunes though!>>

It's time for you to listen to the content of the words and know how you can experience 'What a day that will be'.

Dear Peter Bowden (the author),

The question you pose, "Is there a God", is logically misconstructed and meaningless. As I shall explain, when this question is followed literally, even the most religious God-loving (or God-fearing) person must answer this question in the negative.

The word 'there', indicates a space.
Could God, presumably the creator of space, be found in space?

The word 'a' (as in "a God") precedes an object.
Could God be an object?
Had God been an object, then who created this object?

The word 'is' assumes a pre-existing division into categories into one of which God presumably falls.
But such categories would then necessarily precede God and be higher than Him: What kind of a limited "God" would it then be?

To seriously talk about God, no limitations can apply - and had we been able to speak of anything being other than God (including space, time, categories, existence and isness), then that would have constituted an unacceptable limitation on (or competition to) God.

Yes, some may like to speak about deities, even such powerful deities which can create, maintain and destroy worlds and communicate with their inhabitants, etc. - fair enough, but that would not be speaking of God. To avoid confusion, such deities should be written with a small-g: "gods".

So had your question been "Is there a god", then I could ask for clarifications and perhaps then come with some answer, but since your question was "Is there a God", my answer must be: "No, but there is nothing but God, including you and me".

Apologies, my previous post belonged to a different topic.
---

Dear Individual,

«I'd have thought once people are dead, they're dead, they don't come back.»

You thought correctly.

Matter follows the laws of matter. Old cars too do not return bright and shiny from the wreckers: I wish my old 1970 car did, but I would be delusional if I believed it would.

Nevertheless, it is only people and cars and the like that die, not us.
Those who identify themselves as a singular-of-people, mistakenly think that once that singular-of-people which they believe themselves to be, dies, they too will become dead and never come back. But in truth, we cannot die. We might lose our current body just like we might lose a car, but then we usually proceed to acquire a new one. This might be a bit of a nuisance for some, a bit of a relief for others, but overall not such a dramatic big deal as you describe.

«I have heard people talking of ghosts & having been dead. Could it be that the neurons or whatever makes up our brains simply don't die as suddenly as other organs fail ?»

There is a field of energy around our body.
In most cases it dissipates quickly after the death of the body.
In rare pathological cases it fails to and lingers on.
To prevent this, it is best to bury or cremate corpses as soon as practicable, then offer prayers for the departed and guide them to let go of these, now-useless, fields of energy.