Adding reason to faith
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Sunday, July 29
View Article  Response to... 070728
by Daniel J. Shepard on Sun 29 Jul 2007 12:00 AM EDT

Mary Ann S: Thank you so much for your prompt reply!  May I ask a couple other questions?  1) Just to clarify for myself, would it be correct to say that you believe that after your own death, your personal consciousness will continue on in some way?

 

Djs: There are two issues to be addressed within your question:

 

First: Do I ‘believe’ that after your own death, your personal consciousness will continue in some way? The answer to this personal question regarding my personal belief is ‘Yes’.

 

Second: Putting my personal ‘beliefs’ aside, what do ‘first philosophy’ via reason and dialectics – ‘first science’ via observation and measurement – ‘first religion’ via faith and ancient wisdom – tell us regarding: … that after your own death, your personal consciousness will continue on in some way.

 

They tell us, if we use reason to connect the dots, we can emphatically conclude: …that after your own death, your personal consciousness will continue on in some way.

 

Mary Ann S: In other words, the consciousness that DJS experiences within the physical realm will still be “there” just in another form that we can’t really know yet? 

 

Djs: I ‘believe’ this AND reason, as this site demonstrates over and over again, demonstrates this is so.

 

Mary Ann S: 2) Will you explain your understanding of karma and how it works in the context of a panentheistic framework? 

 

Djs: Although it may appear that I know ‘everything’ there is to know about ‘a panentheistic framework’, in fact I do not. Karma is an Eastern concept that I know little about. As such I must be the first to say: I feel certain karma fits well into a panentheistic framework but I am not certain I understand ‘how’ karma fits into the panentheistic framework.

 

The thing about ‘new’ perceptions of reality such as symbiotic panentheism is that the validity of ‘new’ metaphysical perceptions can be ‘judged’ by their ability to generate new ways of thinking and your question is an example where there are so many arenas of new thinking evolving from panentheism that one person does not have the time or ability to understand them all.

 

Now if the question had been: ‘If the process of karma plays a role within a panentheistic framework, ‘why’ would karma be a factor …:, then I would have had something specific to say.

 

Mary Ann S: 3) Will you explain your understanding of “prayer” or connection with the divine/absolute/ultimate consciousness?

 

Djs: Prayer – the connection of one’s conscious existence with divine/absolute/ultimate consciousness.

 

The biblical phrase goes as follows: ‘…and God created man in his image and in the image of God created He man.’

 

If God/the absolute/ultimate consciousness/cosmic consciousness is omniscient, God would know how to do create man perfectly in His image. If God is omnipotent, God would have the power to create man His image. And if God is omnipresent there is no ‘place’ to place His creation than ‘inside’ Himself.

 

If man was created ‘perfectly’ in God’s image then the individual, like God, is divine in nature and as such there is no reasonable way to treat the individual than to treat the individual as one would treat God, with honor and respect.

 

Note: I use the male pronoun for God only because it is used in the biblical context. I do not personally believe God is exclusively male or female.

 

Mary Ann S: Thank you again for taking the time to help me as I explore these questions! 

 

You’re welcome

 

Feel free to send other question if and when you like.

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Thursday, July 26
View Article  Response to... 070726
by Daniel J. Shepard on Thu 26 Jul 2007 12:08 AM EDT

Mary AnnS: I am fascinated by your endeavor and the amazing work you have done! 

 

Djs: Mary Ann, thank you for the kind words.

 

Mary Ann S: I have some questions about what happens after we die.  Basically, the question is, well, what happens after we die? 

 

Djs: First of all, let me be the first to admit that we do not know for certain what happens when one dies. Such a statement leads us to understand two things: First -  one cannot say absolutely that one continues in some form after death and Second - one cannot say absolutely that one does not continue in some form after death.

 

So where does that leave us? Faith tells us we continue on in some form after death. Ancient wisdom tells us we continue on in some form after death. Observation and measurement does not confirm we continue on in some form after death but on the other hand observation and measurement does not disprove our continuing on in some form after death.

 

What about reason and dialectics? Reason and dialectics, as demonstrated over and over again in this site, absolutely reinforces the concept that we do continue on in some form after death and in particular in the form of individual consciousness immersed within the whole of consciousness or, as religions would say of omniscience, continue on within God – panentheism.

 

Mary Ann S: Although part of me likes the idea that my own personal, individual consciousness will remain and just be greatly enhanced after death, I can’t find any scientific evidence that this could possibly happen. 

 

Djs: We will probably never obtain confirmation of consciousness remaining after death. By definition, death is the end of physical existence and it is not the physical that religions, ancient wisdom, reason, and dialectics suggest continues after death.

 

In addition, one must acknowledge that science by its very nature is concerned with the physical, concerned with laws that govern the physical universe, observes and measures physical phenomenon.

 

The concept of consciousness remaining after death is a concept that is not part of the realm of science and as such, to look to science to confirm existence after death is no more reasonable than to look to a rock for love.

 

Mary Ann S: I wonder if “deep, dreamless sleep” is more akin to the after-death experience of the individual than just expanded personal awareness.  And I wonder “how” or “in what way” and individual continues on.  Will you comment on that for me?

 

Djs: If you are referring to the lack of conscious knowing one experiences in ‘deep, dreamless sleep’, reason would suggest such a state is more a state of ‘unknowing’ than it is a state of knowing and therefore such a state would NOT appear to be the type of existence one experiences after physical death.

 

Reason would suggest your description ‘Although part of me likes the idea that my own personal, individual consciousness will remain and just be greatly enhanced after death’ would be a fair representation of existence after knowing exits the physical realm of the body and the physical universe.

 

A question I find interesting is ‘What type of existence does a person with advanced stages of Alzheimer’s experience?’

 

Reason would suggest a person’s consciousness which is located within a brain experiencing Alzheimer’s has not dissolved away but rather remains intact within a brain which has lost the ability to act as a mechanism capable of interacting with said consciousness, lost the ability to act as the means of connecting knowing to the physical.

 

As such, a person with Alzheimer’s would, like others, find their consciousness transposed, upon physical death, from the physical body to the Whole of consciousness. The consciousness would remain completely intact and cohesive.

 

Mary Ann S: Thank you and keep up the good work!  

 

Djs: Again thanks for the kind words. Feel free to send in other questions.

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