The Game of Life
9/8/2023
We have looked at the idea of heaven and hell before and I haven't been exactly a cheerleader for the concept. I know we all die, and I am convinced that our spirit, or consciousness , goes on past the body. It is not empirical scientific proof I have, but it is fueled by something we see every time we watch a cop show on TV. In almost every episode, the lead character has a "hunch" that proves to be true.
Was it a guess? Sometimes. More often though it comes from the experience that the officer has had over the years, which leads him/her to expect how this is gonna play out. It is then up to the cop to prove it with evidence to obtain the conviction. In this scenario, the special "gift" is called "intuition" or "following your gut". In religious matters, this is called "faith."
Faith is not blind. It is led by a "gut feeling" based on what we have observed in our lives, that what we believe is true. Many Christians accept their "faith" in the way that their religion explains it to them. It may or may not make sense to them, but their "spiritual leader" also shares the gut feeling, and the "leader" must know more, so the vast majority of people accept it. They just trust the people in charge. Faith never enters the investigation phase.
Then, there is us. The people who see the things that the "leader" has wrong. And it's not the casual - "I don't like that." It is more the realization that there are a lot of contradictions and things that just don't make sense. We, as a group, need to have our faith make sense, so we are unable to accept our eventualities as explained by leaders spewing inconsistencies.
We have moved on to the investigation phase. That is those of us who are clergy, or laity, who pursue answers to those bothersome questions. Because we see the ridiculousness of some of the things claimed to be truth flying directly into concepts also claimed as truth. We (both clergy & laity) are applying investigation to our faith to get closer to the real truth. There is no sin in this.
That was a long, serious intro to what is really going to be an outing to fantasy-land.
The concept we are looking at is "what happens in the afterlife?". You don't have to accept any particular beliefs about the afterlife, including it's existence. This is just a mind exercise to spark some thought.
I have said, early and fairly often, that I can think of nothing more boring than floating around on a cloud, playing a harp, and singing praises. That is just not me. I don't even do a service in that format. It's disconcerting hearing snoring coming from the pews.
I'm gonna propose what I think would be a good heaven for me. It's a fairy tale. It's nothing that I know - except that I would like it better, and a loving God would not want me imprisoned in boredom for eternity, any more that he would burn me in hell for eternity.
Humans, in general understand by duality - we learn what is good by comparing it to what is bad. This differs a bit from culture to culture, but it's pretty standard really. What harms you is bad, what gives you pleases you is good. Sometimes whether you are the one doing, or being done to, makes a difference in that equation. In the end though, if everything was all sweetness and light here on earth all the time, we would wind up killing ourselves off in boredom.
I have lived a life that has seen more than a few unspeakable horrors, and have been in situations that no one would volunteer for, but in total, I can say that I'm pretty satisfied with how things have gone to get me here. What if heaven is a bit like earth?
A fashion of the human experience nowadays is getting lost in video games. There is such a wide selection in video games now that there is something entertaining for every individual out there. It is easy to get lost in those worlds. You start with the basics to learn the game, and as you play on you gain more special skills and strength to advance in the game. You advance at your own speed - sometimes with help from other players and sometimes you just keep banging away at it til you finally figure it out. I think it's a fairly common thing to get a bit lost in your RPG of choice and are capable of losing yourself in the alternate reality until someone drags you back into the here and now.
What if life is an actual imitation of this art? You are born and issued a character/skin. At birth you have certain inherent skills that you use and refine as you play. Along the way you gain more skills, powers and equipment and advance in your level. If you are good at the game, you advance in power and points. If not, you wash out.
The situation here on earth lends itself to this comparison. There are the super bosses (billionaires) who you don't want to take on. The lower level bosses (say politicians) and down from there start the descent of levels til we get to us, and those below. We play the game, learn the game, and level up as we can. We make friends along the way. Eventually our time ends either by advancing up or getting killed off.
After we get killed off is where this exercise is leading us. So let's say, my RPG character is dead. What now? I'm still here. Just not inside a game.
What if I'm standing in one of those super-arcades of the 1980's with every game on earth imaginable, with enough slots for everyone to play as much as they wanted. I might choose to go back in and see if I can do better in my existing character. Maybe I change it up, and do the same game as a different character. Maybe I sucked at it and want to try a different game altogether. Or maybe I want to sit for awhile with my friends at the arcade and have some pizza and beer.
While munching on the pizza with my friends, maybe we all decide to do it again together. Maybe a few switch skins to try the game from a different direction, or for different skill sets - but you make plans to meet up with or find each other in the next round. Maybe you have a nemesis that you want to find and battle again. Maybe you sucked so badly that you are trading in "Call of Duty" for "Super Mario Bros." to see if that works better for you. The choice is yours. Entirely.
After awhile, your skill sets in certain games gets your levels so high that the game is too easy for you. You can then move onto the championship rounds playing other high level players for domination of the one game - to be the best player ever. Or, you do a large variety of games to develop many skill sets to be successful in all games - no matter what.
Eventually, when you get to a high enough skill level, you get to be tech support, bringing along the lower level players. Maybe that's where I am now. Maybe when you are a champion, you get to create brand new games for your level, or keep on advancing into more and more complex and difficult games. You could literally spend eternity doing this, and not get bored. A spiritual amusement park of infinite proportions.
So. it's all made up - but as an idea of heaven, it would work for me. A constant mix of good and bad, of ever increasing challenges to test your skills against, and the satisfaction of doing well. You even have friends that you can share them with. As heaven, that would work for me.
Maybe you think this is the most horrible scenario that you could ever imagine. What would you imagine your heaven as? Seriously, think about it and comment with it. I am interested. In a world of 7-8 billion people, I will bet there are 7-8 billion distinct heavens.
In the meantime, while going through this life now, the arcade owner only has one "rule" - that, to as well a degree as life allows, be on good terms with as many people as possible. To treat others with kindness and respect. To assist those who are not doing as well as you. To be compassionate, which, I believe, is the truest essence of humanity. Then, when you finish here, try the next thing. I have no idea what the penalty is for not obeying this rule, but it is not burning in fire forever. Play well.
In Peace, Faith and Love
Ecc. RL Brandner, New Ecclesiastes Ministries