Many people today, Christians, Muslims, and Jews, as well as people of other religions, are convinced that good people go to heaven when they die, while people who acted improperly go to Hell. But the notion that these places exist is pagan and entered Judaism only in the late second temple period, probably round 320 BCE.
In his introduction to the tenth chapter of Mishnah Sanhedrin, called Chelek, the great Jewish philosopher Maimonides (1138-1204) describes five groups of Jews who have opinions about life after death. The first group believes that righteous people will go to an idyllic land called the Garden of Eden where no work is required and the people live a life of joy forever, while evil people go to hell, called Gehenna Hebrew, where their bodies are burned and where they suffer various types of agonies for eternity. The second group expect the arrival in the future of a messiah when good people will live in comfort forever. The third is convinced that people will be resurrected in the future and then join their family that died and live in comfort forever. The fourth group contend that the reward for observing the biblical commandments is physical pleasure while alive. The fifth group, which is the majority, combine the prior four as their expectation following death.
Maimonides states that these beliefs are deplorable and childish. It is like the need to reward a child by saying “If you do such and such, I will give you candy.” A child who doesn’t understand the value of proper behavior needs this incentive. But an adult does not. Maimonides refers to Ethics of the Father 1:3, from about the year 220, which teaches. “Do not be like servants who serve their master [God] in order to receive a reward, be like servants who serve their master without thought of reward.”
Bart D. Ehrman addresses the question when and why did the notion of heaven and hell develop in his recent book “Heaven and Hell.” Ehrman stresses that the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, has no mention, not even a hint, of life after death and reward and punishment at that time. Rather than childishness, as suggested by Maimonides, Ehrman states that it is fear that causes people to believe in heaven and hell. It is also possible that both are correct, both led to the beliefs.
Ehrman notes that people feared death from the beginning of time. It is discussed in the ancient Mesopotamian epic known as Gilgamesh. Scholars date the book back to 2100 BCE, long before the revelation of the Tanakh. In this fascinating tale which tells of an ancient flood much like the one in the later book of Genesis, also focuses on Gilgamesh’s fear of dying and his search for immortality. Later, in the eighth or ninth century BCE, Homer wrote the Iliad and Odyssey in which he tells of a non-tortured existing after death that is bleak, dreary, and completely uninteresting – not for some, but for everyone, without any reward or punishment. “For Homer and other ancient Greek authors, [a life force] goes to the underworld. Where souls (psychai) have the form [of a body] but not the substance of human life [no flesh and bones], and none of its goodness…. It is far better to be the lowest, most impoverished, slave-driven nobody on earth than to be the king of the dead in gloomy Hades.”
Ehrman writes that the current notion of many today that after death people receive their due rewards is not in Homer. “It is not a view that originated in Jewish or Christian circles but in pagan ones.” The great Greek philosopher Plato (c. 428 BCE- c. 348 BCE) endorsed “the notion of postmortem justice for both the virtuous and the wicked.” He said in Phaedo and Laws that the body will die but the soul will live after the body’s death. Later, the Roman author Virgil (70 BCE-19 BCE) wrote in his Aeneid that people are rewarded or punished after death and he added the idea of reincarnation. Jews most likely adopted the Persian idea of resurrection from the religion of Zoroastrianism when they came under Persian rule in 539 BCE.
Ehrman devotes many pages showing that the concept of life after death changed dramatically and repeatedly down through the centuries. There is not one view in Judaism and not one in Christianity; the ideas shifted from time to time in both religions. For example, “neither Jesus nor Paul appears to have taught anything about eternal punishment for the wicked” and it is not in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. Thus, even if one accepts that there is life after death, there is no way of knowing what it is.
The only solution to Maimonides’ idea that the childish belief in reward and punishment – that people need to feel that they will be rewarded if they behave and obey the commands and will be punished if they fail to do so – is mature intelligence. Perhaps, Ehrman’s revelation that these concepts are of pagan origin will help. He reminds us of Plato’s magnificent solution to the fear of death in his Apology. He describes Socrates about to die saying there is nothing to fear about dying. One of two things is possible: either one lives after death or the person ceases. If the first, the time after death will be joyous. It is a chance to see people who had died before. If death causes the cessation of consciousness, it is no different than sleep, and one does not fear sleep.
By Israel Drazin|May 7th, 2020|Book Reviews, Thoughts
Share This Article
FacebookEmail
One Comment
Turk Hill May 7, 2020 at 11:43 AM – Reply
Yes, it is possible that the Jew adopted the notion of reincarnation but I would be surprised if they got it from Zoroastrianism. Zoroaster said that people are judged and live either in Paradise or hell. Of course, it is possible that the Persians later adopted the notion of transmigration of souls from the Greeks when Alexander conquered them in 334 BCE. They might have gotten the idea from Pythagoras but there is no evidence that he had any contact with the Jains, so the idea might have come to him by itself. Personally, I find the thought appalling to be hopping about like a grasshopper from fish to snake to wasp to tree to man to whatever. It is quite enough to be born once. Personally, I am all for Aristotle’s active intellect. This seems to me to be not only rational but highly useful.
Thank you for the essay.
Leave A Comment
Comment
It’s in point of fact a nice and helpful piece of information. I’m satisfied that you simply shared this helpful info with us. Please stay us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Dear, are you truly visiting this web site daily, if so after that you will absolutely take nice experience.
I am really loving the theme/design of your weblog. Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility problems? A handful of my blog audience have complained about my blog not operating correctly in Explorer but looks great in Safari. Do you have any tips to help fix this issue?
I go to see everyday some web pages and websites to read articles or reviews, but this blog offers quality based articles.
What’s up everybody, here every one is sharing these knowledge, thus it’s good to read this website, and I used to go to see this blog every day.
Thanks for a marvelous posting! I actually enjoyed reading it, you are a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and definitely will come back at some point. I want to encourage you to definitely continue your great job, have a nice day!
Greate article. Keep writing such kind of information on your page. Im really impressed by your site.
Hi there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your content seem to be running off the screen in Internet explorer. I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with web browser compatibility but I thought I’d post to let you know. The style and design look great though! Hope you get the problem resolved soon. Many thanks
hey there and thank you for your information I’ve definitely picked up anything new from right here. I did however expertise some technical issues using this site, since I experienced to reload the site many times previous to I could get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your hosting is OK? Not that I am complaining, but sluggish loading instances times will very frequently affect your placement in google and can damage your high quality score if advertising and marketing with Adwords. Anyway I’m adding this RSS to my e-mail and can look out for a lot more of your respective fascinating content. Make sure you update this again soon.
I am really loving the theme/design of your weblog. Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility problems? A couple of my blog visitors have complained about my website not operating correctly in Explorer but looks great in Safari. Do you have any suggestions to help fix this issue?
Does your website have a contact page? I’m having a tough time locating it but, I’d like to send you an e-mail. I’ve got some recommendations for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it improve over time.
Hi there, this weekend is pleasant designed for me, since this time i am reading this great informative piece of writing here at my home.
It is not my first time to visit this site, i am visiting this web site dailly and take pleasant information from here every day.
Hey There. I found your blog the use of msn. This is an extremely well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your useful information. Thank you for the post. I will definitely comeback.
It’s actually very difficult in this busy life to listen news on TV, so I simply use web for that purpose, and get the most up-to-date news.
Hi there, I log on to your new stuff regularly. Your writing style is awesome, keep doing what you’re doing!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on %meta_keyword%. Regards
Hi there Dear, are you in fact visiting this website daily, if so after that you will definitely take nice knowledge.
Hi, everything is going perfectly here and ofcourse every one is sharing data, that’s in fact fine, keep up writing.
It’s enormous that you are getting ideas from this piece of writing as well as from our argument made at this place.
When someone writes an post he/she keeps the thought of a user in his/her mind that how a user can understand it. Thus that’s why this piece of writing is great. Thanks!
You ought to take part in a contest for one of the greatest blogs on the net. I will recommend this blog!
First off I want to say great blog! I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind. I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your mind before writing. I have had a hard time clearing my mind in getting my thoughts out. I do enjoy writing but it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are usually wasted just trying to figure out how to begin. Any suggestions or tips? Thank you!
My partner and I absolutely love your blog and find many of your post’s to be just what I’m looking for. Do you offer guest writers to write content for you? I wouldn’t mind publishing a post or elaborating on many of the subjects you write about here. Again, awesome site!
You’re so cool! I don’t suppose I’ve read something like this before. So nice to find somebody with a few unique thoughts on this issue. Really.. thank you for starting this up. This website is something that is needed on the web, someone with a little originality!
magnificent post, very informative. I’m wondering why the other experts of this sector do not realize this. You should continue your writing. I am sure, you have a huge readers’ base already!
I will right away grasp your rss as I can not in finding your email subscription link or newsletter service. Do you have any? Please permit me understand so that I may subscribe. Thanks.
Good day! I know this is kinda off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site? I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be great if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Thank you a bunch for sharing this with all folks you really recognize what you are talking approximately! Bookmarked. Please also talk over with my web site =). We will have a link change contract among us
Quality articles or reviews is the key to invite the viewers to go to see the website, that’s what this site is providing.
What’s up to all, it’s actually a good for me to visit this web site, it contains precious Information.
Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!
Thanks for one’s marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading it, you can be a great author. I will make certain to bookmark your blog and definitely will come back someday. I want to encourage continue your great job, have a nice afternoon!
I go to see day-to-day some web sites and information sites to read articles, except this webpage gives quality based posts.
Simply want to say your article is as astonishing. The clearness in your post is simply spectacular and i can assume you are an expert on this subject. Well with your permission allow me to grab your RSS feed to keep up to date with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please keep up the rewarding work.
Грамотный мужской эромассаж в Москве с бассейном
With havin so much content and articles do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright violation? My website has a lot of exclusive content I’ve either created myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the web without my agreement. Do you know any methods to help stop content from being ripped off? I’d certainly appreciate it.
Hi to all, because I am truly keen of reading this webpage’s post to be updated daily. It contains pleasant data.
great submit, very informative. I wonder why the other experts of this sector do not realize this. You should continue your writing. I am sure, you have a huge readers’ base already!
This is very interesting, You are a very skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your wonderful post. Also, I have shared your site in my social networks!
Thank you for sharing your info. I truly appreciate your efforts and I am waiting for your next post thank you once again.
It’s remarkable designed for me to have a web site, which is valuable for my knowledge. thanks admin
Since the admin of this site is working, no uncertainty very quickly it will be well-known, due to its quality contents.
I don’t know if it’s just me or if everyone else experiencing problems with your website. It seems like some of the text within your posts are running off the screen. Can someone else please comment and let me know if this is happening to them too? This could be a problem with my web browser because I’ve had this happen before. Thank you
I’m not positive where you are getting your info, however good topic. I needs to spend a while learning more or understanding more. Thank you for wonderful information I used to be looking for this information for my mission.
Your style is so unique compared to other people I have read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I will just bookmark this page.
Wonderful goods from you, man. I’ve be mindful your stuff prior to and you’re simply too fantastic. I really like what you’ve acquired here, really like what you’re stating and the way through which you assert it. You are making it entertaining and you still take care of to stay it sensible. I can not wait to read far more from you. This is actually a terrific website.
great submit, very informative. I’m wondering why the other experts of this sector do not understand this. You should continue your writing. I am sure, you have a huge readers’ base already!
I am curious to find out what blog system you have been utilizing? I’m experiencing some minor security problems with my latest site and I would like to find something more safeguarded. Do you have any solutions?
Hello there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous roommate! He always kept talking about this. I am going to forward this information to him. Pretty sure he’ll have a good read. Thank you for sharing!
Usually I do not read article on blogs, however I wish to say that this write-up very pressured me to take a look at and do so! Your writing taste has been amazed me. Thank you, quite great article.
I love reading a post that will make people think. Also, thank you for allowing for me to comment!
Very quickly this site will be famous among all blogging and site-building users, due to it’s good articles or reviews
Hi, i feel that i saw you visited my web site so i got here to go back the favor?.I am trying to find things to improve my website!I assume its good enough to use some of your ideas!!
What’s up, this weekend is pleasant for me, as this time i am reading this wonderful informative article here at my home.
Good post however , I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this topic? I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Thank you!
Hi there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous roommate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this article to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Many thanks for sharing!
It’s remarkable in favor of me to have a site, which is helpful in favor of my knowledge. thanks admin
We stumbled over here different web page and thought I may as well check things out. I like what I see so now i am following you. Look forward to looking over your web page again.
I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good. I don’t know who you are but definitely you are going to a famous blogger if you are not already 😉 Cheers!
Thank you, I have recently been searching for information approximately this topic for ages and yours is the best I have found out so far. However, what concerning the conclusion? Are you sure about the source?
Good info. Lucky me I found your website by accident (stumbleupon). I have bookmarked it for later!
Hey! I’m at work browsing your blog from my new iphone 4! Just wanted to say I love reading your blog and look forward to all your posts! Keep up the fantastic work!
Howdy great blog! Does running a blog similar to this take a great deal of work? I have no expertise in programming but I was hoping to start my own blog soon. Anyway, if you have any recommendations or tips for new blog owners please share. I know this is off topic but I just had to ask. Thanks a lot!
Does your website have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to send you an e-mail. I’ve got some creative ideas for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it improve over time.
This is a good tip especially to those new to the blogosphere. Brief but very accurate information Thank you for sharing this one. A must read article!
Nice blog here! Also your site loads up fast! What host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host? I wish my website loaded up as fast as yours lol
What i do not realize is actually how you’re now not really a lot more smartly-appreciated than you may be right now. You are so intelligent. You understand therefore significantly with regards to this matter, produced me for my part believe it from so many various angles. Its like men and women don’t seem to be fascinated until it’s something to accomplish with Woman gaga! Your own stuffs excellent. Always deal with it up!
Can you tell us more about this? I’d love to find out more details.
hi!,I love your writing so so much! proportion we keep up a correspondence more approximately your post on AOL? I need an expert in this space to solve my problem. May be that is you! Looking forward to peer you.
Hi to all, it’s actually a nice for me to visit this site, it contains important Information.
Porn, This is a good website Porn
viagra, This is a good website viagra
Tadalafil, This is a good website Tadalafil
NSFW, This is a good website NSFW
Levitra, This is a good website Levitra
Phallus, This is a good website Phallus
Stamina, This is a good website Stamina
Testicles, This is a good website Testicles
Phallus, This is a good website Phallus
WOW just what I was searching for. Came here by searching for %keyword%
We stumbled over here from a different web page and thought I might as well check things out. I like what I see so now i’m following you. Look forward to looking over your web page yet again.
Hi there! This article couldn’t be written any better! Looking at this post reminds me of my previous roommate! He constantly kept talking about this. I’ll forward this article to him. Pretty sure he will have a very good read. Thank you for sharing!
Great post.
Greetings! Very helpful advice within this article! It is the little changes that make the biggest changes. Thanks for sharing!
Hi! I could have sworn I’ve been to this web site before but after going through a few of the posts I realized it’s new to me. Anyways, I’m definitely happy I came across it and I’ll be bookmarking it and checking back frequently!
Hello there, You have done a great job. I will definitely digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I am sure they will be benefited from this web site.
My brother suggested I might like this blog. He was totally right. This post actually made my day. You cann’t imagine just how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!
This piece of writing gives clear idea in favor of the new users of blogging, that actually how to do blogging.
Онлайн казино радует своих посетителей более чем двумя тысячами увлекательных игр от ведущих разработчиков.
Hey there! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site? I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be awesome if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Hi it’s me, I am also visiting this web site daily, this web site is in fact good and the people are really sharing good thoughts.
I don’t know if it’s just me or if everyone else experiencing problems with your blog. It appears as if some of the text within your posts are running off the screen. Can someone else please comment and let me know if this is happening to them too? This might be a problem with my browser because I’ve had this happen before. Thanks
I believe what you postedwrotesaidthink what you postedwrotesaidthink what you postedwrotebelieve what you postedtypedWhat you postedwrote was very logicala bunch of sense. But, what about this?consider this, what if you were to write a killer headlinetitle?content?wrote a catchier title? I ain’t saying your content isn’t good.ain’t saying your content isn’t gooddon’t want to tell you how to run your blog, but what if you added a titleheadlinetitle that grabbed people’s attention?maybe get people’s attention?want more? I mean %BLOG_TITLE% is a little plain. You could peek at Yahoo’s home page and watch how they createwrite post headlines to get viewers to click. You might add a video or a related picture or two to get readers interested about what you’ve written. Just my opinion, it could bring your postsblog a little livelier.
I have been surfing online more than 2 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours. It’s pretty worth enough for me. In my opinion, if all website owners and bloggers made good content as you did, the internet will be much more useful than ever before.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on %meta_keyword%. Regards
I used to be recommended this website by way of my cousin. I am not sure whether this publish is written by way of him as no one else recognize such particular approximately my problem. You are amazing! Thank you!
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d certainly donate to this brilliant blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this site with my Facebook group. Chat soon!
Хотите получить идеально ровный пол без лишних затрат? Обратитесь к профессионалам на сайте styazhka-pola24.ru! Мы предоставляем услуги по стяжке пола м2 по доступной стоимости, а также устройству стяжки пола под ключ в Москве и области.
организации по поставке строительных материалов
Хотите получить идеально ровные стены в своем доме или офисе? Обратитесь к профессионалам на сайте mehanizirovannaya-shtukaturka-moscow.ru! Мы предлагаем услуги по механизированной штукатурке стен любой сложности и площади, а также гарантируем качество работ и доступные цены.
Very nice article. I definitely love this website. Stick with it!
Appreciating the dedication you put into your website and in depth information you present. It’s great to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same out of date rehashed material. Excellent read! I’ve saved your site and I’m including your RSS feeds to my Google account.
I got this site from my pal who told me about this site and now this time I am visiting this web site and reading very informative articles or reviews here.
Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this. Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.
Совершите свой ремонт без лишних усилий. Штукатурка по маякам стен с mehanizirovannaya-shtukaturka-moscow.ru обеспечит вам идеально ровные стены.
Great article! We will be linking to this great post on our site. Keep up the good writing.
Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it. Look advanced to far added agreeable from you! By the way, how can we communicate?
Hello! I just want to give you a huge thumbs up for the great info you have here on this post. I’ll be coming back to your blog for more soon.
Can I just say what a relief to discover a person that actually knows what they’re talking about online. You definitely know how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More people must read this and understand this side of the story. I can’t believe you’re not more popular since you certainly have the gift.
1 ışık yılı kaç km’dir?
What’s up friends, nice piece of writing and good arguments commented here, I am in fact enjoying by these.
Great article, exactly what I needed.
Right now it sounds like Drupal is the best blogging platform out there right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you’re using on your blog?
I always used to read post in news papers but now as I am a user of web thus from now I am using net for articles or reviews, thanks to web.
I am extremely inspired together with your writing skills and alsosmartly as with the layout in your blog. Is this a paid subject matter or did you customize it yourself? Either way stay up the nice quality writing, it’s rare to peer a nice blog like this one these days..
Pretty! This was an extremely wonderful post. Thanks for providing this info.
I was wondering if you ever considered changing the layout of your site? Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having one or two images. Maybe you could space it out better?
I couldn’t resist commenting. Well written!