Afterlife possible from secular POV

[PickelledEggs]

Did you even read what I wrote? They have separate brains and bodies. First of all there is no such thing as identical twins. Quantum level?  Are you a Deepak Chopra fan?  Solitary

Solitary!

You must find your one-ness and be one with your quantum!

[aitm]

There's obviously a reason why that can't be written off as simple brain activity, since that only explains consciousness in general.

That…..makes no sense whatsoever

[aitm]

Which is why worms instinctively engage in their behavior - despite not having any cerebral matter what so ever, therefore no ability to "learn" at all.

Fine, fine, I'll give you worms….sheesh….nice little moral worms.

[Ace101]

Fine, fine, I'll give you worms….sheesh….nice little moral worms.

They're "ordered" - they don't just kill or eat each other right and left because they weren't "taught" - call it "moral", or whatever you wish.

[Solitary]

How do you know worms don't kill and eat each other?

Read and learn Ace:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-you-make-sociopath-through-brain-injury-trauma/

It is hilarious that you post this because it is strong evidence you are wrong about what you post. Thanks for the laughs! Solitary




First of all there is no such thing as absolutely identical twins anymore than identical souls.  Even twins have separate bodies and brains thus are different.  There is absolutely nothing in science that suggests a world beyond science accept psychology and psychiatry which are not hard science, even though neurology is, it still is open to interpretation and bias. You sound like a Deepak Chopra fan who doesn't have a clue about quantum mechanics or understands it---because no one does!

Reality is our God
Science is our Bible
Evidence is our Scripture
Big History is our Creation Story
Ecology is our Theology
Integrity is our Salvation
Positive Evolution is our Mission

The Church of Reality is a religion based on the practice of Realism, which is a dedication to the pursuit of the understanding of objective Reality. Our motto is, "If it's real, we believe in it." Since no one knows all of Reality, the Church of Reality is a religious commitment to the pursuit of Reality the way it really is. We think about thinking. We wonder about wondering. We try to understand the understanding of understanding. We are Explorers, not followers. The phrase "What is Real?" is our Sacred Question and the word "Reality" is our Sacred Message. We talk about Reality, think about Reality, and aim to make Reality more important in society.

The Church of Reality is based upon the Authority of Evidence
rather than the Authority of Scripture

      
Reverend Reality Speaks!   
The Church of Reality is Religion 3.0. Religion 1.0 was about the authority of elders. Religion 2.0 was about the authority of scripture. Religion 3.0 is about the authority of evidence. This is a process we call the Evidential Reformation. We attempt answer the great questions that other religions address, like what is right and wrong, what is the meaning of life, how do people live together in a community, and what are our responsibilities to ourselves and to each other. We address these concerns in the context of Big History, our present Reality, and our future evolution. We are particularly focused on the future, which we call the Sacred Direction.

What we consider real is based on knowing rather that choosing to believe something. The difference between knowing and believing is knowing is based on the scientific method, which we call the Sacred Method. We use evidence, proof, logic, and reasoning to determine what is real. That doesn't make us infallible, sometimes we get it wrong. But when we realize we are wrong we change our minds because we have a value system that puts Reality first.

The Church of Reality is about making a religious commitment to the pursuit of the understanding of Reality as it really is.

Join our Email List
   
We are Monorealists, which means we believe in The One True Reality. This Reality is the sum of everything that actually exists. Our definition of Reality includes what some people call "other realities" that actually are real with the exclusion of imaginary realities and religious fiction. We care about what is real, not what we think is real or what we want to believe is real. The Church of Reality puts "real" Reality first.

We are about Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Reality!         
         
Your donation helps fund promotional activities that brings attention to living in Right Relationship with Reality. If you want to help get the word out and make Reality a religious value please help out by making a contribution. If you found this site and you like what you see then help us get the attention of more people. The more we can get people to embrace Reality the better the future of humanity will be.

The Church of Reality provides a religious identity for people who have made a personal commitment to pursue Reality the way it really is. When we are asked, "What religion are you?," we answer that we are Realists; we practice Reality because we believe in Reality. We also provide a sense of community, a social structure, and a moral compass to define right and wrong. We provide a sense of purpose about who we are, why we exist, and how we live our lives, in the context of science and logic.
We are of One Planet - we are all here together - and we are committed to making the future better than it is today. We are committed to making sure humanity evolves in a positive direction.
The Church of Reality recognizes the fact that the human race has a vast amount of shared knowledge. We call this shared knowledge the Tree of Knowledge, and it is through the growth of this tree that we can explore the universe around us. As the Tree of Knowledge grows, we evolve toward a better tomorrow, one where we will know more about Reality than we know today. Realism is not just a casual acceptance of Reality as real. Realism is a deeply felt choice, a commitment to a disciplined approach to determine what's real and to allow us to evolve in a positive direction.

Realists are not without values or morality. Our values are based on Humanism rather than a fictional holy book. As Realists, our values include Positive Evolution, Exploration, Honesty and Integrity, Freedom, Individualism, Peace, Courage, Environmentalism, Compassion, Justice, Inclusiveness, Scrutiny and Doubt, Humility, Reason, Wisdom, and Personal Responsibility. We believe in Original Virtue rather than Original Sin. We are a Doubt-Based rather than Faith-Based religion. These Sacred Principles form the basis for our Church Doctrine and are logically consistent with our missions.

The Church of Reality is an evolving religion. We are not tied to a fixed doctrine that was written in the past and is slowly becoming obsolete. If we get it wrong, we fix our mistakes. We are an Open Source Religion and everyone is welcome to participate in the development and improvement of our religion. We live on a vast wondrous universe that we are just beginning to explore. Why would someone want to waste their entire existence on a fictional world view when there's all this wonderful Reality to investigate and understand?

The Church of Reality is an Emergent Religion. Just as apples grow on apple trees when humanity evolves to a certain level something like the Church of Reality must occur. Humanity has two paths. We can either evolve forward or we will become extinct. We will either Stay in the Game or we will be Left Behind. Since we were created through the process of evolution and our ancestors all the way back to Pond Scum did what it took to survive, we are programmed by evolution to try to continue to exist. We therefore accept, through evolutionary bias, that to exist is better than to not exist. In order to continue to exist we have to evolve forward and we need to be in Right Relationship with Reality to do that. And that defines the mission and the purpose of the Church of Reality, that humanity should continue to exist and evolve forward so that we stay in the game. Our descendants should look back at this time and be thankful we did what we do here today. Otherwise, if we do the wrong thing, they might regret what we do today, or there may be no one around to look back. We will be forgotten.
What is Reality?
Reality is that which when you stop believing in it - it doesn't go away. ~ Philip K. Dick
Are you already a Realist? - Do you find yourself thinking about Reality? Do you think that it's important that what you believe in is actually real? Do you think for yourself rather than just believe what you are told to believe? When you counsel friends on important matters, do you advise them to take Reality into consideration? Do you believe the world would be better off if Reality were a more important part of society? if you answered YES to these questions, you may already be a Realist.
“A religion, old or new, that stressed the magnificence of the Universe as revealed by modern science might be able to draw forth reserves of reverence and awe hardly tapped by the conventional faiths. Sooner or later, such a religion will emerge.” ~ Carl Sagan
If you like what you see, then join our Mailing List to get the latest announcements. We also appreciate those who link to us and review the Church of Reality in their blogs. We have a good religion started here. All we need is people to spread the word about it.


Church of Reality Introduction Podcast Listen Now!
The Sacred Missions of the Church of Reality are:
We Believe in Reality - the Way It Really Is
We Spread the Sacred Message - Reality
We Choose the Sacred Direction - Forward
We Honor the Tree of Knowledge
We Ask the Sacred Moral Question - What Is Good
We Issue the Sacred Challenge
We Are Activists - We Make It Happen
We Unite Religion and Reality      
 
We believe in Reality - the way it really is!    
 
If it's real - we believe in it. The name defines the religion. The Church of Reality is a Personal Commitment to the Truth. We believe in real reality, not the way we want reality to be, not our personal reality, but real objective reality the way it really is. We Realists are explorers and we explore the universe together with our minds. We think about thinking. We wonder about wondering. We attempt to understand the Understanding of Understanding. We ponder the Great Questions. We are a curious people and we are bound together in our quest to know the real world that we really live in.          
Read more...       
 
We Spread the Sacred Message - Reality    
 
Our mission is to spread the importance of reality everywhere, to think about reality, to talk about reality, to allow reality to transform our being. Every time we mention the word Reality we spread the Sacred Message. We are here to ask the Sacred Question - "What is Real?" We want people to consider reality when making important decisions. By spreading the Sacred Message we cause people to be Real in the Sacred Moment (which is Now). Our mission is to say "Reality" as many times as we can and to get other people to think about reality as often as we can. We want people to be more realistic in their daily lives and to spend more time every day wondering about what is really real.          
Read more...       
 
We Honor the Tree of Knowledge    
 
The Tree of Knowledge represents the sum total of all human understanding. It is the shared knowledge of the human race. It is the repository of everything we know. The fact that you can read this is because you can read and communicate with a common language that is among the fruits of the Tree of Knowledge. The human race survives and thrives through our shared knowledge. Our understanding of reality and our evolutionary process is through growing the Tree of Knowledge.          
Read more...       
 
We Choose the Sacred Direction - Forward    
 
The Sacred Direction is forward - onward and upward. Our world view is Futurism not Dogmatism. Our Principle of Positive Evolution commits us to envision a future that is better than today. We are one planet and we are all in this together on our little ball in the universe. In order to answer the Sacred Question and explore our reality, society must evolve forward.

In order for us to explore reality the way it really is, we have to continue to evolve forward. We need to become a better society. We need to develop new technology. We need to find better ways to feed ourselves, to cure diseases, to keep our environment clean, to advance the sciences, to educate our children, to understand our minds, to live in peace with one another, and to have a fair and just society. These things cause us to progress and to move forward as a human race so that we can understand our world and the universe of which we are a part.          
Read more...       
 
We Ask the Sacred Moral Question - What is Good?    
 
The Sacred Moral Question is, "Is this a Good Thing?" What does "good" mean? That too is involved in the Sacred Moral Question. Right and Wrong and morality and ethics are all relative to your basic assumptions and goals. We base our morality on reality and it is our duty to make sure that reality is taken into consideration when questions of right and wrong are decided. The commitment to Reality is a commitment to truth, honesty, wisdom, and responsibility. The Church of Reality is committed to getting the moral questions right.          
Read more...       
 
We Issue the Sacred Challenge    
 
There are a lot of religions and many of them have an Extinctionist perspective on the future of the world. They look forward to the world ending in their lifetime. Our religion is based on Positive Evolution and the progress of humanity is sacred to us. We therefore challenge other religions on the basis of reality to help ensure that they don't destroy civilization pursuing their fiction based religious fantasies. One of our missions is to influence other religions to embrace reality and help them evolve into a better religion that doesn't threaten the future of the human race.          
Read more...       
 
We are Activists - We make it Happen    
 
We are an activist religion. We don't just find problems - we solve problems. We are committed to coming up with solutions and take responsibility for bringing new concepts into reality. We make sure that the job is done right. We are a community, and we do the work needed to make the community work. We go out and learn, we try to understand, and we spend a lot of time thinking. We give of ourselves for the common good of all people. In the Spirit of the Tree - our shared knowledge - we support sharing. It is our duty to look around and figure out how to make it all work.          
Read more...       
 
We Unite Religion and Reality    
 
By adopting the name "Church of Reality" we are dedicating ourselves to solving the puzzle of how to create a religion that is based on reality. They say it can't be done, but we say it can and must be done. We accept the task of creating a religion that provides all the community services that other religions provide, while staying true to the principles of science and logic. We accept the axiom that this is possible and we dedicate ourselves to the seemingly impossible task of making it work.

      
 
Bringing Religion into the 21st Century          Reality as a Religious Identity          
The Church of Reality is a religion based on the practice of Realism. It is a religion that is based on believing in everything that is real. Our motto is, "If it's real, we believe in it." Since no one knows all of reality, the Church of Reality is about the pursuit of reality the way it really is. We commit to being intellectually honest with ourselves, and with others, so that we can cut through the mythology and understand the understanding of understanding.

Our world view is that religion is evolving in the Sacred Direction and that the Church of Reality is a blueprint for religious evolution. We want to inject reality into the world view of other religions so that we are all improved through Realism.           The Church of Reality is different in that we are not dedicated to a fictional world view. Our world view is to see reality the way it really is. Other religions' world views are based on mythology. All religions have some basis in reality. Most would agree that murder is bad. On those universal concepts we in the Church of Reality agree. But in those other religions, if their world view contradicts reality, they are expected to reject reality in favor of their world view. Rarely are other religions dedicated to the pursuit of reality the way it really is. In this church, if you come to realize that what you currently believe is wrong, you are expected to change your mind. That's what's different about the Church of Reality. The beliefs are not static. Reality is a learning process. We are an evolving religion. Of all the religious choices out there, we believe that Reality should be one of those choices.          
Read more...          Read more...          
Fundamental Concepts          What the Church of Reality is Not          
Every religion has it's own world view and culture. The Church of Reality is no different. Our world view and culture are rooted in the Sacred Principles which define our ethical standards. Although our mission is to explore reality, we need to deal with a lot of other related issues to do that. Here is an overview of what being a Realist is all about.           To avoid confusion and misconceptions, here is a list of things that the Church of Reality is not. Sometimes a religion can better clarify what it is by stating what it isn't. We are like other religions in many ways and in many ways we are not like other religions. Here is a list of what we are not.             
Read more...           Read more...           

Solitary

[the_antithesis]

Explain how one can have a consciousness without a brain or shut the fuck up.

[aitm]

Explain how one can have a consciousness without a brain or shut the fuck up.

actually I think that is his position.

[Ace101]

Explain how one can have a consciousness without a brain or shut the fuck up.

Nope, the idea is that a 1st person consciousness can manifest itself in a different brain after the death of the current one - not that it'd just 'exist on its own' outside of a brain:

http://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/discovery-of-quantum-vibrations-in-microtubules-inside-brain-neurons-corroborates-controversial-20-year-old-theory-of-consciousness

[Solitary]

I'll second that!  Ace you whole dialogue is called confirmation bias that is a fallacy in logic, and even happens to atheists and scientists---but it still means they are wrong when they do that. Deepak Chopra is a master at doing that, like so many religious authorities and their followers. Solitary

[Ace101]

I'll second that!  Ace you whole dialogue is called confirmation bias that is a fallacy in logic, and even happens to atheists and scientists---but it still means they are wrong when they do that. Deepak Chopra is a master at doing that, like so many religious authorities and their followers. Solitary

I've never read Deepak Chopra - I was referring to this:

http://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/discovery-of-quantum-vibrations-in-microtubules-inside-brain-neurons-corroborates-controversial-20-year-old-theory-of-consciousness

[aitm]

I've never read Deepak Chopra - I was referring to this:

http://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/discovery-of-quantum-vibrations-in-microtubules-inside-brain-neurons-corroborates-controversial-20-year-old-theory-of-consciousness

It is an interesting theory, and in a wild ass assumption but lets see it pass a physical and real test. Grab a couple dozen infants and stick them in a the woods and see how long they live eh?

[stromboli]

I'd be careful with your source. Elsevier has been found to use fake peer reviews for their publications.

http://retractionwatch.com/2014/12/19/elsevier-retracting-16-papers-faked-peer-review/

I would look for a better source.

[the_antithesis]

Oh christ. More hokum. Why do these assholes keep coming here? We don't care.

[Solitary]

Other physicists think Penrose has gone off the deep end with this. Even if it is true it doesn't mean consciousness has to be caused by a quantum event. If something is a quantum event it can't cause a non quantum event to happen even if everything depends on trillions of quantum events. There is no reason to think consciousness is caused because of quantum mechanics. Penrose thinks he understands quantum mechanics and he is wrong because no one does. Well maybe Deepak does.    Solitary 

[Hijiri Byakuren]

My answer to this is the same answer I have for many things: "It's possible, but not probable."

We only have a few reference points for loss of conscious brain function: coma, unconsciousness, and sleep. The latter isn't even a complete shutdown since you still dream. We also have a frame of reference in the form of what there is before you're born: nothing. Since death is yet another form of lost brain function, it's not unreasonable to conclude that this is all it is. Is it possible there's an afterlife? Sure. Is it probable? Not really.