@Dabs:
I side with Jay on the afterlife part. I would even say that the odds of it existing are far fewer than 1%. Perhaps 0+% (the + is for being scientific). As for your bet on it existing or not and where it will land you after you die, it's an interesting argument that many people use (i.e., winning this life vs. an eternal afterlife), but, according to almost all religious texts, this mindset will not land you in a nice place after you die, so you'd better pray there's no afterlife...
Its a little bit more involved than that, I guess you could say it starts with that mindset, until you change your way of thinking and willingness to help other people and your fellow brothers in humanity. Whether the answer is yes or no, I would like to live a life where I am remembered by at least a few that I have had it okay or good or something along those lines.
Proof or evidence is a matter of faith. One can not really see it, but either you take the leap or you don't.
The mindset I prefer is one stemming from love, not fear. Criminals fear law enforcement. Good people are good just because they feel good when they do good.
There comes a time in a man's life where the world has shaken so violently, every tenant of what he previously thought of as talent or even competence melts away. A tragedy so gruesome, a burden so heavy, that the only choices that remain are A.) to have faith in a higher power and place one foot in front of the other in the hopes that benevolent power will see you through to the other side or B.) crumple to the ground and hope death is swift.
I am so glad to see that there are so many who have never truly experienced literal Hell... but wisdom dictates that we make efforts not to sever that last lifeline for the sake of those that may need it. True courage is not a lack of fear, but an acknowledgement that there are worse fears possible than the one immediately at hand, and the willful choice to face the immediate as a bulwark against the possible. It is much easier to dismiss the concept of a greater good than to ignore the existence of true evil. But once you've truly grappled with evil, it's impossible to continue forward in a world where one exists but not the other. So as we frolic through these bright days convinced that we have created our own good fortune, let us not forget that true evil does lurk in the shadows. Let us cling to that "less than 1%" just in case, because when the chips are down and at last call Lucifer himself appears to lay down 4 Kings, you just might need that Ace up your sleeve after all.
