Concepts of God (The nature of a \'Creator\')

by dhw, Saturday, April 09, 2016, 12:38 (2929 days ago) @ David Turell

BBELLA: Putting myself in God's place (as only a mere human), I do not think I would want to (or could) give up my ONE true I-dentity. ....This very concept dominates many religions as well as lives alive and well in most if not all human thought processes (at least somewhere in the back of one's mind - the possibility of God). Many formal beliefs embrace this very concept of God as all and separate.

dhw: If, on the other hand, there is a single Creator who is me but is not me, and if I am to be one with him when my body dies, it seems to me that one of us is going to have to give up his identity. .... I must acknowledge that I am far too limited in my thinking to conceive of eternity and infinity, let alone the possible identity/identities of an infinite and eternal mind! (Though as David will confirm, I still keep trying!)-DAVID: It's instructive to follow you guys. I've looked into these issues by extrapolating from NDE's. The experiencer sees only dead people. They have not lost their identity, but they are over on the other side with God. Their ability to have their own thoughts is shown by the reported telepathic instructions to go back.
-NDEs are an important factor for my agnosticism, especially when they result in patients being given information they could not otherwise have known (e.g. the recent death of a relative). You are right - they all keep their identity. However, when we have discussed this in the past, we have noted that some NDEs can be frightening and unpleasant, and they are not all “with God”. On the other hand, some patients mention being welcomed by Jesus. Does that mean Jews and Buddhists and Hindus have got it all wrong? Or do people enter a world of their own imagining? It's a fascinating and bewildering field of study.