In the midst of torture, a Jew tells his captors: One of the earliest extra-biblical writings that mention belief in resurrection is found in II Maccabees (150 B.C.E.). Among the more poetic ancient Jewish theories on the resurrection is the idea that “drops of perspiration from God’s head will come down to earth, and when they fall, the dead will rise from the dust.” 1 Even Jews who agree that resurrection is real disagree on such details as, “Who will bring about the resurrection?” “From what material will the new bodies be constructed?” “Which people will return from their graves?” “What condition will they be in when they return?” and “Will they come back naked or clothed?” Questions and more questions, and some of the answers are just as fanciful. Historically, Jewish belief in a bodily resurrection from the dead has received a split decision. While most modern Jews have not really grappled with the issue of life after death and much of contemporary Jewish preaching would lead us to believe in the conclusions of scientism, there is a well-established Jewish doctrine of Afterlife and the World to Come. What is true about life after death? Is reincarnation a bunch of superstitious nonsense? Was resurrection of the dead just an empty hope for our ancestors? Can anyone really know? All religions teach something about an afterlife and the Jewish tradition is no exception. Yet our 20th century conditioning dictates that we approach such things with a kind of reasoning which says: ‟the sum of a person’s being is no more than its physical parts, and when the body ceases to live the person no longer exists outside of the memory of those still alive.” Modern science or as some call the belief, scientism, can only come to that kind of conclusion based on ruling out all but empirical evidence.Īt the same time, we do wrestle with the mysteries of life and death. A significant number of people dabble in spiritism with seances and others resort to crystals to commune with the spirit world. There is a plethora of material for those who want to know more about what happens on the other side of the grave. New Agers have popularized the idea of afterlife, out of body experiences and reincarnation. All who have fallen asleep in hope of Him shall rise again.
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