philosophy of religion

Jenny Socrates

Unit 4 Journal Entry

Journal Entry Unit 4

Instructions:

Submit a journal entry in which you:

1. Discuss a topic or issue relevant to this Unit. And

2. If applicable, your personal reaction to it and why or how it is relevant for you today.

I believe these chapters were the hardest for me to face. I do believe part of it was because of the

sudden death of my uncle which caused me to devour the book looking for some sort of answer

or some sort of proof that everything was okay. Linda Badham’s argument against the traditional

teaching of theism was difficult at best. Life after death was put on the chopping block in her

argument. Her arguments did seem plausible but very hard to swallow and ultimately had to

create my own thoughts at my quest’s end.

Linda Badham’s argument that we would be resurrected in the body that died is very strong. She

makes very good points about how we as humans through our lives share and is changed by our

environment. Never in my right mind could I believe that in the end we as humans could be

resurrected as Jesus was in a million years. This is partially because my thoughts lean towards

cremation. If we are resurrected in what was buried all I would be in the end is a really nice,

smart, thinking pile of ash. That isn’t a very nice thought to me. A lot of people are cremated so

at least I won’t be alone in the heap of ash that will be I guess.

I also found her thoughts provoking about the limitations of people that could be resurrected.

Millions of people are buried, if they all stood up now we would pile one on top of the other and

have no room for anything. I was taught though of no mountains and no bodies of water to be

had in the end during the final resurrection. This would allow for a lot more room for the dead to

inhabit. I didn’t like her theory of a limited number or chosen people for resurrection. It is the

Comment [EMH1]: For the journal entries, I am not going to be quite as strict about format and style,

though I would like to see a clear thesis statement of

some kind. The point is for you to provide a

“meditation,” rather than a comprehensive essay, on

the issues that we address in class.

Comment [EMH2]: You don’t have to reprint the instructions, though if you do so, it may help you to focus your thoughts and structure for your essay.

Comment [EMH3]: Jenny mentions her response to the material in Unit 4 in a way that is personal for her, and intriguing; you don’t have to do this to write a good journal entry, though it keeps it interesting for me to read.

Jenny Socrates

Unit 4 Journal Entry

same problem I run into with Christianity. To me heaven is a place where there is no sorrow or

hurt. My aunt for example is a very devout atheist and if you don’t believe in god you’re not in

the book of life when you die. I will say supposedly this is why I think I am agnostic. I couldn’t

imagine heaven in the end with my aunt not there but burned in the lake of fire. That would be

torturous to me and I would miss her for all eternity. That is an eternity I would not like to

partake in.

Her argument on the soul and who has one was interesting to say the least. Taking her

justifications as to what has a soul and what does not leads me to say that I couldn’t stand behind

that. Her justifications are self awareness. A baby doesn’t become self aware until they are one

or two years old. Before that they are just learning about the world. That would claim that a child

before that has no soul and the soul enters the body at that time. Sometimes I still struggle with

the thought that my son still isn’t aware at times of himself. Does this in any way mean he

doesn’t have a soul during the times that he is learning to become self aware. It isn’t like one day

he woke up and said I am doodle and now he is advanced enough to say I am doodle and I am

Kris. To me this means he has finally become self aware and now pretends to be other people or

things that he finds in the world. It is strange watching him grow to different psychology markers

that you have read about but until you experience them makes little sense. To take her theory a

step further: My cats seem to be self aware; they come when I call them they answer me in their

own language; however, they do not pretend to be some other creature that is habiting my house.

They are not fully aware of themselves; they are partially self aware. That would mean if they

had souls they would be parts of a soul not the whole thing. Maybe this is why we have four of

them.

Comment [EMH4]: Note that Jenny Socrates has been good to not only speak definitively about a particular issue or two that she finds provoking in Badham’s argument—she talks about *why* she finds it interesting.

Comment [EMH5]: In this paragraph, Jenny Socrates addresses what she sees as a key issue where she disagrees w/ Badham. But she doesn’t just assert that she disagrees, she gives counter- examples to Badham’s claim by showing in what way Badham is mistaken.

Jenny Socrates

Unit 4 Journal Entry

When starting this chapter I remember thinking that I couldn’t even think about it after my uncle

died so suddenly. Then the questions of what really happens to us when we die started rolling in

my head. I devoured the books in search for a suitable answer. To say it was hard reading some

of the theories because it was most painful to imagine, like the replica theories, or the soul that

doesn’t exist. If anything I can honestly say that it gave me a very unique adventure to find the

answers and reason behind the quest. I will admit I liked H.H. Price’s theory of it being a

dreamlike state. I personally think it will be like waking up from a dream and on the other side is

the reality of existence. I am sure my quest will continue long after I have completed this class. I

know that it can’t be proved or seen with my own eyes until it is my time to go. That will be

when the quest will find its end.

Comment [EMH6]: Jenny Socrates’ journal entry was about 2.5 pages. Clearly, your entry doesn’t have to be nearly as long. But you are certainly welcome to make it as long as you like, as long as you keep in mind the requirements included in the instructions.