Scenario: the afterlife is demonstrated scientifically. Read on...

[valis]

and it has the following properties:
1) It's nice.
2) It does not depend on what you do during your life on earth.

Questions: Would that change the way you live? How?
How would society change?

Speculate.

[Bok_Tukalo]

1. 1. No 2. Dramatically

<ope>

[Anarcho-Socialist]

2. Not me personally

It is self-defeating to be mean to others, it then causes those you're mean to, to be mean in turn to others.

It's just easier to be nice, whether or not we'll be 'rewarded' in the afterlife.

[ThoughtCriminal]

3. Higher suicide rates

Got problems? Why deal with it.

[valis]

4. I think society would explode

basically, there would be no way to keep people oppressed. The worse that can happen is to die and have a nice afterlife. No? Would there be ANY point in not committing suicide?

[Pockets]

7. There would be a point

only if this were your only chance to experience life.

I think I would go on living even if life sucked just to expeirence it.

[Modem Butterfly]

5. Nope and yes

I need to be able to look myself in the eye every morning when I brush my teeth. I'm not nearly the person my dogs think I am, but I am about as close as I can get. So the only way to go is down, and no, that's not happening. But I do think a lot of people would take it as license to behave poorly. I think many folks only do good things because they're afraid of the Angry God Man in the Sky.

[Anarcho-Socialist]

6. BTW...

...thanks for posting a thoughtful thread.

[kick-ass-bob]

8. interesting question.

This could be a thesis topic.

It probably wouldn't change what I do - because I believe what you send out is what you get back. So during this life, if you're nice, you get nice stuff back, etc.

As a society, I'm not sure that it matters. Because many of the "believers" would not believe that anyways.

So lets say that everyone did believe it, I'm not sure how those people would act. Their belief system would be thrown into disarray - so some may just accept it, while others would go on wild sprees. Whether their behavior would end up harming someone would depend on if their fear of "bad stuff" happening to them (formerly being afraid of going to hell) would now translate into being afraid of being punished in their current incarnation.

[Goldmund]

9. I'll take a crack at your second question:

Mass-suicide galore.

I wouldn't join in, though.

[Burma Jones]

10. I would live pretty much the same

The Golden Rule goes beyond Judeo-Christian theology....

Society might go nuts. Suicide would increase. The Pope would get a much lower key send off. Death Metal would be a lot less scary. Materialism would increase even more.

AND

Evangelicals would declare war on Science.....oh wait...they already have.

[valis]

11. it's funny. I have a colleague who's some kind of fundy.

Nice girl, out of place in Boston, but she really believes we are near the end. And that Jesus will come down, flames and all that. And he will ask each one of us, on last time, if we believe in him. I told her, I'm a scientist, if Jesus comes down surrounded by flames etc I'd tell him I believe in him.