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Extenstionalism, that a human is just an empty vessel, is in fact a valid idea and should be considered by all people regardless of who they are. Well in all truthfulness it seems like a truthful statement to me as opposed to just conforming to any common or already placed ideas. The body, the mind, the brain waves, the heart beat, the bodily functions, the voice, and finally the opinions. What are all these though, what is it these things these basic human properties have in common with each other? The answer is that all of these things make up the human body and all of them have a purpose. Granted mutes cannot talk but even they have a way of expressing themselves in a certain manner. So that’s all we are, just a mess of organs and systems with certain talents that make us more advanced than monkeys and other animals. That’s what we can prove and not just what we think. So why would we have religions with illogical ideas and opinions that could be just a dream?
Religion is an idea that opposites extensionalism completely and without question. Religions in particular that this discussion falls under are ones such as Christianity,and Judaism. Christianity is based on the idea that there is an all powerful being know as god and that he sent a son down to be a savior who was then killed and allowed this god to forgive our sins. It describes a righteous path that leads to the perfect afterlife and how the un-faithful will go to a place called hell. This is not in all churches though some do say that certain people are allowed in just for good action and other ideas go between those two standards. And it is supported by history because history says there was a Jesus and even now it is claimed his tomb has been found. These ideas have no support but are feed by hope and faith and in all truth could be true but there is just no proof to back it up. Judaism is the same way except it says that Jesus was not the son of god as well as a few rules and restrictions that make them and Christians separate from Christians. This history as well as these ideas cannot disprove extensionalism.
Extensionalism says that a person has no real actual soul and that the possibility of an afterlife is very unlikely. And it could be true I mean a person doesn’t need a soul to live, breath, and walk. All they need is a brain to function with. Ask any religious person they are likely to tell you otherwise. And what makes there idea of it any less than this one that a person does need a soul to exist and that without it there is no life. Facts… again facts are what dispute this idea completely and without any disputing. And it makes sense that these facts are facts because many religions will not disagree that a single cell has no soul. And cells are alive are they not? The perform life functions like any human don’t they? Sure they have no though process but they don’t have any real brain waves either. These cells need no afterlife why should we?
An afterlife is not needed by any means whatsoever. Even if a person dies and they cease to be the world will not stop, it will keep moving on and it will not falter in this loss of life. The belaying fact is that person’s life is irrelevant to the world and its inhabitants because one death will not stop a race or many from existing. This brings many ideas into perspective that sacrificing one life to ease millions of other peoples is not so heinous that it is not that big a deal. Emotions make us act badly to such a loss and that means we will continue to hate the being responsible for such an act. In the grand scheme of things though what does it matter? They die and a world can continue to work, just as well in fact. This does not mean that murder is right and that a person can kill without question, in fact no body has the right to control another that is just a simple truth not a leader or even a parent because it is not there’s to manipulate, but this does mean that murder is not a crime that the world need concern itself with. Then that would mean that the afterlife is just a hope like any religion is used for.
Religions for a great deal of the time rely on some sort of mystical or spiritual event that took place to tell humans how they should live there life and find happiness. Why is it that today in this advanced world that we cannot prove these mystical events and that these mystical events that happen only seem to happen with a group of people with no real proof? It may be because mythology is based upon many types of lies. Why would people lie to others and themselves like that though? Why would the spread false hood and deceive there fellow man? The reason is not that hard to understand or even heinous in the least. The purpose for all religion may be that a person wants hope and hope for all or even hope to be in all to help them disillusion themselves even easier so that they can believe in there own lie. This is only an idea and there are many more with it but it makes sense that religion is made for that reason. So that people can say they are good and not animals and that they have a chance at perfection. Who knows? But this idea does make extensionalism valid by saying that we are empty but don’t want to accept it that we want to show that we have some sort of inner perfection.
Humans are very interesting creatures indeed. We have an advanced intellect and we can create societies with rules that function on a very high level at least in our own opinion. We even create religion so that we can have some sense of hope and a path to make ourselves good and better than other beings. Extensionalism says that this is pointless and that it is hopeless. We cannot be perfect and we do not have any higher purpose. It proves a point that our only purpose is to produce offspring and continue our race. So then after that why should we even exist, why we should continue to take up space? There is no reason except for one. To exist in a manner that pleases us and to try and find some form of joy. Extensionalism says there is a void but it doesn’t say that there is no way for a human to be content. That’s the point of everything to find our own purpose even if it holds no higher relevance even if it is only for selfishness even if may seem wrong. We don’t need this religion deal to be happy that even if the human has no soul that even if the human will fade from existence they can be happy. Even if one life has no meaning the fact that it can be happy is not a pointless venture to that one person. Extensionalism is a point that relates human existence to the flesh and that is what humans can rely on.