In late November, I started seeing banner ads on digg: wondering what happens after death? Have unanswerable questions? Just click here and unlock life's mysteries! I'm non-religious and happy with it, but decided to give it a try. Good friends of mine are both Mormon and ex-Mormon, and if there's one thing I've learned, it's that their missionaries are persistent. So I went into the chat expecting a stalemate. But my randomly assigned missionary apparently hadn't yet finished his training: he fled the chat when confronted with the possibility that no god exists. Not proof, mind you (something technically impossible); he left after being confronted with the possibility. I kept the chat window open for 30 minutes and he never returned. The chat is below. mike.shemp.94, at google mail (gmail) dot com You are speaking live with Christian, who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Information provided in this session is to provide assistance only and is not an official statement of the Church. Christian: Hey mike Mike: Hi Mike: there are banner ads on digg asking me to come here Christian: how has your day been? Mike: its been ok Christian: cool, so what can i help you on mormon.org today? Mike: i guess i was just wondering why you were running banner ads, that's unusual Christian: well i wasnt even aware that we were, well i guess it is because we have a very important message to share. Mike: the banner ads say you can tell me what happens after death Christian: yes i can. Mike: how do you know though Christian: First do you believe that there is life after death Mike? Mike: well there's no way to know for certain but it seems pretty unlikely Mike: it seems like if your brain is dead then you're pretty much gone Christian: well why do you think that? Mike: we have a lot of evidence that people's sense of self comes from the brain Mike: for example, if you perform a frontal lobe labotomy on a person they lose their peronsality Mike: so it seems likely that if my entire brain dies then there would be no more "me" Christian: ok, fair enough, how does that make you feel though thinking that this is it. Nothing more to live for. Mike: if it's true that this life is the only one we have, then it makes me think this life is very very precious Mike: it makes me want to sieze every moment and take every opportunity because this is the only one i've got Mike: it makes me really want to live a full life, you kow? Christian: ya i know, but what if there was life after this, would this be something that you would hope for? Mike: are you asking, do i wish that there were a life after this one? Christian: yes, would you hope for something after this life? Mike: sure, i wish there were even more. but i also wish other things like that i had a million dollars. just because i want something to be true does not mean it's true. Christian: yes that is true, but would it be something for you to want to see if it is true. Like first do you belive in God? Mike: if there is life after death then i'd want to see it, sure. i don't know if i believe in god. there's no way to prove either way but it seems unlikely that gods exist. Christian: ok, have you ever believed that there was a God at one time? Mike: when i was a little kid Christian: ok, when do you think you stopped believeing in God? Mike: when i got older, I mean, you hear lots of stories of things when you're a child, like santa claus and the tooth fairy, and leprechauns and things like that Mike: i guess when you get to a certain age you stop believing those things are real, you realize they're stories that parents tell their children Christian: True, what if there was a way for you to know that God exists would you want to try? Mike: you mean like an experiment? Christian: yes an experiment. Mike: sure Christian: Great, Well for starters, i want to talk about prayer for a sec. i am a true believer that you dont get to know someone unless you actally talk to them. Christian: So with prayer we can talk to God and give him Gratitude for things that we have and then we can ask him for things to help us with. Mike: so how do we figure out if there is anyone listening? Mike: i mean, you said this was an experiment, i'm wondering, how do we determine the results Christian: ok, well how i get an answer for me is when i pray i dont just end the prayer with an amen and go about my day without giving any thought to what i prayed for. Christian: I let God have a chance to answer me back Mike: how does he do that Christian: and how we can know if we get an answer is we get a thought in our mind and with that thought we then get a good feeling in our heart that it is true. So for you, you would ask God if, God if he really is God. Mike: it seems like for the experiment to be fair i should try it with lots of different gods or something Mike: i mean lots of things make a thought pop into your head, why does a thought popping into your head mean that god put it there? Christian: Can i share with you some things out of the scriptures in how a person got an answer to his prayer? Mike: sure Christian: well for you to get an answer, you have to zero in on a spacific Question, Like "God do you exist, and if you are help me to know it is true." When you ask a spacific question you get a Spacific answer. Mike: how do you know the answer is really coming from god and that you're not just talking to yourself? Christian: well we get answers from the Spirit of God. It will Feel really good inside and you will know that it is coming from God. I dont know how to explain it, it is something that you have to find out for yourself. Mike: so if i try it and it doesn't work, does that mean god does not exist? Christian: Well if you feel that the answer is no, and if really gave it a honest try, then in the after life i dont belive God will hold it against you if he sees that you gave it an honest shot to know that he exists. Christian: but Mike, for this to work you are going to have to belive in the things i tell you and have full faith that it is going to work, that you will recieve an answer. Mike: that didn't really answer my question though. you said we were going to do an experiment to determine if god was really listening Mike: if i get an answer you said that's proof he is there, but then you said if i don't get an answer he's there anyway. so that's not really an experiment...??? Christian: we were going to exspirement to see if you got an answer and see if God does exists and if he exists you will recieve an answer. Mike: and what happens if he doesn't exist? Mike: i mean you said if he exists, then i'll receive an answer. so on the other side of the experiment, if he doesn't exist, then what will happen? i won't get an answer? Christian: well for me i know that he exists, i also asked God if he was there, i prayed read his word which is the Scriptures and i prayed to know if he is real and the things i read are true, Mike i recieved an answer that he is true. I want you to have that same. Mike: but if i try and i don't get that same answer then how do we know which of us is right? Christian: feeling and for you to have that same witness that he is true, and have peace in mind to know that there is more to this life than just life on earth. Mike: i really want the experiment to work Christian: and Mike i want you to get a witness that god exists for yourself to that i why i want to help you and for you to try spacific things to know that he does exist. Mike: okay let's try but i'm not sure i understand yet Christian: ok that is what i am hear for to help you along the Way. Christian: I am going to relate a story in the Scriptures to you and we are going to zero in on spacific things that i believe will inhance you to recieve an answer. Mike: ok Christian: to tell you about this passage of scripture i want you to know the story behind it. Christian: this man named Lehi was living in Jerusalem, he was told by God to get his family out of Jerusalem becasue it was going to be destroyed. So he told his family. Some of his sons Lamen and Lemual thought he was foolish and thought he was a visionary man... Christian: but he had another Son Nephi, who wanted to know if the things his father said are true. So i am going to realate Nephi to you. Mike: ok Christian: Nephi wanted to know if the things that his father was saying are true and you want to see if the things i told you like a there is a God is true. Mike: ok Mike: so how did they resolve it Christian: ok i am going to send you the scripture now and we are going to go read it from and we are going read it sentance by sentance and we are going to talk about it. Mike: ok Christian: http://scriptures.lds.org/en/ search?type=references&last= Leviticus+19%3A27&help=&ro= checked&search=1+Nephi+2%3A+ 16&do=Search&show=%0D%0A%0D%0A

(This URL is opening in the browser window that you opened the chat window from.) Mike: ok i read it Christian: "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God" We are going to be Nephi you are the one that is going to be large in stature, ha Mike: ha ha Christian: What did it say in that sentance. What did Nephi have alot of? Mike: ok i understood the full passage, we don't really have to go through it word by word Mike: i'm trying to understand how this relates to my question. if the lord had not come to nephi and softened his heart would that have been evidence that what his father had said was actually false? Christian: well i just want to zero in on things, but it said that Nephi had a Great DESIRE, and that is what you are going to have to have, a Desire. Christian: and what did nephi do after that? Christian: it says he Cryed unto the Lord, meaning he prayed to God to know if the things his father was saying where true. Mike: okay Mike: i really do want this to be true, i really do, so i have the desire part down Mike: so i think i'm ready for the experiment, i'm going to cry unto the lord and see if what you're saying is true Mike: but before i do we should be prepared to examine the outcome Mike: the passage clearly says that if my heart is softened, then what you're saying is true Mike: but the passage does not discuss the other possible outcome and that's what i'm trying to understand from you Christian: ok great, then he said that the Lord Visited him, know it didnt say in person or anything he said that his heart was sofend. Christian: Have you ever heard of a hard Heart Mike? Mike: i've heard of it, yeah Christian: ok a person usually means that with a hard heart people arnt open to possibilites, but it says that his heart was softend wich means that Nephis Heart had to be somewhat not beliveing in his father. Mike: i am totally open to all possibilities Christian: but it says that once his heart was sofend that he did belive all the words of his Father, meaning that what his father said was true. that it did come from God. Mike: i am just worried that you are not open to all possibilities, really Mike: are you open to all possibilities? Christian: yes i am, i am open to all possibilites, so that is what we are going to do with you. I am going to Give you some scriptures to read and you will read them and then you will pray to God to know if he is there and Pray to know if the things you.. Christian: read come from God. will you Do this Mike? Mike: i will make you a deal. if i am open to the possibility that god is there and will soften my heart, will you be open to the possibility that god is not there? that no god exists? Mike: i mean for the experiment to work it has to be able to go in either direction, otherwise it is not an experiment Mike: hello? Mike: are you there? Mike: did you leave? :(