After looking up afterlife on EBSCOhost, I found a great article talking about a few religions’ beliefs about it. Islam and Judaism are two of the religions discussed and the two religions I chose to observe. Following my reading, I found that Islamic people and Jews have similar beliefs about afterlife.

Islam teaches that everyone spends eternity in hell or in paradise. Erin Wisdom mentions (Wisdom 1) that people in paradise will be “busy in their rejoicing, they and their spouses, reclining upon couches in the shade; therein they have fruits, and they have all that they call for” (The Koran Interpreted 36:55-57). She also mentions (Wisdom 1) that people in hell will have "garments of fire ... and there shall be poured over their heads boiling water” (The Koran Interpreted 22:19-22). A person has to believe in Allah, the Islamic god; in Mohammad, Allah’s prophet; and must wade jihad, holy war, against non-Muslims to attain life in paradise (Wisdom). How much good a person does in life also plays a part in his destination afterlife. Those who show bravery or die during jihad are the only ones promised paradise while everyone else has to hope they find favor with Allah.

I personally do not think that someone has to show bravery or die to be promised paradise; however, the general Islamic beliefs about the afterlife provide a positive guide for followers to lead. I think it gives people a reason for living when believing in a higher being, Allah, and an existence after death.

Judaism also teaches that there is a life after death, heavens and hell. The Torah states that righteous people will be “gathered to his people” while unrighteous people will be “cut off from his people”. Although Jews believe in afterlife, Judaism doesn’t talk much about the details of it. Bob Ott, president of Temple B'nai Sholem in St. Joseph, said that "the focus is on living a good life now, without thought of reward or punishment (Wisdom 1)." Since books like the Torah and the Talmud don’t focus much on afterlife, many different beliefs about it have come about in different Jewish traditions.

Personally, I do not want to believe in a religion that doesn’t talk much at all about the life I would be living after death. It’s a good idea to live your life in the present, but because of the person I am, it would be too hard for me to not focus quite a bit on the consequences I would encounter afterlife. I also found it very odd that Erin Wisdom talked none about the higher power they believe in. They believe that all good people go to heaven as long as they love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and mind and observe the commandments.

Wisdom, Erin. "Afterlife Exists." EBSCOhost. 2008. 3 Apr 2009.