What happens after death?
One of the most serious questions a human being can ask is what happens after death. Not simply because it is interesting, but because it concerns everything.
When I once asked a professor at the University about death and the afterlife, he replied:
“I am a scientist, and I report on the basis of my experiments.”
I answered:
“Correct. You conduct experiments where experiments can be conducted. But what kind of experiment could determine what happens after death? And even if such an experiment were possible, would it truly provide a final answer?”
The professor remained silent.
There are three main ways of understanding the afterlife.
Firstly, the materialist approach.
According to this view, the human being has no spiritual or metaphysical dimension—only matter, like animals. Animals and humans share the same final outcome: death. In this understanding, everything ends there. No continuation, no awareness—only nonexistence.
However, from a strictly logical point of view, this cannot be proven. We do not have certainty about what happens after death. Therefore, different possibilities remain open. Even the existence of Hell cannot be excluded any more than its absence. If Hell exists, this raises a serious implication.
Secondly, the theory of reincarnation.
The human soul continues after death and is reborn into different forms of existence—animal, plant, or human—depending on one’s previous life (karma). This cycle continues until the soul reaches perfection or “nirvana.” This view is found in Hinduism, Buddhism, and other traditions.
I once met a young man in central Athens who asked me:
“What do you think about reincarnation?”
I replied:
“How do you know it exists? Have you died and seen it? Have you been reincarnated?”
“And how do you know it does not exist? Have you died?” he replied.
I said:
“Neither of us has died, so we cannot speak with certainty about what happens after death. There is a real gap in our knowledge here. I am a clergyman, and I believe in the teaching of Christ, who speaks about Heaven and Hell (Matthew 25:34–41). If Hell truly exists, what would that mean for a person?”
He replied:
“You are fanatical!”
and walked away.
One may wonder whether a dismissive attitude allows a person to approach such questions with genuine openness.
Thirdly, the existence of Heaven and Hell.
The soul continues to exist and, depending on how a person has lived, enters either Heaven or Hell. This teaching is found in the words of Christ (Matthew 25:34–41, 51, etc.). Christians accept this teaching not because it can be demonstrated experimentally, but because they trust the testimony of Christ.
However, if they wish, they can experience a foretaste of eternal life. Symeon the New Theologian says:
“When someone is confined in a prison cell (in those times the cells were underground, in darkness), he sees nothing outside. But when he comes out of prison and into the light of the sun, then he sees everything and marvels at everything. We too are imprisoned in the prison of the passions—in darkness. Therefore, we have no understanding of eternal life. But when we come out of the darkness and enter into the light of Christ, then by that Light we come to understand eternal life.” (Moral Homily I, chapter 12)
When a person lives in servitude to his passions, it is difficult for him to believe in the existence of Heaven and Hell, because such a belief does not serve his interests. He therefore seeks alternative explanations; for example, he may turn to reincarnation.
However, the matter is serious—indeed, the most serious of all. In this grave matter, the essential point is not merely to believe something, but to seek the truth: what exactly happens after death, since what is at stake is an endless life.
This column will occasionally publish articles on eschatological themes.
?ore in this series: When Did the Idea of Eternity come from?
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