MORTALNESS...
The predicament of
being born alive... and born to
die.
Selected
from the on-going INTERNET BOOK, "The Doctor's
Terrific Tablets"
(
http://www.terrific-tabs.com
)
by John
N. Todd III, M. D.
(link)
The web-link to this
essay is: http://www.terrific-tabs.com/print_mortalness.htm
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Originated 5/1/07; "Doctored": 5/6/07; 5/7/07; 5/11/07;
5/12/07; 5/16/07; 5/24/07; 5/25/07; 5/26/07; 5/27/07;
5/28/07; 5/29/07; 5/31/07; 6/3/07; 6/8/07; 6/11/07; 6/12/07;
6/13/07; 6/14/07; 6/18/07; 7/9/07; 11/9/07
This "tablet"
interrelates with:
DESIGNED
by God; foreknown BEFORE the beginning of time
(link)
And:
CHOSEN
by GOD
(link)
And: It
is NOT for this life only that we have
HOPE
(link)
And:
ETERNITY, and the life to come
(Bible
verses only) (link)
And: SUICIDE
-- Physician-assisted SUICIDE
(link)
And:
EUTHANASIA
for HUMANS... and other animals
(link)
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HERE to go to the "FRONT
PAGE"
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Doctor's Terrific Tablets"
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your thoughts to the author
5/27/07
What follows
below is a primitive beginning to my thoughts on this
fascinating and pertinent subject. I shall have much
more to add, as time and energy
permit.
I shall begin this "tablet" by
stating the obvious:
At the moment any "living" being is
"created".... whether it be at the time of "conception", or
during development in the womb, or immediately after
"delivery".... that newly-generated "living"
creature.... whether animal, plant or insect....
immediately becomes a "dying" creature.... a
"mortal".
That is.... every living
creation, in this world, is also a
dying creation.
The term "mortal" is widely used to
characterize us "living" human-beings.... even though
the word "mortal" literally means "dying".
The English derivation of the word "mortal" is from
Latin "mors, mortis".... a word which means "death".
(It is interesting to consider other words related to this
death-word.... "mortal". Consider these
additional words, derived from the same Latin "root":
mortician, mortify, immortal, moribund, mortgage, and
others.)
The Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition,
defines the noun "mortal" as follows: "The condition
of being subject to death". The adjective "mortal" is
defined, comparably, as: "Having transitory life; subject to
death."
(I thought, initially, when I was beginning this
composition, that I had "invented" the words "mortalness"
and "mortology", since those terms are not shown in
my dictionaries.... but I quickly discovered that both words
are referenced on "Google", when I searched for the
words on the Internet. So, I have incorporated both words in
this essay.... words which encapsulate some of my thoughts
and "notions" on the lugubrious subject of
death.)
At this point, I will list a
number of thoughts and reminders that I want to "expound
upon", or "extrapolate".... later.... as I reflect upon
"mortalness". I realize, of course, that there are no
positive or definitive "answers" to your questions,
and mine.... in this "life".... except through "faith" in
what God allows each of us to "perceive", during our
individual "journeys".
1. What is
"life"?
Is "life" a temporary school, a
training program established by God.... for
each of His people?
Are you and I sent into the world, by God, to be
students, on a journey of learning?
Are we assigned to the world, to be
servants and teachers.... and
thus to be the "hands of God".
Are we God's slaves, performing duties
assigned to each of us, by God?
Have we been sent into the world, as dying
"mortals", for a pre-determined duration, in
order to be disciplined, by God?
Or, as a young native female, in Darfur, suggested.... "Life
is punishment".
My own brother asked me, one time, years ago, "Is this life
Hell"?
Is life, somewhere, a "purgatory".... as some religionists
have suggested?
Who can answer these questions for us,
authoritatively.... our "church"?.... our preacher or
priest or rabbi or imam?.... the pope?.... or does our
claim of belief in this-or-that
doctrine, give us all the factual answers?
Can you and I invent a "faith".... then hope that Almighty
God will accept our professed "beliefs"?
Must we wait until "the
judgment"
(link)....
before the answers are made evident to us, individually?
2.
Did you and I "exist", in some previous "life"....
and were we sent into "the world" for some temporary special
mission, or ministry
(link).... ordained, in advance, by our Creator?
Or.... did you and I "originate", randomly....
out of nothingness.... at the discretion and
choice and whim of "Big-Bang", and "Mother
Nature".... and are we then left abandoned until some
arbitrary celestial time, when we will be "judged" by God,
who will decide whether or not we have lived a worthy
life.... so that we can either "advance" to the "next level"
of existence.... or be committed to eternal perdition?
Or.... were you and I born out of
"evolution's" chaos and chance.... dependent
upon whichever single random sperm -- out of several
million "available" sperms -- made contact with the solitary
ovum produced by an earthly female "partner"?
(In regard to pondering these questions.... should we humans
abandon our personal thoughts and hopes, and questions....
and blindly "accept" the tenets of
whichever "religion" is popular in our nation, or in
our local community, or in our genetic family?)
I say that we who hope to have been
included, by God, among God's
people (link), can rely
only upon God's guidance and intention and
plan.... during all of the various phases of
our individual lifelong spiritual development.
God alone will direct our thoughts and our
beliefs and our actions.... based upon God's
own "timetable", and His ongoing "evaluation" of
each of His people.
Note this pertinent and beautiful Biblical reminder:
Psalm 62: 1 (NIV)
My soul finds rest in God alone. My
SALVATION comes from Him. 2 He
ALONE is my rock, and my
salvation. He is my fortress.
Same (NEB) "Truly, my
soul waits upon God. From HIM comes my
SALVATION. He, only, is my
rock; and my salvation. He is my
defense.
3.
Since all of us animals are "doomed" to death.... why is it
that so many of us humans cling to "life"....
no matter how miserable that "life" may be....
especially in its "terminal" or agonal phase? Doesn't
everyone understand that the longer we animals live,
the more likely we are to develop a ghastly
illness.... such as "cancer" (in one or more of its various
and hideous forms), Alzheimer's disease, paralytic
stroke, congestive heart failure, serious injuries,
debilitating impairment necessitating permanent nursing-home
care.... and on-and-on.
Why is there so much fear of dying; and such great
effort to avoid the unavoidable? Shouldn't
there be an even greater dread of clinging to
a miserable existence?
(It should be noted, parenthetically, that some
hospitals.... and some "oncologists", some
surgeons, and some
"Intensive-Care-Specialists".... simply
love patients with chronic and
incurable and painful illnesses.... for they
can "legitimately" prolong
suffering in these terminal
patients.... by instituting useless "cancer"
medications, needless surgical procedures, "tubes" in all
orifices of the body, "pump ventilators"; etc. -- and thus
receive lucrative financial gain for some of their
futile "therapies".)
And.... we must consider "churches". Haven't many of the
world's "great religions" promised all of us,
that if we will simply "sign-up" with their particular
doctrine.... and pledge allegiance to the tenets of
their man-made beliefs; and then join their
church
(link)....
that we will be granted "life eternal".
"Don't worry", some churchy individuals might tell
you, about achieving "the life to come".... but be
sure, they will add, that you "make a decision" to
accept the "right" religion.... that is, their
"infallible" doctrine.... and their church. Why fear
and dread your "mortalness".... your certainty
of death, in this world.... since you have a promise
from their "church" that you will have "eternal life", after
your journey in this world? (Could it be that your
"trust" in your beliefs is not
as strong as your professed
"faith"? See link, TRUST,
the step beyong FAITH.)
(Related thought....Are there not many "religions"
and churches that claim the right and the
authority to make decisions for Almighty
God.... and do they not thus circumvent
(link)
our Sovereign Creator.... and bypass His intentions,
decisions, and "judgments"?.
See link Salvation
is God's decision.... not man's.
And, see link The
Sovereignty of God.
4.
Perhaps you have thought that if you "live a good life", and
"avoid sin".... and that if you attend church twice a week;
and that if you "tithe".... you will thus "dodge" the
inevitable bullet of "mortalness".
Maybe, you figure, that if you pledge your allegiance to the
"right" doctrine.... and that if you join the "correct"
church.... you will then escape the grasp of the
"innumerable caravan". Should you sign-up with the
Southern Baptists, who claim that they have
deciphered "the one way".... "the only way".... to
acceptance by God. Or.... perhaps the Roman
Catholics are able to guarantee you a place in the
Kingdom
of God
(link).
What about the Presbyterians.... the Muslims.... the Jews?
Are they all left-out, and "left-behind", because their
human minds led them to make what other humans call a wrong
"decision"?
5.
Did any of us have any choice about whether-or-not we would
be "born" into this world.... or where we would be
born.... or "when"....or what our physical and mental
sttributes would be.... or when we would leave this
existence? Do we have any positive foreknowledge of where we
will go, and what we will "be".... after this life?
6.
Lots more will follow, in this section.
(I am including this document for my own
reflection, and consideration. I have
no interest in debating these thoughts and
questions, with others. The readers should contemplate my
remarks, if they choose.... then answer their own questions
for themselves.... to their own satisfaction.)
Now, below, I want to mention and
quote several Biblical references.... since so much of my
"spiritual" understanding is based on "The Bible".
There are 220 references,
in the Bible (NRSV), to verses that include the word
"mortal".... 188 in the Old Testament; and 32
in the New Testament. Some of these verses are quoted
below.
Biblical reminders of scriptures
related to "mortal", death, and dying:
1 Corinthians 15: 19 (NRSV) If for this
life only that we have hoped in Christ,
we are of all people most to be pitied. 20 But
in fact Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have died. 21
For since death came through a human
being, the resurrection of the dead has also come
through a human being; 22 for as all
die in Adam.... so all will be made
alive in Christ.
Psalm 139: 13 (NRSV) For it was you (God) who formed my
inward parts; you knit me together in my
mother's womb. 14 I praise you, for I am
fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are
your works.... that I know very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from
you, when I was being made in
secret, intricately woven in the depths
of the earth. 16 Your eyes
beheld my unformed substance. In your
book were written all the
days that were formed for
me, when none of them as
yet existed. 17 How weighty to me
are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 I try to count them.... they are more than the
sand. I come to the end.... I am still with
you.
1Corinthians 15: 51 Listen, I will tell
you a mystery! We will not all die, but
we will all be changed, in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet
will sound, and the dead will be
raised imperishable, and we will
be changed. 53 For this
perishable body must put on imperishability, and
this mortal body must put on
immortality. 54 When this
perishable body puts on imperishability, and
this mortal body puts on
immortality, then the saying that is written
will be fulfilled: "Death has been swallowed up in
victory."
2 Corinthians 4:
16 (NRSV) So we do not lose heart. Even though our
outer nature is wasting
away, our inner nature is BEING
renewed -- day by day. 17 For this slight
momentary affliction is
PREPARING us for an
ETERNAL weight of glory, beyond all
measure, 18 because we look not
at what can be seen, but at what cannot
be seen -- for what can be seen is
temporary.... but what cannot be seen
is ETERNAL.
Jeremiah 1 (NRSV) 4 Now the word of
the LORD came to me saying, 5
"Before I formed you in the womb, I
knew you; and before you were born, I
consecrated you...."
Ephesians 1: 4 (NEB) "In Christ, He
chose us, BEFORE the world was
founded, to be dedicated, to be without blemish
in His sight; and He DESTINED us.... such was
His will and pleasure.... to be
accepted as His sons, through
Jesus Christ."
Hebrews 11: 13 All of these (JNT Note: Israelites,
under Abraham's leadership) died in
faith without having received the
promises.... but from a distance they
saw and greeted them. They confessed that they
were STRANGERS and FOREIGNERS
on the EARTH, 14 for people
who speak in this way make it clear that they
are seeking a homeland.
15 If they had been thinking of the land that they
had left behind, they would have had
opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they
desire a better country.... that
is, a HEAVENLY one. Therefore, God is
not ashamed to be called their
God. Indeed, He has prepared
a city for them.
Romans 8: 9 (NRSV But you are not in the
flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of
God dwells in you. Anyone who does
not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong
to him. 10 But if Christ is in you,
though the body is dead because of sin, the
Spirit is life because of righteousness
(link).
11 If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the
dead dwells in you, He who raised
Christ from the dead will give life to
your mortal bodies also through His
Spirit that dwells in you. 12 So then, brothers and
sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh.... to live
according to the flesh.... 13 for if you live
according to the flesh, you will die;
but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body,
you will live.
Romans 8: 29 (NRSV) For those whom He
foreknew, he also predestined to
be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that He might
be the firstborn within a large family.
30 And those whom He predestined He
also called; and those whom He called, He also
justified; and those whom He justified, He
also glorified. 31 What then are we to say about
these things? If God is for us, who is against us?....
36 As it is written, "For your sake, we are
being killed all day long. We are accounted as
sheep to be slaughtered."
37 No, in all these things we are more
than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am
convinced that neither death, nor life, nor
angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor
anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from
the love of God in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Luke 12: 6 (NRSV) Jesus
speaking: Are not five sparrows sold for two
pennies? Yet not one of them is
forgotten in God's sight. 7 But even the
hairs of your head are all
counted. Do not be afraid. You are of
more value than many
sparrows.
Matthew 10: 29 (NRSV) Jesus speaking: Are not two
sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not
one of them will fall to the ground, apart from your
Father. 30 And even the hairs of
your head are all counted. 31 So do
not be afraid. You are of more
value than many sparrows.
Acts 17: 26 (NRSV) From one ancestor He made
all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and He
allotted the times of their
existence, and the boundaries of the
places where they would live.
Genesis 2: 7 (KJV) And the LORD God
formed man of the dust of the ground, and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man
became a living soul.
Genesis 3: 19 (KJV) In the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread, till thou return
unto the ground. For out
of it wast thou taken: for
dust thou art, and
unto dust shalt thou return.
Psalm 8: 3 (NRSV) When I look at your heavens, the work of
your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have
established; 4 what are human-beings
that you are mindful of them, mortals that you
care for them? 5 Yet you have
made them a little lower than
God, and crowned them with glory and honor. 6
You have given them dominion over the
works of your hands; you have
put all things under their feet.... 7 all sheep and
oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds
of the air, and the fish of the sea.... whatever passes
along the paths of the seas.
Luke 12: 15 (NRSV) And He (Jesus) said to them, "Take
care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for
one's life does not consist in
the abundance of possessions." 16 Then He told
them a parable: "The land of a rich man
produced abundantly. 17 And he thought to himself,
'What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?'
18 Then he said, 'I will do this: I will pull
down my barns, and build
larger ones.... and there I will store all my
grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my
soul, 'Soul, you have ample goods laid up for
many years. Relax, eat, drink, be merry.' 20
But God said to him, 'You
fool! This very night your
life is being demanded of you. And the things
you have prepared, whose will they
be?' 21 So it is with those who
store up treasures for themselves....
but are not rich toward
God."
2 Timothy 1: 8 (NRSV) So do not be ashamed to testify
about our Lord, or ashamed of me His prisoner. But join with
me in suffering for the gospel -- by the power of God,
9 who has saved us, and called us to a holy
life -- not because of ANYTHING we
have done -- but because of HIS
own purpose, and grace. This grace
was given us in Christ Jesus, before the
beginning of time; 10 but it has now been
revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus,
who has destroyed death -- and has
brought life and immortality to
light, through the gospel. (See link,
The
GOSPEL of GOD.)
Acts 17: 29 (NRSV) Since we are
God's offspring, we ought not to think that
the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone.... an
image formed by the art and imagination
of mortals.
Luke 18: 27 (NRSV) He (Jesus) replied, "What is
impossible for mortals is possible for
God."
John 3: 6 (NRSV) Jesus speaking: What is born
of the flesh, is flesh; and what is
born of the Spirit, is spirit.
7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, "You
must be BORN FROM
ABOVE."
Acts 17: 24 (NRSV) The God
who made the world and everything in it.... He who is Lord
of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines
made by human hands.... nor is He served by human
hands, as though He needed anything, since He himself gives
to all mortals life and breath, and all
things.
2 Corinthians 4: 11 For while we live, we are always
being given-up to death for Jesus' sake; so
that the life of Jesus may be
made visible in our mortal
flesh.
Revelations. 21: 3 (NRSV) And I heard a loud voice
from the throne saying, "See, the home of God
is among mortals. He will dwell with
them as their God; they will be His
peoples, and God Himself will be
with them. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more; mourning and
crying and pain will be no more.... for the
first things have passed away." 5 And the One who was
seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all
things new." Also He said,
"Write this, for these words are
trustworthy, and true."
Exodus 4: 11 (NRSV) Then the LORD said to him,
"Who gives speech to mortals?
Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or
blind? Is it not I, the LORD?
Numbers 23: 19 (NRSV)
God is NOT a human-being,
that he should lie; or a mortal, that he
should change his mind. Has He promised, and will He not do
it? Has He spoken, and will He not fulfill it?
1Samuel 16: 7 (NRSV) But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do
not look on his appearance, or on the height of his stature,
because I have rejected him; for the LORD does
not see as mortals see. They
look on the outward appearance; but the LORD looks on
the heart."
Job 4: 17 (NRSV) Can mortals be
righteous before God? Can human beings
be pure before their Maker?
I will have much more to say.... personal thoughts.... on
this fascinating subject... as time and energy
allow. Also, there will be more quotations from God -- from
His Bible.
NOTES for later consideration:
Spending a lifetime dealing with "The Finitude
Factor".... and "The Futility Factor".
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