Your Digital Afterlives

The articles listed here are not chapters or parts of Your Digital Afterlives.

They provide background or supplementary material.

The Revision Theory of Resurrection (Download)

Religious Studies 44 (1), 1 - 19.

ABSTRACT: A powerful argument against the resurrection of the body is based on the premise that all resurrection theories violate natural laws. We counter this argument by developing a fully naturalistic resurrection theory. We refer to it as the revision theory of resurrection (the RTR). Since Hick's replica theory is already highly naturalistic, we use Hick's theory as the basis for the RTR. According to Hick, resurrection is the recreation of an earthly body in another universe. The recreation is a resurrection counterpart. We show that the New Testament supports the idea of resurrection counterparts. The RTR asserts that you are a node in a branching tree of increasingly perfect resurrection counterparts. These ever better counterparts live in increasingly perfect resurrection universes. We give both theological arguments and an empirical argument for the RTR.

Stage Theory and Resurrection Replicas (Download)

Colloquium paper at the 2007 meeting of the Pacific APA, San Francisco, 9 April 2007.

ABSTRACT: According to John Hick, resurrection is replication. If Fallen is resurrected as Risen, then Risen is a replica of Fallen at the last stage of Fallen's earthly life. But replication is not identity. An endurantist says that diachronic sameness entails identity. So on endurantism, Risen cannot be the same person as Fallen. A worm theorist says that diachronic sameness is co-membership in the same 4D space-time worm. But there is no 4D worm that contains both Risen and Fallen. So on worm theory, Risen cannot be the same person as Fallen. A stage theorist says diachronic sameness is a temporal counterpart relation. If stage theory is right, then Hick can defend the view that Risen is the same person as Fallen. We show how stage theory helps Hick's resurrection theory.

Some Resurrection Theories (Download)

ABSTRACT: We present several resurrection theories. We group them into four categories: (1) revival theories; (2) reassembly theories; (3) replication theories; and (4) rebirth theories. Within each group, there are several versions of the theory. We thus consider: (1a) the Biblical revival theory; (1b) van Inwagen's body-snatching theory; (1c) Zimmerman's particle-fission theory; (2a) the Biblical reassembly theory; (2b) reassembly by God; (2c) reassembly by the soul; (3a) material replication in this universe; (3b) replication by simulation in a computer; (3c) material replication in another universe; (4a) rebirth in this universe; and finally (4b) rebirth in another universe.

Science and the General Resurrection (Download)

ABSTRACT: One good way to demonstrate the compatibility of resurrection with science is by working through a series of resurrection theories that are increasingly naturalistic. We review resurrection by revival, by reassembly, by replication, and by regeneration. These theories are not compatible with science. We then turn to a theory of resurrection involving rebirth and recreation of the body. We develop a theory of resurrection by revision. Resurrection entails the revision of an entire life. Resurrection by revision is compatible with science and is supported by theological arguments.