What happens to the past once it passes by? Does it still exist or not?

What happens to the past once it has passed us by? Does it still exist or does it go out of existence? What do we really know about time and how can we be sure? Is Abraham Lincoln still dying in Ford’s Theater? Is Jesus still being born in Bethlehem? Is the Big Bang still occurring? I would think about this before you answer! Why don’t you join together and try to find a possible answer? It could be right or perhaps your hypothesis could be wrong? All that join this topic must answer each question and explain why your ideas are possible. I would take caution with this one, for it could lead to many strange conclusions.

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The past and the future don’t exist. Only the present (the right now) is real.
Time (and the universe) goes only one way - forward.

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That is an interesting answer; however, I cannot accept it. I believe that all time exists at the same time, but God does not let us be aware that all things: past, present, and future exist all at once. How many times have we lived this moment since the Big Bang? Only God knows the answer. That is how God already knows the outcome of everything. I will still give you a “like” since you have given your opinion. I believe that Steven King, the author of strange stories, holds your view too.

I would like to add a quote by Professor Thomas G. Long of Emory University:

United Methodist Reporter interviewed Thomas G. Long at Candler School of Theology about his new book.
There are two images in the New Testament about what happens. First, the Resurrection Day, when the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised up incorruptible. If you only had that image, what we would imagine is that when people die, they lie in some intermediate state awaiting the great Resurrection Day.

The other image, however, is that death contains no victory over us at all. As soon as we die, we are with God. We get this in the Book of Revelation where John looks up and already the saints who have died are praisng God around the throne. In terms of linear time, we can’t work this out. We’ve got these two competing images: You either wait until the general resurrection or you go immediately to be with God.

But the imposition of linear time on what is an eternal idea is what creates the contradiction. I don’t try to make a theologian out of Einstein, but he did show us that events that happen in sequence can also be events that happen simultaneously. If Einstein can imagine that in terms of physics, theologians can imagine it also in terms of the intrusion of eternity into linear time-- that we are both immediately raised and raised together.

Are you going to argue with the One Stone himself, Dr. Albert Einstein! Don’t tell me he did not say that about time, for I know he did.

Have a nice evening, Count

@marvin

I say that 2 Corinthians 5:1 and Colossians 3: 1-4 would support this view in scripture. Oh, Professor Long’s quote is referring to Revelation 7: 9-17. Please join in on this conversation. Marvin. I used to preach in the United Methodist Church also.

@aleo,

My wise friend. Please join in this conversation!

@wetlandsguy ,

I invite you to join as well. :grin:

Good question indeed. To a moving observer observing moving object it is possible to observe several timepoints simultaneously. Just consider that the light we see from a galaxy far away transmits the information of a moment from the beginning of time into the now. If we had enough resolution we would see the events unfolding there in our world as now so in our world they are part of the now. So if distance is not an issue. To a space bound receiver now is only here. To someone reading the crucifixion it happens now.

I guess this needs a long time to ponder over

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A grand answer, friend Marvin. God bless you and keep contemplating the possibilities. It exercises our minds and brains.

God bless

I remember that when in a coma that the concept of time became relative. Minutes became days ans some things were like jumping in time. There was a particular point were I was afraid of something being wrong where time seemed to stand still around me whilst I reflected millions of scenarios. I figured later that the reason was the disruption of sensory input. When you cannot get that your brain does not need to process terabytes of visual input. thus your main processor can go full speed on what else goes inside your head. The clock just didn’t not move for a long time. So when you consider n eternity in hell it could well be a couple of seconds of local time whilst you can suffer years, a bit like dreaming weeks or years in a few moments of REM sleep.

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A very fine answer, Marvin. Very deep thinking.

thanks but I guess it will take me years to work out the simultaneousness of time. It somehow appear logic that to God without the spatial constraint they are all simultaneous. It is like Heisenberg - if we know how fast we are we get lost :slight_smile:

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