An interesting question for Atheists/Agnostics

[JoshuaD]

You can either be handed 1 million dollars right now, or you can be guaranteed a place in heaven if it exists. (We'll define heaven as any paradise described by any earthly religion).

If you take the million, you're definitely going to hell if it exists. If you don't take it, you're definitely going to heaven if it exists.

Please respond with reasoning/arguments. I'm including a poll, but I don't want this to just be a vote-and-leave thread.

[DonkeyChip]

My silly reasoning (I usually just lurk here): I find the ideas of heaven and hell hard enough to believe as it is. But now I'm guaranteed a place in heaven if I refuse the million so I assume that includes the case where I refuse the million and then proceed to rape and pillage the rest of my life. Or on the other hand, I'm guaranteed a place in hell if I accept the million and then proceed to give it to charity and live a totally 'heaven-deserving' life otherwise.

Since I find this even LESS believable, gimme da money. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Of course if I was guaranteed heaven I'd take it. Besides, after taxes and law school I probably wouldn't have much left over [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

ummm yeeah, Im going with heaven.

I mean, Im a computer science student who also plays poker for a living... my millions will come.

[ZeeJustin]

1 million dollars is not a completely life changing amount to me, but I would still take it anyway because I am so confident that I am right.

I can't even fathom the possibility of heaven and hell. I think the possibility of a god existing is pretty absurd, and heaven / hell is just 1,000 times more outlandish.

It's harder for me to discount, growing up a devout Catholic and all that.

I hate it when my upbringing battles my rationality.

[NobodysFreak]

I'm taking the money, but I'm curious as to why you have to believe in heaven and hell if you're a theist. People who do think there's a god should have a vote.

My thoughts:

1) What is "hell"? Some religions say it's just non-existence. I'd take the million for sure. If it's eternal torture... Then:

2) Who is offering this? How are they involved in my eternal destiny? Do I trust them? Unless I'm pretty sure they are telling the truth, and can somehow use this to determine my eternal destiny, then I'm taking the money.

For those that turned down the money: note that it's heaven if it exists. Also, I'm guessing a number of people who chose to turn down the money are theists already.

So, for the atheists that chose the money (like me): how little would it take before you refused the money, and took the "guarantee" instead?

I'd almost definitely take the $1million... but I'd probably turn down $100. So, what about $1000? $10,000? $100,000?

Basically, from an EV perspective, there's much greater value if you forego the money. If Heaven exists you benefit for a much longer period of time (eternity) than the time you have left on earth to enjoy the million. Also, if we believe in Heaven we have to agree that the happiness that we experience there is infinite, while the happiness, if any, we can get from $1 million is clearly finite. Plus there are other ways to get a million but no other way to get to heaven if we take the million.