Hope springs eternal in the human breast
Alexander Pope

The preacher, delivering a sermon at a memorial service, stated as fact that an atheist can offer a dying person absolutely no hope. A Christian, on the other hand, can offer real hope of eternal life through faith in Jesus.
The death of a loved one was recognized as a sad event but the coffin was not present and the emphasis was on passing from this life to the next. A simple cross over from this to that but only possible if you are a believer.

I wanted to raise my hand in objection but it was hardly appropriate seeing that I was conducting the service for a dear friend who had lost his wife. The arrogance and certainty of fundamentalist preachers continues to rile me.
The only “evidence” they have for their startling claims comes from a selective and literal reading of the bible.
There is no discussion; this is the real deal and that’s it!

Here is my response to his claim.
Hope is a scarce commodity. It is difficult to keep a small spark of hope alive in the midst of the darkness that threatens to overwhelm us at present. All the more reason to select our sources of hope with great care. It is wise to look for signs of hope in the real world. Building castles in the air is dangerous. Religion urges us to place our hope in the life hereafter but the only life that is tangible is the present one.

Even in our scary political landscape, there are good men and women on whom we can rely. There are still excellent educators within the caldron of our educational system. There are fine doctors in our health care system, despite many having left for greener pastures. When we have been divorced or retrenched, when we have relocated, when our children have flown the coop, when we are sick or dying, hope can be found in facing reality squarely and accepting proffered helping hands.

Being told that my mother, who died at a young age, is safe in the hereafter provides me with little hope or comfort. Sharing my pain, while looking into the eyes of another caring fellow traveler, ignites a spark of hope.
I am buoyed by the awareness that we are all in this together. It is cruel to offer someone false hope; it used to be called “pie in the sky when you die”. The provision of realistic hope, based on the everyday world of experience, is no small thing (despite what the preacher may think). All I want to hear when I am struggling is; “you will not have to handle this on your own!”

Footnote:
A terminally ill person can be offered hope apart from a nebulous promise of an afterlife. Pain control, control of nausea, physical comfort, a quiet room, regular turning to prevent bed sores, retention of dignity and most important the presence of a caring other at all times. This is the reason for the existence of hospice.