Concept

World Religions Compared by Their Ultimate Ending

A comparison of the major religions and worldviews by asking one question of each: if everything it teaches turned out to be true, how does the story end for you, what is the hardest part of that ending, and what does it leave unanswered?

Intro

Imagine the universe worked this way: when you die, you get exactly what you believed. The Buddhist reaches nirvana. The atheist simply stops. The Muslim stands before the scales. The pantheist dissolves into the All. The Christian rises to meet Christ.

If that were how things worked, which belief would you want to have held?

That question does not prove which religion is true. Truth has to be settled by evidence, and the codex makes that case elsewhere. But it is a fair and revealing question, because every worldview makes promises about where everything is heading. Some promises are hard to want even if they came true. Some leave you without any "you" to enjoy them. Some never tell you whether you have done enough.

When each ending is laid side by side, one stands apart. Only the Christian ending keeps all of these at once:

• you as a person, with a body raised and renewed
• love, a real relationship with a God who is love
• justice, every evil answered
• mercy, offered as a gift rather than earned on a scale
• assurance, knowing now where you stand
• a renewed world, with death, mourning and pain gone

Every other ending gives up at least one of these.

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In full

The method is a "best-case conditional." For each worldview, grant its claims for the sake of argument and ask what it ultimately entails. This is not the same as asking whether it is true. A belief can be very appealing and false, or hard and true. The method measures what each worldview offers, which matters for two reasons:

1. People already live by these promises. A religion's ending shapes how its followers face death, suffering, guilt and loss. Comparing endings is comparing what people are actually trusting.
2. The ending reveals the God. What a religion says happens at the end shows what it thinks ultimate reality is like: personal or impersonal, loving or indifferent, just or arbitrary, generous or transactional.

Each worldview below gets four short answers: its conclusion (what it says reality is), the ultimate ending (where it says you are heading), the ultimate downside if true, and the questions it leaves open. Each tradition is internally diverse, and the summaries describe mainstream or representative forms. Where a tradition has a significant internal alternative, it is noted.

The thought experiment: what if you were granted your convictions?

The idea that the afterlife might give each person what they believed is not foreign to Christianity. It is close to how the Bible describes judgment from one side. Paul says that when people insisted on worshipping the creation instead of the Creator, "God gave them up" to what they had chosen (Romans 1:24, ASV). C. S. Lewis built The Great Divorce (1945) around this: in the end, he wrote, there are those who say to God "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says the same words back.

So the thought experiment cuts two ways:

• It flatters every belief at first. Everyone gets their wish.
• Then it exposes them. Getting your wish is only good if your wish is good. A person who wished for extinction gets extinction. A person who wished to be absorbed loses themselves. A person who trusted their own merit is judged by it.

Christianity is the one view in which what you receive at the end is not the measure of your own performance or your own wish, but a gift from someone else: "the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23, ASV).

The comparison at a glance

Christianity

Conclusion. One God, eternally Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who is love (1 John 4:8). He created the world good, and it fell. He entered it as a man in Jesus Christ, died for sin and rose bodily.

Ultimate ending.

• The dead are raised. "It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption... it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power" (1 Corinthians 15:42-43, ASV).
• God lives with His people. "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them" (Revelation 21:3, ASV).
• Suffering ends. "He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more" (Revelation 21:4, ASV).
• They see Him. "They shall see his face" (Revelation 22:4, ASV).
• The world is renewed, not abandoned. "New heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2 Peter 3:13, ASV).

What it entails.

• You remain you, made whole. "We shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is" (1 John 3:2, ASV).
• Love is the center. Jesus prays "that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am" (John 17:24, ASV).
• Evil is answered, and mercy is not cheapened. At the cross God is "just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus" (Romans 3:26, ASV).
• Salvation is a gift, not a wage. "By grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works" (Ephesians 2:8-9, ASV).
• You can know now. "That ye may know that ye have eternal life" (1 John 5:13, ASV).
• Present suffering is outweighed. "The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed" (Romans 8:18, ASV).

Ultimate downside if true. Judgment is real. Those who refuse God are, in the end, given what they chose: separation from Him (see Hell and Eternal Punishment and Conditional Immortality for the views Christians hold). The cost of discipleship is also real: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily" (Luke 9:23, ASV). Christianity does not promise a painless life, only a good ending.

Questions left open. Why God permits so much evil before the end (Problem of Evil). What becomes of those who never heard. The exact nature of the resurrection body. Christianity leaves these partly unanswered, but it gives a reason to trust the answer: "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25, ASV), and a God who has already shown at the cross what He is willing to do for His enemies.

Islam

Conclusion. One God (Allah), absolutely one and not a Trinity. He sent prophets, finally Muhammad, and the Qur'an as His final word. See Islam.

Ultimate ending. On the Day of Judgment each person's deeds are weighed. Those approved enter Paradise (Jannah), described with gardens, rivers and physical delights. Those condemned enter hell. Many Muslims believe a believer may be punished for a time and then admitted.

Ultimate downside if true.

• No assurance. The Qur'an has Muhammad say, "nor do I know what will be done with me or with you" (Qur'an 46:9). A widely reported hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim has him say that no one enters Paradise by their deeds, not even himself, unless God covers him with His mercy. You cannot know in this life where you stand.
• Hell is on the way for everyone. Qur'an 19:71 is commonly read to mean that every person will pass over or come to hell.
• A distant relationship. God is Master and the believer is servant. The Qur'an says Allah does not love the disbelievers (3:32), and His love is generally described as a response to obedience rather than a love that goes out to enemies. In Paradise, the vision of God is affirmed by many Muslim theologians, but the central picture is of gifts more than of communion.

Questions left open. How can a just God simply set aside sin without any atonement? If mercy is not grounded in anything, why trust that it will be given? See The Muslim Defense and Islamic Dilemma.

Rabbinic Judaism

Conclusion. One God, who made a covenant with Abraham and gave the Torah at Sinai. The Messiah is still to come. See Judaism.

Ultimate ending. Jewish views vary widely, but classic rabbinic teaching affirms Olam Ha-Ba, the world to come, and the resurrection of the dead (the thirteenth of Maimonides' principles of faith). The Mishnah says "All Israel has a share in the world to come" (Sanhedrin 10:1), and the Tosefta extends a share to the righteous of the nations (Tosefta Sanhedrin 13:2).

Ultimate downside if true. Since the Temple was destroyed in AD 70 there has been no sacrifice, though the Torah grounds atonement in blood: "it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life" (Leviticus 17:11, ASV). Rabbinic Judaism substitutes repentance, prayer and good deeds. The promised Messiah has not yet come, and the shape of the world to come is left deliberately undefined.

Questions left open. Who is the suffering servant of Isaiah 53, who bears the sins of many? How is sin atoned for without a sacrifice? Christianity's answer is that both questions point to the same person. See The Jewish Defense.

Hinduism

Conclusion. Reality is ultimately Brahman. Souls pass through cycles of birth, death and rebirth (samsara) governed by karma. The Bhagavad Gita compares the soul taking new bodies to a person putting on new clothes (2.22). See Hinduism, Karma and Reincarnation.

Ultimate ending. Liberation (moksha) from the cycle. In Advaita Vedanta, the influential non-dual school of Shankara, liberation is realizing that your self (atman) is identical with Brahman: "thou art that" (tat tvam asi, Chandogya Upanishad 6.8.7). In devotional (bhakti) schools such as Madhva's Dvaita or the Krishna traditions, the liberated soul remains distinct and enjoys eternal loving service of a personal God.

Ultimate downside if true.

• In Advaita, there is no "you" at the end. Individuality was the illusion all along, and so is the other person you love.
• The road is very long. Countless lifetimes, each earning the next, with suffering in this life read as the result of past deeds, including the suffering of children.
• Karma does not forgive. It is a law, not a person, so it cannot show mercy.

Questions left open. What started the cycle of karma? If the self is Brahman, why the illusion of separation, and who is deceived? The devotional schools come closer to Christianity in hoping for a personal God and grace, but they lack any historical act in which that grace was secured.

Buddhism

Conclusion. Life is marked by suffering (dukkha), caused by craving. There is no permanent self (anatta). Craving can be ended by following the Eightfold Path. Most Buddhist traditions do not center on a creator God.

Ultimate ending. Nirvana, literally a "blowing out": the extinction of craving and the end of rebirth. The Buddha declined to say whether an enlightened one exists after death, and set such questions aside as not leading to liberation (the parable of the poisoned arrow, Majjhima Nikaya 63).

Ultimate downside if true.

• No self survives. There was never a permanent self to begin with.
• Love is part of the problem. Attachment, including love for a child or a spouse, is treated as a form of craving to be released, not something to be fulfilled.
• No justice, only cause and effect. There is no one to vindicate the victim, only impersonal karma.

Questions left open. If there is no self, what is reborn, and who is liberated? Why does anything exist at all? What is nirvana positively? The tradition deliberately leaves these unanswered.

Sikhism

Conclusion. One formless God (Waheguru), revealed through the Gurus and the Guru Granth Sahib. Souls are reborn according to karma, but God's grace (nadar) can free them.

Ultimate ending. Liberation (mukti) and union with God, often pictured as a drop of water returning to the ocean.

Ultimate downside if true. How far the individual survives that union is debated. Grace exists but has no historical act behind it, and the round of rebirth continues until it is given.

Questions left open. Why does a gracious God leave souls cycling through rebirth? What does union mean for the person?

Latter-day Saints (Mormonism)

Conclusion. God the Father was once a man and progressed to godhood. Humans are His spirit children who can progress likewise. Matter is eternal. See Mormonism.

Ultimate ending. Nearly everyone receives some degree of glory (celestial, terrestrial or telestial; Doctrine and Covenants 76). The faithful who receive the temple ordinances can be exalted and become gods. The couplet attributed to Lorenzo Snow sums it up: "As man now is, God once was; as God now is, man may be."

Ultimate downside if true.

• No ultimate God. There is no uncreated, ultimate God, only a line of exalted beings with no first one, all organizing eternal matter (see Creatio ex Nihilo).
• Exaltation must be earned. It requires ordinances and continued obedience, and you cannot be sure you have done enough.

Questions left open. Who was the first God? Where did the laws by which gods are exalted come from?

Jehovah's Witnesses

Conclusion. Jehovah alone is God. Jesus is His first creation, identified with Michael the archangel. The Holy Spirit is God's active force, not a person. See Jehovahs Witnesses.

Ultimate ending. A limited number, 144,000, rule with Christ in heaven. The rest of the faithful live forever on a paradise earth. The wicked are annihilated, not punished forever.

Ultimate downside if true. Most believers never enter heaven or share in Christ's rule. The one who saves you is a creature, not God, so God did not come Himself. Approval depends on faithfulness to the organization through the end.

Questions left open. How can a created being bear the sin of the world? Why would God send a substitute rather than come Himself?

Pantheism and New Age spirituality

Conclusion. God is everything, and everything is God, sometimes identified with the universe, energy or consciousness. See Pantheism and New Age Spiritualism.

Ultimate ending. Reabsorption into the One, or endless spiritual evolution.

Ultimate downside if true.

• You dissolve. There is no personal survival in the end.
• There is no one to love you. An impersonal All cannot know or love anyone.
• There is no judgment of evil. The abuser and the abused are equally divine.

Questions left open. If all is one, why the appearance of many? Why is anything wrong at all? See God Is the Eternal Atoms Objection Defeater.

Ancient Egyptian religion (Kemetic)

Conclusion. Many gods, cosmic order (Ma'at), and a judgment after death. See Christianity Stolen From Kemet Objection Defeater.

Ultimate ending. In the Book of the Dead (spell 125), the dead person's heart is weighed against the feather of Ma'at. A heart that balances passes to the Field of Reeds. One that fails is devoured by Ammit.

Ultimate downside if true. Everything rides on your own record, and the texts themselves include spells to keep the heart from testifying against its owner. That is a sign that no one is confident of passing on their merits.

Questions left open. Who could ever be sure their heart balances?

Zoroastrianism

Conclusion. A good God (Ahura Mazda) opposes an evil spirit (Angra Mainyu). Humans choose sides through good thoughts, good words and good deeds. See Zoroastrianism.

Ultimate ending. After death the soul crosses the Chinvat bridge, which widens for the righteous and narrows for the wicked. At the end comes a final renewal of the world (frashokereti) and a resurrection.

Ultimate downside if true. Your crossing is determined by the balance of your own deeds. Evil is not defeated by the good God taking it on Himself but outlasted.

Questions left open. What becomes of the person whose deeds fall short? How is guilt removed rather than merely outweighed?

Universalism

Conclusion. God will save everyone in the end. See Universalism.

Ultimate ending. Everyone, without exception, is reconciled to God.

Ultimate downside if true. If salvation is guaranteed regardless of anyone's will, the worst abusers and their victims are treated alike in the end. A love that cannot be refused is no longer a relationship between free persons, and Jesus' own warnings become empty.

Questions left open. What happens to those who do not want God? Are they changed against their will?

Naturalism and atheism

Conclusion. Nature is all there is. Minds are products of the brain, and no God exists. See Naturalism and Secular Humanism.

Ultimate ending. Death is the end of the person. In the long run, life on Earth ends and the universe itself runs down. Bertrand Russell faced this squarely in "A Free Man's Worship" (1903): all the achievements of human history are destined to extinction in the death of the solar system.

Ultimate downside if true.

• No justice. The murdered child is never vindicated and the tyrant who dies in comfort is never judged.
• No reunion. Every loss is permanent.
• No meaning that lasts. Whatever meaning there is, people make, and it ends with them.
• Some find relief in there being no judgment. But the same fact removes every hope.

Questions left open. Why is there anything at all? Why does the universe obey mathematical laws? Why do we feel bound by moral obligations if there is no moral lawgiver? See Moral Argument and Argument from Purpose Meaning and Hope.

What makes an ending the best one to hope for

Weigh the endings by what a person actually needs to be ultimately well:

1. To still be you. An ending that erases the person is not a good ending for the person.
2. To be loved. The highest good for a person is to be known and loved, which needs a personal God.
3. Justice for every evil. Victims vindicated and wrong answered.
4. Mercy for your own failures. Because everyone falls short (Romans 3:23), an ending that depends on your record is bad news.
5. Assurance now. The ability to face death without dread.
6. A world made new. Not escape from the physical, but its healing.

Most worldviews provide some of these. Several provide justice but no assured mercy (Islam, Kemetic religion, Zoroastrianism). Several provide peace but no person (Buddhism, Advaita, pantheism). One offers mercy but loses justice (universalism). One offers none (naturalism). Christianity alone holds all six together. It can do so for a specific reason: at the cross, God satisfied justice and gave mercy in the same act (Romans 3:26), and in the resurrection He showed what the end will look like (1 Corinthians 15:20).

It also has the God worth hoping for. A God who is love in Himself, before creation (John 17:24), who comes down to His enemies at His own cost (John 3:16), and who promises "neither death, nor life... nor things to come... shall be able to separate us from the love of God" (Romans 8:38-39, ASV), is the greatest being one could hope to meet at the end.

Objections to the comparison

"This is wishful thinking. Wanting something to be true doesn't make it true."

• Correct, and this page does not claim otherwise. Whether Christianity is true rests on evidence such as the resurrection of Jesus. See Argument from the Resurrection and Cumulative Case for Christian Theism.
• But Christianity is a poor candidate for wish-fulfillment, as Freud claimed religion was (see Sigmund Freud). It includes judgment, self-denial and a cross. A religion invented to comfort us would not demand that we "take up" a cross daily (Luke 9:23).
• And desire can point to reality. People long for justice, love and permanence ("he hath set eternity in their heart," Ecclesiastes 3:11, ASV). See Argument from Desire.

"Every religion thinks its own ending is best."

• Not so. Buddhism and Advaita do not claim to preserve the person; they claim that letting go of the person is the goal. Naturalism does not claim its ending is good, only that it is true. The comparison asks each view on its own terms what it offers, and most are candid that they do not offer what Christianity does.

"You've described the other religions unfairly."

• Each summary describes the mainstream form and notes major alternatives (devotional Hinduism, Jewish diversity, Muslim views of temporary punishment). Where a tradition comes closer to Christianity, such as devotional Hinduism's hope in a personal God, the page says so.

"This is just Pascal's Wager."

• Pascal's Wager (in his Pensées) compares the outcomes of believing and not believing. This page compares what each belief promises if it is true, which is a different question. It shares Pascal's insight that the stakes matter, but it does not ask anyone to believe without evidence. See Blaise Pascal.

Head-to-head comparisons

Each worldview on this page has its own full comparison with the Christian God, question by question, with the objections and replies:

• Pantheism vs the Christian God
• Islam vs the Christian God
• Rabbinic Judaism vs the Christian God
• Hinduism vs the Christian God
• Buddhism vs the Christian God
• Atheism vs the Christian God
• Deism vs the Christian God
• Mormonism vs the Christian God
• Jehovah's Witnesses vs the Christian God
• New Age Spirituality vs the Christian God
• Kemetic Religion vs the Christian God

See also

• World Religions, the master hub for the codex's coverage of other faiths
• Christian God is the Only True God, the argument for Christian exclusivity
• Argument for Heaven and Hell, the case for the Christian ending
• Heaven and New Heavens and New Earth, the Christian hope in detail
• Hell and Eternal Punishment and Conditional Immortality, how Christians understand the alternative
• Argument from Purpose Meaning and Hope, why hope points beyond naturalism
• Argument from Desire, why our deepest longings suggest their fulfillment exists
• Reincarnation and Karma, the Eastern cycle in detail
• Lesson 4.5, Comparative Religion Engagement, how to have these conversations well
• Universalism, the case and the problems