A very interesting Salon interview with E.O. Wilson, the legendary Harvard biologist, on the nature of religion and its relationship to science, particularly evolution. The whole article is worth a read, but what caught my eye was his observation on the nature of heaven:

EOW: Would I be happy if I discovered that I could go to heaven forever? And the answer is no. Consider this argument. Think about what is forever. And think about the fact that the human mind, the entire human being, is built to last a certain period of time. Our programmed hormonal systems, the way we learn, the way we settle upon beliefs, and the way we love are all temporary. Because we go through a life’s cycle. Now, if we were to be plucked out at the age of 12 or 56 or whenever, and taken up and told, now you will continue your existence as you are. We’re not going to blot out your memories. We’re not going to diminish your desires. You will exist in a state of bliss — whatever that is — forever. And those who didn’t make it are going to be consigned to darkness or hell. Now think, a trillion times a trillion years. Enough time for universes like this one to be born, explode, form countless star systems and planets, then fade away to entropy. You will sit there watching this happen millions and millions of times and that will just be the beginning of the eternity that you’ve been consigned to bliss in this existence.

S: This heaven would be your hell.

EOW: Yes. If we were able to evolve into something else, then maybe not. But we are not something else.

It would be so incredibly boring! Think about it. You take up a new pursuit, golf, mountain biking, whatever. The first few times, as you learn your way, it’s all new, shiny and exciting. After a while, the improvements get harder to come by. It’s still enjoyable, but not as enjoyable as it was. Later, you gradually lose interest as you’ve got as far as you’re capable of going and you move on to something else. This whole process might take a few months, or a few decades, who knows.

Now imagine you’ve been in heaven for a million years. You’ve long ago tried every sport & pastime, read every book, etc. What do you do now? Tedious doesn’t even begin to describe it.