Dead Men Tell No Tales (But They Might Send The Occasional Email)

BBC

I've been putting together a few resources for a GCSE unit of work I'm teaching next term immortality and the afterlife, and I remembered an interesting story the BBC ran a year or so ago. 

A few months after the death of Pennsylvania man Jack Fröse, some of his friends began to receive emails from the dead man's account that referred to private conversations, as well as events after Jack's death. You can watch a video about the story here.

OK, as evidence for life after death, it's not exactly compelling. Even a non-techie like me can work out a few more rational explanations for Jack's posthumous emails (e.g. giving his email password to another friend before his death).

Even so, the story shows some of the ways that the possibility of an afterlife can help people deal with the grieving process. It's also an interesting illustration of how ancient beliefs about immortality can be adapted and reinvented for the modern world.