As they believe in immortality, they believe that good people will live in an infinitely happy state in the afterlife. They then can face death with equanimity. Those who show dread at the approach of death are suspected of a knowledge of guilt and are mourned and prayed for after their death. For those whose dying hours are cheerful, they rejoice and sing hymns after death, being convinced that the soul of the dead person is watching them at the funeral observances.
They do not take any stock in auguries and prognostications, but they accept miracles readily as evidence of the presence of God.
A number of their citizens, motivated by religious zeal, dedicate their lives to service through hard labor in the belief that their good deeds will insure them happiness after death. They may devote themselves either to strenuous physical occupations or to service to their fellow men, such as visiting and waiting on the sick and ministering to the needy.
These religious devotees fall into two classes. One group is dedicated to an ascetic pattern of living, practicing chastity and observing a diet without meat. The other type, though they marry and eat meat, engage diligently in heavy labor. Among the Utopians, the latter group is the more admired, though the former group is regarded as holier. These groups of devoted workers resemble the religious orders — the monks, nuns, and friars of Christian Europe, though nothing is said to indicate that they take vows or are banded in any formal organization.
