What if this is much more literal than we generally think?
Suppose, in the afterlife, you only exist when the living remember you.
I'm not at all sure how such a construct would function but the idea intrigued me.
Only those dearly departed that are currently remembered actually exist in the afterlife. Its a strange notion but you have to wonder what the results of such a thing would be.
Adolph Hitler would certainly exist in the Afterlife, unfortunately, however George Washington and Abraham Lincoln would also. As long as some kid is forced to write a book report on Chester A. Arthur, he too would exist in the Afterlife.
Whenever relatives sit and reminisce about Great Aunt Beatrix she would correspondingly reappear in the next world but when she fades from her currently living relative's memory she too fades from the next dimension.
This would also mean that every person that has lived and died in obscurity would not exist and every bonehead that made an impression on the world, good and bad, would be rewarded for their actions.
If such a thing were true and were proved by science imagine how that would change the behavior of the living. People would do anything to keep their memory alive in the living world to ensure life after death. Crazy things like build giant pyramids out of stone, attempt to be the most powerful person on Earth for as long as possible or become the most reviled or the most beloved person in history.
Preferably without the death.
