Deathbed conversion
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A deathbed conversion is the adoption of a particular religious faith, typically to some type of Christianity or Islam, immediately before dying. This could be done for a variety of reasons: one could wish to escape the torments of hell or enjoy the paradise of heaven. Making a conversion on one's deathbed suggests that one has believed in these religious tenets, perhaps for a long time, but did not wish to follow the laws of the religion, at least officially. It is sometimes believed that spiritual visions and visitations by angels plays some role in the decision to convert.
Religious believers throughout history have often claimed that famous or respected non-believers (or believers in other religions) have undergone deathbed conversions to their own religion. One famous example is Charles Darwin. For example, some well-known and well-respected Jews would be said to have converted to Christianity, partly to improve their standing and to suggest that all decent people were, at heart, Christians. Unless supported by evidence, these stories are almost invariably false and created to lend credence to one's own religious beliefs.
Most religious leaders disapprove of the idea of a deathbed conversion, considering it a hypocrisy based on fear rather than true belief. Many deathbed converts have lived lives in violation of the tenets of the religion to which they wish to convert. Many consider this a form of "hedging one's bets," similar to Pascal's Wager.
A related phenomenon is a misinterpretation of a quote to suggest a nonexistent religious belief. Albert Einstein, for example, was frequently cast as a theist because of his quote "God does not play dice." Although he made it clear many times that he did not believe in a personal god, and was using the term only rhetorically, theists have continued to make claims about Einstein's "conversion".