"When my mom was dying, my absolutely certain knowledge that this life is all there is enabled me to enjoy and treasure what time I did have with her."This Marxist, Existentialist, or if you prefer, Marleyan point of view is the, as you know, classic rejoinder to any perspective valuing the "hereafter." That is to say, heaven is merely a distraction from what really matters, which is earth.
In response, here's a story I heard recently. When James Forbes, the famous pastor of Riverside Church in N.Y.C., was being considered for installation, the conservatives in the parish asked him if he believed in the physical resurrection of Christ. By so doing, they hoped to exclude Forbes, who is quite liberal, from consideration. The conservatives figured if he's as interested as he is in social issues here and now, then he must not believe whatsoever in any kind of there and then. Their suspicion, one must admit, was not without warrant... but Forbes response was far from expected:
"Of course I believe in Christ's physical resurrection... Why do you think I'm so concerned about social justice?!"Now I'm no Forbesian liberal, but that's an answer of his that I can applaud. Maybe Mr. A. could try diversifying his portfolio. He might discover that investment in the future can actually increase one's stock in the here and now.