Pace said "the One is dead".

"The King is dead. Long live the King!"

If we believed everything which The Machines told us, none of us would be here...

Vaico wrote:

I very much believe that they erased Sarah's memories and put Neo's mind inside of her's. His body is in a type of suspended animation in the real.

Pace said "the One is dead".

 

Illyria

The One may be gone, that much is likely true. After all, what prison could hold the One whilst he was connected to the Source? So, the One is probably no more.

However, the accounting of his last deeds given to the Council has led us to believe that Neo is very likely alive and being held prisoner.

But. . .you already know all this. Why do you choose to cling so fervently to the hope that mankind's greatest savior is dead?

Better yet, if he were alive, would you not advocate his return to Zion?

This connection with this Sarah Edmontons, tenuous as it may be, could possibly help end the war. Isn't that, at least, worth hoping for? Worth searching for?

It takes so little to have faith, and so much to remain in denial. . .

Why do you choose to cling so fervently to the hope that mankind's greatest savior is dead?

Better yet, if he were alive, would you not advocate his return to Zion?

This connection with this Sarah Edmontons, tenuous as it may be, could possibly help end the war. Isn't that, at least, worth hoping for? Worth searching for?

It takes so little to have faith, and so much to remain in denial. . .

It's not a matter of faith, and it's not that I 'cling fervently' to anything...it's that this is the most likely situation, especially since Agent Pace stated quite clearly that he was dead. 

All your talk of faith and saviors does not influence those us who do not worship the dead man you called Neo. 

Illyria

Why do you choose to cling so fervently to the hope that mankind's greatest savior is dead?

Better yet, if he were alive, would you not advocate his return to Zion?

It takes so little to have faith, and so much to remain in denial. . .

It's not a hope.  It's regret and shame.

Neo gave us the tools to create a new future but in light of that our own ignorance placed us right back into a war.  Many of us hope he's dead primarily because it'd be hard to look him in the face when he gave up everything for us.

If he's alive, I'd advocate returning him to whereever he wanted to go.  Zion isn't the ONLY place that would need him.  Granted, they do seem to be under the illusion they own him.

Faith isn't easy.  Otherwise more people would have it.