Why do many Christian sects try and use Chick Track "literature" to scare people into believing them?

Question

Why should a person have to be afraid of going to "hell" in order to believe in God?

Hinds feet/... why should I fear jail? I have not done anything to go there.

Answer 1

In my experience, many Christians are scared away from thinking for themselves, and are therefor pretty incapable of speaking rationally about their spirituality. Chick Tracts provide a nice, clean, pre-approved way for people to evangelize without being forced into an actual conversation about their beliefs.

I'm not really railing out against them... I mean, they're garbage, but they give socially ungifted people a way to evangelize, which makes them feel better. I just wish we could overcome the authoritarian version of Christianity that has been poisoning spirituality for centuries.

Answer 2

The validity of any organized religion completely defies logic and reasoning so the only way to perpetuate it is to offer people the ultimate reward (immortality) if they ignore their common sense and go along with it, and threaten the ultimate punishment (burning in hell for eternity) for those that don't. If the premise of god was real, it would stand on its own merits, but the reality is, if you remove the threats and promises, religion would soon fade away into obscurity like all the belief systems that came before it.

Answer 3

Chick tracts are hilarious. I have a whole pile of them that I have collected over the years. To answer your question, though, fear has always been one of the primary tools in the arsenal of religious leaders. It helps them achieve and maintain control over the weak-minded. (Look how well fear worked for the Bush administration for the first 6 years.)

Answer 4

Chick Track literature? I've never heard that term before.
Please elaborate...

EDIT: Thanks people... I've seen those before. I just didn't know they had a name. I always thought they were hilariously over simplified.
And I'm a good person because I am a good person, not because I fear prisons or the death penalty. They aren't stopping bad people from being bad are they?

Answer 5

Are you afraid of going to jail??? Are you afraid of the death penalty? You should also be afraid of hell. The Chick literature just explains what will happen to those that do not come to Christ. Christians are in to uncertain terms to warn people of the wrath of God and explain how they can escape.. You don't want to escape, then go ahead. Break the law and pay the consequences..

Answer 6

Ah, Chick Tract lit. The old "turn or burn" method resulting in legions of "fire insurance Christians."

Talk about simplifying a concept down to nothing!

Answer 7

One, probably not believers. Two, Jack T. Chick is going out of business. Three, Get in any way you can - you are definitely going to hell and it is in fact real. 4, Those little things are doctrinally inaccurate as a hooker at a baptism. 5, Lovingly, finally, it's by election. Stay on your high horse. It's as close to heaven as you'll ever get.

Answer 8

Chick tracts are some of the worst garbage I have ever read. It is a sin and a crime that trees have been killed to make the paper that those things are printed on.

Answer 9

i work at a christian daycare, and one kid came up to me one day holding one of these. first time ive ever seen one. i opened it up and read it a bit, it showed this guy who was doing ok, then he steals something, and gets thrown in jail, raped by a large inmate while sayign things like "hes mine tonight" and other inappropriate stuff, then he gets let out lives on the street, gets into drugs and alcohol. i think this is highly inappropriate material and very offensive.

Answer 10

well unfortunately it's a good manipulative tool used to control and manipulate people into a system of religion and religious beliefs as if to say this could happen to you if you don't follow the religion that i feel is correct anyway i'm agnostic