Isnt it cruel to have children if you know there is a possibility they will burn in hell fire for all eternity

Question

And if you claim that 'bringing them up in the way of the lord' is somehow going to gaurentee their safety, just remember, your children are influenced alot by the rest of us also.
Also for those that say its not cruel, would you say its cruel to have children in a time and place when poverty is ripe, war is gauranteed and disease is rampant?
Would you consider it cruel to have a baby with your very close relative (brother or sister), resulting in a deformed baby?
Take your time in answering, I will read all replies.

Zero Cool, how the hell did you get so many points so fast?? lol
good to see you

Its certainly isnt a negative point of view at all. If there was an eternal lake of fire, I would never have children. I would consider such a thing to be horribly cruel.I dont see how you can call it 'negative'. Like if I told my kids "if you drink alcohol and drive, you can smash and die", would you call that being 'negative'?? thats weird

Actually abortion was not on my mind at all with this question. Prevention is better than cure. I was thinking more along the lines of what is an act of wisdom, love, respect etc.
Abortion is not what is being asked about here.

@ ithyphallos
Sorry buddy, but if you place close attention to my words you will see that I meant that if a place actually existed. I implied that in the question. "if you KNOW there is a possiblility they WILL BURN in hell for all eternity"
It would appear christians want to eat their cake and keep it also.
If there is no such place, then clearly the quesiton is based on a faulty premesis. If there is indeed is one, then surely it would be cruel to take that chance. I think Eternal Hell fire is significantly different to cancer,car accidents and the other normal horrible sh!t that happens in life.

"To keep others from the same risk doesn't seem to me to be particularly merciful, but cowardly and arrogant"
That is a really strange view. You certainly sound like you would make a good christian. I suppose avoiding a car accident is cowardly also in your view, or is that worse?

No offense buddy, but it certainly an act of wisdom and love to not take such a chance when the cost would be so high. Luckily I dont believe in such things. "unless you're blind" you say, so you give some allowance. I am certain that "unless your a selfish sod" is another one.
Of course no eternal lake of fire actually exist.

No need to be sad about that Zero Cool. You can do wonders here. We each live a different life, its not like we should all be doing the same things.
:)

Actually dude its love for existent people. When a child is born it actually exist. Also I dont find it reasonable that risking an eternal firey torture chamber is similiar to just having a punt on a horse or something. Surely you can tell the extreme difference. Like if I was offered a game of russian roulette, if I pass I get 10,000 dollars if I lose I die. You may call someone a coward to not take part in it, I would call them wise. To measure up the cost, the pro's and cons BEFORE hand is an act of wisdom. And in this case its not just death, its an eternal firey torture chamber. As I said earlier I am taken the premesis that this is true, as many christians believe and teach. If you dont, then this question is not directed at you. Its certainly would be cruel to have children knowing of the high probability of such an end result. Many even consider such things when it comes to lesser problems, and they are cerainly wise to do so.

I am pointing out the faulty logic many christians have when they say that such a place exist, while at the same time they have children believing that the risk is worth it, when clearly it isnt. So of course, when we take a look at the very nature of the world and ourselves, we can see quite clearly that if a god existed, and if it had love, it couldnt possibly have such a place waiting for people who dont believe that Jesus is the son of God. For if humans can see the absolute contradictory position that puts us in, then surely a god would. Its shows clearly that the very premesis is faulty (the belief of the actuall existence of a lake of fire). And if I dont sound like I am talking straight, its propably because I am drinking. sorry buddy
Peace

Answer 1

The teaching of 'hellfire' is totally wrong.
Read this;
(Revelation 20:14) And death and Ha′des were hurled into the lake of fire. This means the second death, the lake of fire.

Hades is the Greek translation of Hell.
And if IT is going to be cast into ' the lake of fire'
WHICH ONE IS THE HOT PLACE.
No, Hell is simply our grave, and will be done away with along with death.
(Revelation 21:4) And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”

Answer 2

Some very good points there, I must say. And you get a star. The atheist wouldn't care, the Catholic requires membership to avoid Hell, and the Arminians & Baptists give a free pass until the age of reason. Calvinists are a little different, with a covenant theology of God's people as the new Israel, those outside of that covenant don't know or care. That puts baptism as a sign and seal of that covenant, replacing circumcision. But even Esau, although circumcised, was not under that covenant, since God owns it, not man. So there would by definition be a literal fear of the Lord in conducting your household in a Christian manner.

Arminian, atheist, and some cultish practices go together, I think, denying the possibility of Hell for at least the first part of life. Calvinism and Catholicism both have "memberships", but I think Calvinism takes the high road. Yes, I'm Calvinist.

As for birth defects and the maiming of our offspring, I think the only thing we can hope for is good statistics and insurance. We take risks in having children any way you look at it, and best I can tell, if Hell and deformities and maiming exists, having kids must be a very, very careful decision.

Answer 3

Jesus Christ, whatever happened to a good old fashioned human flair for the exciting and unexpected? The day it's considered cruel to bring a child into a life full of challenges is the day I take Aristophanes' cue and join the birds. This question doesn't even require a theological answer. If the troubles of the world would really stop a certain person from reproducing, then there's something about the human experience that he or she just doesn't get. It can be troublesome, it can be cruel, and it can definitely suck - but I would ask whether it would be worth bringing a child into a Utopia - no burdens, no challenges, no joy.

As for hell fire, if you'll pay attention to the words of actual theologians, you'll understand that this is imagery - the same kind of imagery employed when we imagine angels playing harps in heaven. Nobody really believes you'll be issued a lyre upon entering the Kingdom - the music is merely a symbol of infinity and ecstacy. Fire is a symbol of utter destruction. In good Christian theology, Hell isn't the beginning of a new life, but an utter end to the one you were given.

And one more thing - I don't restrain myself from fathering children on my sisters for the children's sakes - I don't do it because the mere notion gives me the jibblies.

*To the asker: I'm not a Christian, and I'm not trying to "have my cake and eat it too," as you suggest. I just have some academic background in early Christian theology, and was trying to explain what theologians (actual ones, not the televangelists) generally say about hell. And I reiterate - even if I did believe in an actual, physical lake of fire, I don't think it would be cruel to have children - if I did believe in the place, I would also believe in its correlative, which would seem to me to be worth the risk. To keep others from the same risk doesn't seem to me to be particularly merciful, but cowardly and arrogant - cowardly as a way to escape one's share of the guilt of their potential failure, and arrogant because of the utter hubris one displays when he passes judgment on life and nature.

*Again - Of course it's not cowardly to avoid getting into a car accident. But to avoid driving at all because the possibility of an accident - well, unless you're blind, then yes - in my book that's cowardice.

*Wisdom and love? To not act at all because of the mere possibility of something going wrong isn't wisdom - it's called despair. And no matter what religious view you take, it's not a good thing. And love for whom? For non-existant children? Forgive my lack of sentimentality, but I would find it difficult (and perhaps a bit delusional) to act out of love for people who don't even exist.

Answer 4

Not really, in my beliefs the child existed before its birth. It was God's plan. It is also in my beliefs that one must have absolute knowledge of Jesus and still deny him to go to hell.

There is situations where the fetus is clearly going to be deformed, the mother's life is at risk, or various other issues where it would be cruel not to abort. Most abortions are done as a measure of birth control though, as such it is a truly gruesome act.

Answer 5

No, it is not cruel having children because if God did not want them born, they definitely would not be. Now to be honest, knowing what I know today, if I had it to do over again I would not have had even one child because of the world problems. I have a daughter who does not want to be saved and all. She is almost 18 and knows the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as I taught it to her, but unfortunately she likes to party and live like a typical heathen. She also knows about hell fire and the torture that she will go through if she ends up there. I have prayed for her and it is now in God's hands. I can only hope that she will change her ways before it is too late, but if she doesn't, as bad as this may sound, she knows the consequences of her actions. Your parents had you knowing that you could possibly burn in hell fire for all eternity too. it is up to each individual what they choose. By the way, children who are not old enough to account for themselves go to Heaven automatically should they die young.

Answer 6

Children are the beloved of Jesus because they are children! Children begin to be accountable for their thoughts and actions probably around adolescence. BUT, there is no way that they can be held accountable for their parents thoughts and actions.
Yes it is sad when a baby is born fighting for their life because of what their parent(s) did, whether it be drugs,alcohol, incest, etc. But that child is innocent of sin!! If the baby were to die right then,he/she would go straight to heaven.
Incest is an awful thing for the couple involved, I'm sure that it can have long term ramification because they have to know that it is wrong.

Answer 7

God's greatest gift is LIFE - first physical, then spiritual. What we do with that life is our choice. The Word says to train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it. I believe in the power of prayer and the ability of God to keep those people and things that I commit to Him. He knows the way they take and He knows how to draw them to Himself. I simply Trust Him. If the set up of your question is leading to the idea of abortion (deformed baby issue), then I will answer it now. I believe abortion is MURDER - it takes a life and stops a beating heart. That baby has its own rights - the right to live. Deformity and other "handicaps" are no excuse for murder. They do as we all do, take life as it comes and learn to overcome. And if you bring up the "rape" issue - I have personally faced those questions in that situation and my answer is still NO ABORTION. I will not murder because I was violated, or because it is an inconvenience, or because the baby will face "challenges" or whatever. Life is Life and should be allowed to LIVE.

Answer 8

So what I seem to be reading is that
you believe your parents were cruel,
they told you that you would burn in hell,
you feel unsafe,
you lived a life of poverty and disease, and
your parents may have been closely related.

I am sorry and will be praying that you begin experiencing blessings in your life. I don't know who you are, but feel the despair in your message. Please do not consider harming yourself in anyway. Many of us care.

I grew up in poverty and had an extremely cruel father. Fortunately, I started learning more about God. I had always known he was there, although neither of my parents attended church or taught me about him.

I love how the Lord has changed my outlook and my life. I pray that you could experience the joy that I have. Again, may God bless you.

Answer 9

Each and every person has a purpose in life, and God is the one who decides, first of all, whether a couple will have a baby.
Whether a person is condemned to Hell depends upon whether he/she does or doesn't accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of his/her life.
Those that choose to follow Jesus, before their mortal lives are through, will not be condemned.
But, as was stated in the movie "Ghost Rider": "If you don't make a choice, the choice makes you."
So, if someone doesn't accept Jesus Christ before he/she dies, then that person has chosen to go to Hell when his/her life on earth ends.

Answer 10

Whether through evolution or creation according to the Holy Bible people did commit incest just like animals when they were first developing the human race. Animals are deliberately inbred by breeders to improve the stock. Humans are not necessarily born deformed when they commit incest. I consider incest dangerous and they should be aborted in cases of incest. I do not think they should be aborted because they are going to Hell. Weather you like it or not every living thing on this planet is related.