Why would anyone in their right mind desire to serve any God who would create such a place as Hell?

Question

Hell is the cruelest idea I have ever heard of...

You Christians say that Hell was created for Satan and people who "choose" Hell and rebel from God?

Hmmm. Some choice!

The point is not that there's a place for people who rebel, but that is the only choice the person is given, PLUS look at the place! Look at the ETERNAL PRISON OF TORTURE God has prepared for unbelievers. Thanks a lot, God!

Could merciful Jehovah have not created a less horrible place for those who have chosen NOT to embrace His alleged story?

For such a merciful being, He has created the greatest evil in existence.

Answer 1

What Has Happened to
Hellfire?

For centuries, a fiery hell of excruciating torments has been envisioned by religious leaders of Christendom as the certain destiny for sinners. This idea is still popular among many other religious groups. "Christianity may have made hell a household word," says U.S.News & World Report, "but it doesn't hold a monopoly on the doctrine. The threat of painful retribution in the afterlife has counterparts in nearly every major world religion and in some minor ones as well." Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, Jains, and Taoists believe in a hell of one sort or another.

Hell, though, has acquired another image in modern thinking. "While the traditional infernal imagery still attracts a following," states the aforementioned magazine, "modern visions of eternal perdition as a particularly unpleasant solitary confinement are beginning to emerge, suggesting that hell may not be so hot after all."

The Jesuit journal La Civiltà Cattolica observed: "It is misleading . . . to think that God, by means of demons, inflicts fearful torments on the damned like that of fire." It added: "Hell exists, not as a place but as a state, a way of being of the person who suffers the pain of the deprivation of God." Pope John Paul II said in 1999: "Rather than a place, hell indicates the state of those who freely and definitively separate themselves from God, the source of all life and joy." As to the images of hell as a fiery place, he said: "They show the complete frustration and emptiness of life without God." Had the pope described hell in terms of "flames and a red-suited devil with a pitchfork," church historian Martin Marty said, "people wouldn't take it seriously."

Similar changes are taking place in other denominations. A report by the doctrine commission of the Church of England said: "Hell is not eternal torment, but it is the final and irrevocable choosing of that which is opposed to God so completely and so absolutely that the only end is total non-being."

The catechism of the United States Episcopal Church defines hell as "eternal death in our rejection of God." A growing number of people, says U.S.News & World Report, are promoting the idea that "the end of the wicked is destruction, not eternal suffering. . . . [They] contend that those who ultimately reject God will simply be put out of existence in the 'consuming fire' of hell."

Although the modern-day trend is to get away from the fire and brimstone mentality, many continue to adhere to the belief that hell is a literal place of torment. "Scripture clearly speaks of hell as a physical place of fiery torment," says Albert Mohler of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.A. And the report The Nature of Hell, prepared by the Evangelical Alliance Commission, states: "Hell is a conscious experience of rejection and torment." It adds: "There are degrees of punishment and suffering in hell related to the severity of sins committed on earth."

Answer 2

Wow! You really know your Bible for a non christian! The idea of eternal burning certainly is cruel! What can any mortal do in 70 or 80 years to deserve that? The idea of hell is from a pagan belief. Look up Socrates and Plato. The Exodus quote is right after the Golden calf incident and God is going to kill them for worshiping it. I think that is a more loving way to deal with people who refuse to obey and worship the creators loving laws. The Isaiah scripture is actually saying that God allows evil to happen for the sake of the greater good. For example, when Job is accused, by Satan, of worshiping God only because of the blessings he enjoys. BTW, would you like a free home Bible study?

Answer 3

Christian Universalism does not teach the existence of an eternal hell. While the purifying fires of hell may be a for a very long time (aionios), they are to burn away the satanic ego. No good parents punishes their child for eternity for a finite crime and neither does God. Jesus' sacrifice is meant to save us from death and is for all. Here are some resources for anyone interested in Christian Universalism:

Online resources:

http://www.christianuniversalist.org/

http://www.christian-universalism.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universalism

All of the following links are for discussion forums that are Christian Universalist in orientation:

Emergent Universalism Discussion Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/emerging-universalist/

Christian Universalism Discussion Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/christian-universalism/

Apokatastasis Discussion Forum
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/apokatastasis/

The Church of Interfaith Christians Discussion Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thechu...ithchristians/

Wider Universalist Fellowship Discussion Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WiderUniversalist/

Fundie Universalist Discussion Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/fundieuniversalist/

Answer 4

There is no such teaching in the Bible.

How glad I am that you have seen that!

Answer 5

God is a loving God. He created us to be with him. If you deny his existence it is your choice. You choose not to be with God. So you have no cover for your sins, Jesus. You must be separated from God because he cannot look upon sin. He turned his back to Jesus when he was on the cross and took on all our sins.
God is God and it is not our job to question him that's why he's God and were not.

Answer 6

When you know Him, it's an easy choice to make.
Count the cost.

Answer 7

God didn't create evil, but evil does exist. Thus, there is the realistic NEED for punishment. Think about it...you're a merciful, loving person, but if a stranger murdered your mom and dad in cold blood, would you punish them...despite your mercy and love? Of course you would, because you know it's the right thing to do.

Also, it's not like God's just tossing people aside and maliciously throwing people in hell...God would much rather have everyone choose him and go to heaven...but it's your choice, so you can't really blame God for where you or anyone else ends up. Your choice is heaven or hell..you might not like the choice, but at least you get one.

Answer 8

If you don't believe in God why are you on this site? hell is there for the ones whom murder,and all the 10 commandment that we are not to do.God loves you very much he gives you a choice to do right are wrong.May God Bless you

Answer 9

Only people in their right mind will.

Answer 10

I suppose the hell scare tactic has worked on those who desire to serve this God.