Do any of ya'll find it a shame the way "hell" is thrown around in modern Christianity? I know it's been used the whole time, but it seems like these days that's a large part of Christianity. It seems that large sects of Christianity are now based off the principle- Do this or go to hell. Hell makes all religion seem fake. It instill fear in it's followers. (I mean that in the sense of people that believe in hell as a tangible place that your soul goes") It seems that if people were to step back and think why they really "believe" in God, then they might realize it's much different. Also, religions that say "anyone that is not us is going to hell." It blows my mind that there are religions like that. People like Gandhi and what not, who were not Christians are going to hell? I just encourage people to step back and think how "hell" plays a role in their religion.
Hell is the born again's bread and butter. They'll never give it up. It's like crack to them. Ironically, being in constant fear of it, they are already in Hell.
Of course they won't give it up. It is integral to their religion. Hell is a better recruiting tactic even than the free t-shirt. Quite devilish, really.
If you want to read an interesting book on Hell I suggest "The Devil's Dominion: The Complete Story of Hell and Satanism in the Modern World" by Anthony Masters. It is a little out of date being published in the 1970's but it was one great read about the subject.
Yes it's sad and gives such a horrible impression of something that is actually the msot beautiful God. I think if you really know God you can't reasonably hold the concept of hell.....corrupt men and books but God is love not a judge and giggles at ideas like hell God bless
god is a strainger, saten is a myth, and something invisible curles up on top of my covers every night: but we all live in a world, that is neither more nor less screwed up, then out collective thoughtlessness makes it. there may be a better world in some other life. there are almost certainly others in our own living universe, but however many and diverse other things may exist, it is still up to us, to avoid screwing everything up for each other. demonizing and dehumanizing everything that doesn't kiss the ass of little green pieces of paper is how we are currently screwing everything up, with the use of combustion to generate energy and propell transportation, the clearcutting of forrests, and above all, our excessive human firtility. and there certainly IS an alternative, no more prevented by the natural diversity of reality, then the tyrannies of past and present. wind, solar and hydro, minimal form factor, stored energy, guideway based transportation systems, non-forest based building materials, and an impartial general lowering of human fertility by synthetic means. these things can probably be done even with the little green pieces of paper, though they seem more probable under other and even more harmonious systems of incentives, equaly within our perview and cappacity to innovate. a negative income tax below the poverty line is one possibility, although i like better the idea of public farms and shelters, craftufacturing centers and mathom houses, and truely free and unversal higher as well as basic education, supported by a kind of modified potlatching driven by the prestege and gratification of creating and sharing of beauty in all that we make and do. it is perhapse not for me to say, but i cannot immagine a diety not being pleased by a world of creatures, who have grown up enough to do so. =^^= .../\...
Hell is what we do to eachother, we don't need god to torture us, we do it ourselves. ... neways, the idea of a perfect, all loving god and hell aren't mutually incompatable, because god (at least in the j/c/m sense) is f#$%ing crazy, like turing people into salt crazy. in his own twisted way he might think that loving people is torturing some for eternity...
