Why don't you believe in Hell?

[Scot C. Trypal]

Let me ask this:

If God proved Himself to you and proved to you there were two options, Heaven and Hell, would you follow Him or rebel against Him because you disagree with Him morally?

That’s a toughie, and not a bad question. To be a principled, moral man in Hell, or a sinner in Heaven? There was a time, before I had my family to think of, when I thought I'd pick the title of “Most Moral Man in Hell” rather than “Least Moral Man in Heaven”. But I fear I’d now tell my kids to choose heaven, and I’d go wherever they went (and spend eternity in a private Hell trying to justify it ).

 

[TragicMonkey]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

I'll grant you that your opinion of what we think is every bit as valuable as your opinion on the existence of hell.

 

[c4ts]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

I'd just say, "I'm sorry you're so uptight. I was under the impression you were the loving and compassionate type."

 

[Skeptical Greg]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

Would you throw your children into a fire?

 

[Lord Emsworth]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

No, you don't think.

 

[c4ts]

What's so loving and compassionate about throwing your kids into a fire for any reason whatsoever?

 

[TragicMonkey]

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....that's supposed to be a secret.

And any Communist Smurfs go to Purgatory. Really, really bad Smurfs who are not Communists go to the worst place of all: Pee-Pee Hell!.

(edited to add: this theory, and other gems of my theological wisdom, are on sale in my new book A Thinking Monkey's Guide to the Universe and Other Crap. Random House, $29.99.)

 

[c4ts]

And any Communist Smurfs go to Purgatory. Really, really bad Smurfs who are not Communists go to the worst place of all: Pee-Pee Hell!.

S.M.U.R.F. = Socialist Men Under a Red Flag! It's a conspiracy, I tell ya's!

Remember that episode where they all tried switching out of their state assigned jobs?

 

[wollery]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

Okay 1inC, pay attention.

Seriously, try hard.

I do not believe that God exists.

I do not believe in life after death.

I do not believe in heaven.

I do not believe in hell.

When we die, that's it. All over. No more. Nothing.

This Earthly life is all we have.
No second chances.
No mythical skydaddy.
Jesus was nothing more than rebellious rabbi.

Since there is no God I won't have to justify anything to anyone.
Not that I'd be able to anyway, because I will cease to exist when I die.

 

[Lord Emsworth]

What's so loving and compassionate about throwing your kids into a fire for any reason whatsoever?

It's TRUE love and compassion.

 

[TragicMonkey]

Remember that episode where they all tried switching out of their state assigned jobs?

Even more telling was the same company's other series "The Snorks", where the little undersea creatures lived in a town and were absolutely forbidden to go beyond "The Limits". Leaving town and crossing the forbidden line was dangerous, and punishable as a crime.

 

[Nyarlathotep]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Why don't you believe in Hell?

Where is your evidence that it's only a story and not a fact?

Where is your evidence it is fact and not just a story?

 

[DarkMagician]

Dr. Maurice Rawlings. Hardcore atheist extremist turned Christian because his clinically dead patients kept coming back to life screaming I'm in Hell!

What is an atheist extremist? Is it someone who flies airplanes into churches?

 

[Operaider]

What is an atheist extremist? Is it someone who flies airplanes into churches?

You forgot that he's not actually an atheist estremist. That was based on faulty intelegence.

Which I think is 1 in C's middle name

 

[Operaider]

I think you all know Hell exists but you knowingly reject it. How will you justify your denial of Hell when you meet Him in the End?

And I think you know that God is a fable and are knowingly rejecting it. You just can't stand the thought of all these years of worship were for nothing.

And, I’m sure your “preacher” is a real nice guy, and you’d hate to think he’d lie to you. Plus he seems really knowledgeable, even though it doesn’t always make allot of sense. So why admit your disbelief and force him to acknowledge that he failed in your case. Especially when you can continue going through the motions and pretend you still have faith. Not to mention the fact that your mom has been gone for the last 20 some years preaching what you know now is a lie. Must be hard to take. But denial is just one of the many steps you'll face on your path to recovery.

 

[DarkMagician]

You forgot that he's not actually an atheist estremist. That was based on faulty intelegence.

Which I think is 1 in C's middle name

I know that. It's just that I've never heard of an "atheist extremist" before.

 

[monkboon]

You forgot that he's not actually an atheist estremist. That was based on faulty intelegence.

Which I think is 1 in C's middle name

Again, to be fair to 1inX, he didn't say that he was mistaken that Rawlings had been an atheist, only that he had been active in American Atheists. Amazon's book reviews of Rawlings's book, To Hell And Back: Life After Death-Startling New Evidence clearly shows that Rawlings claims to have been an atheist. They also indicate he wasn't a very good doctor, writer or researcher.

The fact(?) that an atheist has converted to Xianity still proves nothing.

 

[Operaider]

I suppose that it could be describing someone who went around burning churches. Though, that's normally done by other religious people.

 

[Gastric ReFlux]

I know that. It's just that I've never heard of an "atheist extremist" before.

Atheist extremists are the people that show up in suits on the weekends and try to convert you to atheism. Man, they're annoying.

 

[Operaider]

Again, to be fair to 1inX, he didn't say that he was mistaken that Rawlings had been an atheist, only that he had been active in American Atheists. Amazon's book reviews of Rawlings's book, To Hell And Back: Life After Death-Startling New Evidence clearly shows that Rawlings claims to have been an atheist. They also indicate he wasn't a very good doctor, writer or researcher.

The fact(?) that an atheist has converted to Xianity still proves nothing.

True, I'm just pointing out that he is not

... highly respected in the atheism community because he was a medical scientist and rational atheist.

1 in C would is trying to make the point that the NDE must be true if it were to convince such a hardened athiest and doctor.