Lets have a discussion about the "problem of hell". The premise of this argument is that hell may be incompatible with the current view of god. Specifically hell may be viewed as having overly extreme punishments compared to the crimes comitted by those who are sent there. Also the idea that god, a being both benevolent and just, would create such a place may seem like an impossibility. A counter to this argument could be that while god created hell, god does not send people there but rather allows them to choose where they ultimately end up based on how they chose to live. That's basically the idea so please discuss your views on this subject.
I guess life is like a test. If we do good deeds and follow the teachings of الله and his Messangers, we pass the test and get rewarded. However, if we disobey الله and his Messangers, then we fail and get punished. It makes sense why الله would make a Heaven and Hell (if you are religious) because otherwise we would all suffer the same fate regardless of what we do in our lifetime on Earth, and that wouldn't be fair for the people who did good things and passed the test. Salam
Hell has different meaning and definition depending of one religious background. Some says that it is a state of mind. Other believe that we are presently in hell waiting to be saved. Catholic have also the notion of the purgatory which is a place in between hell and heaven for those waiting to be judge or who have done minor sins. Kôshintoism (old form of shintoism) hell is an empty place, devoid of anything where our soul travels back to the creation, depending of how you behaved in life this travel will be more or less long.
God didn't "create" hell--God allows hell. I believe he does so out of respect for our free will. If we don't want him--if we choose to reject him, he respects that freedom and the result is hell.
Mmmmm... God is supposed to be the creator of all that is. He did create hell. It is a major part of his plan. He also gave you free will and by your deed you may end up spending eternity in that dismal place. On a side note, revenge is said to be the fastest way to go to hell. When you ask for revenge against someone who sined against you, you are in reality opening two gate to hell. One for your oppressor so he will suffer for his deed against you and one for yourself for not practicing what Jesus said and forgive the one who sined. Myself, I make a point of forgiving those who act against me. I may never forget what they did and I won't trust them in the future but I do forgive them since they're just as imperfect as I am.
I dunno--I kinda see hell as a place God absented from in deference to the will of some. Kinda like a vacuum. God is everywhere, but deigns to remove himself from that one place to allow individuals to reject him by means of their free will. I would rather have free will and be allowed to be an autonomous being rather than be a meat robot. The fact of hell shows us how much God respects us as beings of our own volition. I think that is an honorable and respectful thing to do. I also think that gives individuals personal peace--to be able to forgive like that.
God's choice wasn't to absent himself--it was to allow free will. I've come to terms with my mother's issues--and she refuses to go to therapy. She got close to dealing with it through therapy once, but quit just as clarity was around the bend. She tends to self-sabotage Thanks, though.
Take Christianity for example. You can be a man worse than Hitler, killing every living thing on this planet less yourself, and in the end accept Jesus as your Savior, and land in Heaven. You can be a non-believer in Christianity, give your life and energy away to others for your entire life, enrich others lives, and increase their well being, and burn in hell for all eternity for rejecting the holy spirit. So, yes, the idea of hell is a problem. A problem that the theists fail to handle directly.
Your god supposedly created everything in the cosmos, there is nothing in the bible stating that he created everything except for hell. Are you suggesting there is a realm outside of his control? That would be a contradiction. Your god created everything, heaven, hell, earth, and the starving children in third world countries. Who needs the the devil when you have a god like this?
It is basically "love me or die". There is not any real choice. It is basically akin to telling your children "love me, or suffer for all eternity in the basement". You speak of a forceful fear based doctrine devoid of genuine love and compassion.
Yeah...but it was not from hatred and punishment--it was the result of the gift of freedom. But, i get what you're saying... Yes--that's how I see it.
Please see Nosforax post and my response above. By his allowing it--yes. God allows us to sin because he allows us freedom of choice. Sin has terrible log term and far-reaching consequences. It is very sad indeed, but God let us make our own choice, which is a good thing, and also gave a means of redemption--another good thing.
One argument basically states that god created hell in respect to those who choose not to worship god. Rather than intending to punish them god is giving them an alternate route. This arguments counter has been that this ultimately culminates in a situation where your choice is... 1. Worship god and go to an amazing, wonderful place for all eternity. or... 2. Refuse to and spend eternity suffering or at the very least in a place pathetically inferior to the greatness of heaven. Essentially it isn't really much of a "choice". Lets broaden this topic a bit. "The fate of the unlearned" Alright so you may be willing to say "okay so its an obvious choice, go with god to the amazing place" However... Which god? Theres so many different religions out there. If only one is "right" how do you know which one to go with. If you arbitrarily choose a religion out of every religion in the world you would have less than a 1% chance of not recieving eternal (*)(*)(*)(*)ation for believing in the wrong god. (Its worth mentioning however that not all religions believe in hell) Your thoughts?
I agree with that--but as human beings, we are stuck with our human experience and can only describe God in human terms. But again--I totally agree that the reality of God is beyond human expression. I don't think "neutral" is really accurate--"immutable" is a more accurate way to say it.
