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What is your concept of hell? What is the purpose of hell? Who goes there? Why? What happens to those who reside in hell? What does it look like? Where does your interpretation come from? Make sure to react to one anothers' reponses.
posted by annes at 8:55 AM
23 Comments:
In today's world hell is often talked about as if it does not exist. Someone will lie and others will jokingly say that they will go to hell for it. In religious terms, hell is a place for the sinners of the earth who have not been redeemed, or forgiven, from their sins. I believe that hell does exist and that sinners who have not truly seeked forgiveness are sent there when they die. I do not believe that your whole body is sent there and you live a painfull life. Rather I believe that someone sent to hell has their soul put into an unbearable place. This place is beyond the physical realm that we see therefore we can not comprehend what it is like. I have a question for the people who agree with me that there is a hell. After death, what happens to the people who were never introduced to the concept of heaven and hell or right and wrong? Are they free of judgement? Do they automatically go to heaven? Is there any middle ground between heaven and hell?
I think hell is the place where you go in the afterlife if you have lived a life of sin. This is the most terrifying and terrible of places. It is a everlasting horror and a place of punishment for those who have lived a life of sin. The people who reside in hell are punished for their sins and suffer for eternity. I agree with Levi in that people's souls are sent to suffer, not their actual body. Nobody can really tell you what hell exactly looks like but if I had to make a guess I would say that hell is what most people would vision it as, a fiery hot dreadful place that is deep underground. My interpretation comes from things I have seen on TV and through what other people may believe hell looks like.
My concept of hell is also what i have heard about from other people. It is perceived as a dark, evil place where the devil resides and is a place where people want to avoid. I do not agree with that people are bound to be sent to hell if they commit acts of crime. People make mistakes and you can ask god for forgiveness. I think that people who do not accept jesus christ into their lives are bound to be sent to hell.
My concept of hell is from t.v, movies and illustrations in a book. I see it as a place that is hot, with flames, and is red,and orange. I see a person with horns, and has a face the color of a red pepper. I think it is a place where one goes if they have committed a sin or is not accepted into heaven. I think that a person that has been sent to hell, is tortured and is left with misery.
I really agree with all that Levi had to say. It is interesting that people this day and age do not have the same fear of God as they did long ago. Hell, like Levi mentioned, is used jokingly in conversations most of the time. If you asked most people what they thought hell the place was they would say that it is a place where bad people go and where Satan resides. Ever since we were younger most of us were taught that hell is the oposite of heaven and the place where "bad people" go. Good vs. bad. Hell in my opinion is supposed to look like a firey pit that is not fun or enjoyable. I BELIEVE that the people that go to hell are the sinners that have not accepted Jesus into their hearts as their Lord and Savior. My interpretation of hell comes from what I have been taught by my parents and by attending church.
I STRONGLY DISAGREE with Alex. Why does having to accept Jesus Christ play a role in whether or not your going to hell? It makes not difference. Are you saying that a Jewish person such as myself should be sent to hell automatically just because i don't accept Jesus as anything? I don't think people who do not accept Jesus are just as entitled to Heaven as those who do. I believe that getting into heaven is based on the Performance while they are alive and living their life to the fullest. GOD is the person that judges if you get into heaven or not, and if someone sins, he has taught us to forgive. I believe that as long as you pay your price and learn form your mistakes, GOD will forgive you.
Haley C
I see hell as a place that is not just a firey pit of damnation, it can be, but i think that it changes from person to person. I think that hell changes because it is the worst fear for each individual. For example, if someone is extremely afraid of drowning, I think, that their soul will be drowning for eternity, and there will be no way to stop it. I agree with levi on who goes there, and for his question about what happens if they were not taught about heaven and hell, I think it has more to do about living a decent life because everyone knows the difference between right and wrong. I think my interpretation of hell is a mixture of religion, media, and the idea of if you commit a sin of the flesh that will be your punishment theory.(forgot what it is called) I really do not think, like levi said, that we can completely comprehend hell because it is not in the physical world that we live in.
My concept of hell is a place where people go, who have done wrong in their lives. If a person has done a sin against their religion or against society, they are sent to hell. I agree with chris, people that go there are treated based on their own sin or fear. My image of hell is like most other's: hot, flames burning, red colors all around. But no one knows if hell does exist, much less what it looks like. People are treated worse in hell than normally they would be, and for those who commited the worst of all the sins are tortured by satan himself.
I agree with the Chris in the fact that I think hell is different for every person. Maybe the type of hell is determined by what you are most afraind of, but I think that there might be varying "degrees" of hell, like we talked about in class. I think we can all agree that one sin is not equal to another, such as lying is not equal to rape or murder. As such, I think that all forms of hell are painful for each person, but a murderer would receive more pain in his hell than a lyer would receive in his. The people who go to hell, I think, are those who committed sins in their lifetimes, with knowledge that they were sins (or at least that they were doing something wrong), and did not repent those sins. I guess my image of hell comes from the media, church, and some of the things I have learned in school as well.
When I picture hell, I imagine the worst possible physical and emotional pain. I've never really bought into the red flames, devil horns, etc images. I'm not sure whether hell is different for every person but I think it's a place that is the worst possible "end to life on earth" for each individual person who goes to hell. Everyone typically points to the sky when they think about heaven and down below when they think about hell..I've always wondered where we got the perception that these places existed in those locations. ???...I disagree with Marie that people are born into the world WITHOUT sin..people are born into the world WITH sin because of Eve's sin in the garden..it's our job to accept the Lord and ask forgiveness for our sins..that's all that can redeem us on earth ...to follow Christ and live according to his ways, asking for forgiveness because no human being is perfect..I've often wondered about how many people there will be in heaven? In my personal beliefs, its a small minority of believers compared to the majority of the rest of the world..but it's interesting to me to think about who will be there, how many people will be there, living a life without pain for eternity...
I'm not sure what I think hell is, most people seem to believe that it is a fiery pit beneath us, and a lot also believe that it depends on the person being punished. Usually when someone mentions hell, these same images flash in my mind, particularly the fiery pit. However, when I think more on it, the more I believe that there is no way that we can determine what hell is, it could be a fiery pit or a series of levels of different punishments. No matter what it is I think it is a place of incomprehensible suffering for those that lead a horrible life. I also believe that people can be forgiven and can make it into heaven, though there are a few unforgivable sins (i.e.: Hitler, Stalin, Hussein, etc.). I think that heaven is just the opposite, a place of great pleasure. Unfortunately, like Marie said, there is no possible way for the livine to know what is beyond death.
I agree with kyle g..alot of times when people think hell, they atomoatically get the image of what hell is often perceived to be, a fiery place thats awful and ruled by the devil. Personally i dont even think that hell is so much a physical place, and to be honest i dont really know what i think of hell. I guess it could be a place of suffering, but that all depends on what you believe happens to your body after you die. If you believe that your "soul" lives on then i guess it could be a place for you to be punished. I dont think its gonna be like a big get together, where we see people that we knew before, and are like "oooh thought I'd see you here." I think maybe its just a personal thing where your body is going to stay for eternity. I dono.
I view hell as nothing like how movies portray it to be. My view of hell is a place of darkness, and isolation. It is a complete separation from everything: God, others, etc. Thus eternal separation from God is truly hell. The Bible often portrays immense suffering as God having turned his back to someone/something. When Jesus was hanging on the cross and took on the sins of the world, the Bible says that God the Father turned away from him. This separation caused extreme agony as Jesus cries out "Father, Why have you forsaken me?". We also see that when God turns his back to nations or peoples, they tend to experience extreme suffering or destruction. Thus I believe that Hell is defined as Eternal separation from God, which as a Christian seems to me to be the scarier definition of "Hell", especially when compared to some guy in a red suit with horns and a pitchfork (I really want to research and find out where that stereotype was started).
While on the topic of views of hell and the devil, my view of him largely differs from the traditional stereotype. For me, to truly understand how he is portrayed, I look to the Bible. In it I find that before being "The Devil", he was (and still technically is) Lucifer. Before his fall, he is recorded as being the Minister of Music in Heaven. He was the most beautiful angel in all of heaven. It was only when he grew envious of the position of God that he was cast out of Heaven. At that point in time, the angels were given a choice to follow him and a third of them did so. So with this knowledge, I so far see the most beautiful angel of all, and a third a the angels from Heaven being cast out. Nowhere does it say he becomes this horrendous creature with a pitchfork. In-fact, I believe that Lucifer's greatest deception lies in the fact that he is still the most beautiful angel. Quite honestly, when one wants to deceive others, they do not intentionally appear to be intimidating or frightening. Rather, they intend to gain your trust before deceiving you. Imagine what you would more readily believe: A horrendous looking beast with fangs and claws, or an Angel of beauty beyond anything you've ever imagined. Thus I believe that Lucifer is a master of lies and deception and uses his appearance as a masterful deception (keep in mind that if he retains his angelic form and beauty, so do the fallen angels [demons]).
To sum up, my views are totally disappointing to any Hollywood loving person as my Hell lacks flames, and my Devil is deceptively beautiful. Scary ain't it?
I have always been taught that heaven and hell are polar opposites. Through my religion, I learned that the devil, the keeper of hell, was once an angel who fell from grace and decided to create his own underworld which would oppose God and heaven in every way possible. But how do we know what hell would be like when we really don't even know what heaven is like? As a society, we generally believe that heaven is the ultimate life, or afterlife rather, which provides those fortunate enough to enter the gate of heaven the ultimate happiness. This interpretation still lives a world of questions in my opinion. One person's ideal afterlife may be another person's hell. I believe that hell provides or enforces duties which provide the ultimate amount of pain to those who end up there. For those people who have sinned so great in their lives as to not be forgiven by God, hell exists. What sort of pain or how its enforced I don't know. I also don't truly believe that hell is a fiery pit. I believe that people in society, those who are likely not going to hell, have painted a picture of hell being a fiery pit because that is their idea of a horrible fate. Who's to say however, that a person who is horrible enough to end up there wouldn't enjoy a fiery pit? Because of this, I think that both heaven and hell change with each person who enters them. I think that they are "modified" or their appearance changes to accomidate those who enter.
I think that hell is a place where you go after you die if you were a bad person while you were living. I think of hell as a painful place where people are tormented for eternity as a punishment from God. When I think of hell I tend to be like Amy in that I don't see it as most people would with the flames and things like that I think of it as just some place of great pain which could be any number of things. I also don't think that it is below us or anything like that. All of my perceptions of hell have come from going to church all of my life. I have been taught from a young age that hell is the worst place you could ever be and that it is a punishment for those people who don't do what they are supposed to do while they are living on Earth.
I agree with Haley in the fact that not accepting Jesus automatically buys a ticket into hell. I was brought up in a nonreligious home, and just because of that will I go to hell? Will my mother suffer even worse consequences because she didn't bring God and Jesus into my life? Will I be punished because I won't necessarily begin to practice a religion. Just because I haven't practice these aspects in my life doesn't mean that I am a bad person. I was brought up with correct morals, and I'm not going out and commiting acts of crime. I guess I haven't really thought of hell differently than the rest of society until now. Now that I think about it more, I agree that it is place of unrest for a guilty soul. I can't exactly say what I think it looks like, because I don't really know. However I do believe that it is a place of thought and repentence for people who have an uneasy soul or past.
I have to agree with Matt on a lot of things, which is unsurprising due to our Cherry Hills background. Hell to me is not a place of flames and lakes of fire. It is complete isolation, complete with various forms of pain and suffering. The idea that I most disagree with is the fact that most people believe Hell to be a punishment from God. I believe that God does all within his power to keep us from Hell. People, by rejecting truth and placing their focus on themselves or false ideas, choose eternity away from God. I believe in a merciful and just God, not one who hangs men above flames by a thread. As for LeAnne and Haley's comments, I believe in an idea called the "discerning age". In the Bible it talks about a point in a person's life when they can either accept or deny the truth of Jesus' death and resurrection. This point is at a different stage in every person's life. In fact, some people never reach this age, like babies who die soon after birth, or native people who live on an island and are never given the opportunity to hear the truth. When people die before they reach the discerning age, they are judged on their actions. Thus, the babies who die go to Heaven.
For me, Hell is a place of complete isolation cut off from God. And in the afterlife, God is everything to you, or he is nothing. So, Hell is a place where people are cut off from absolutely everything, for eternity. A fate that I believe God wants no one to suffer through.
I agree with most of the other perceptions of hell coming from a Christian background. Hell is complete separation and isolation from God. There is unwanted suffering and agony, where people have no hope. That would be the worst part of hell - no hope. Also, I agree God does not punish people to hell.
When i think of Hell, i usually associate the pop-culture view- lots of things burning, fire and brimstone, Satan, terrible people etc. which to an extent can be credited to my Christian upbringing as well as my exposure to pop culture and the media.
However, if i view hell as a place of eternal suffering for wrong doings in a previous life, then i can agree with kurt on a few things. For me it would not focus on the physical aspect of "flames and lakes of fire" but would be more psychological and parts of it not even tangible. For me, hell would be someplace where I am deprived of the things that mean most to me, my friends, my family, happiness etc. Not having those things, or being forced to watch something like my friends and family being tortured or hurt, is much more of a Hell than burning and eternal physical pain.
I must agree with Matt's thought out comments. The devil is truly Lucifer, and he was created in the same image as the rest of us. I imagine Hell to be a place of darkness, solemnity, isolations, loneliness, destruction, hatred, confusion, and lies. I think Hell will contains a lot of people, yet all of these people are alone and they rarely if ever interact with others in a positive way. Also, I think Hell is a place of suffering. I picture Hell as a place where individuals continually and uncontrollably recall torturous and destructive events. I believe that in Hell, these people continually play a terribly scary movie over and over in their heads. I also believe that Hell is an eternal place of residence for those who must suffer the consequences of their wrong doings. I think that they are continually tortured by their past, their present, and by each other. Though I do not believe that they experience karma for their sins, I do think they experience the guilty feeling for commiting their sins, and they feel it over and over and over.
Though I do not agree with Hollywood's stereotypical representation of Hell being a place of fire, and horned devils, I do believe that my pictured image of Hell is that bad, or perhaps even worse. I believe that eternal damnation and suffering is the worst possible sentencing one can have.
Whenever Hell is mentioned the classic fiery pit image is the first I think of. That is not what I believe that is just the way it has been portrayed in almost every movie or picture ever made, the classic horned devil with his pitchfork standing over a scene of pain. After more thought I agree with Matt, and most of the blogs, that the devil is not some hideous beast with horns, a forked tongue, and dresses in red everywhere he goes. Hollywood uses this appearance for him so that he is recognized as evil. Much the same way the appearance of Hell is different than what Hollywood portrays. The fire and brimstone that is usually thought of is used to show the evil, the separation from God that can't be seen. Hell is a place of eternal suffering both physically and emotionally without any hope to escape. The fiery landscape doesn't seem too bad when compared to an eternity of separation from God.
i truly think we go somewhere when we die. whether its heaven or hell or whatever you may want to call it, its believed all over the world that there is somewhere else other than this world. I also believe that we are watched by what we do with the time given to us. But i dont believe in enternal damnation. Where we are tortured by the mistakes we have made here, i believe that we all change over time and have the power to see the wrongs of our ways. IF... god did create us, then he obviously gave us a purpose to be here, and maybe it is to see that when we die, the mistakes of our ways. rather than have our mistakes haunt us for eternity
I see hell as a place unknown. A place that no one of us has ever been to, there for saying people are dambed to hell for an act or not believing in the same faith as one another is hurtful.
I am Jewish and my rabbis (teacher in hebrew) has always taught me that jewdism is all about beliefs, because that is all that religion of any sorts is. The BELIEF that there is god. A personal disision.
I cannot grasp the consept of hell because I have been taught to learn things slowly so that full understanding is the outcome, so a consept that is so far away i have not graspt, but yet a little.
When I was a child my step sister and her husband told me I was going to hell and so was my mother because we did not belief in jesus. they were terified and i was hurt. Later that week I went to my temple for shabbat and I told my rabbi what was said to me by my own family. He told my many things which I remember in peices. but what i took from it is that it is all belief. If I belive I am going to heaven then I will, and that to treat this world that we are in now as though it is heaven, because it is all belief... unknown.
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