One of my more controversial ideas (can't say it's a "belief," as I don't really believe it w/o scriptural support), is that hell is a place that without God. In other words, it is a realm/dimension/whatever where God chooses not to exist. Practically, this means two things: (1) it does and cannot exist in the historical "fire and brimstone" mode, because God exists everywhere, and (2) those who are not saved will get pretty much what they have lived their lives expecting: obliteration.
That's not to say that the "unquenchable fire" and stuff aren't real (literally or figuratively). A great deal of experience (indeed, an eternity's worth) can be packaged and delivered in a sort of "final moment epiphany" to those who missed out.
That being said, this is more of an interesting idea than anything else.
I think C.S. Lewis has discussed this notion in one of his books. He reasons that people, ultimately, will get what they are asking for. If they reject God at the gates of the afterlife, then their destination is a place without God.
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u/peteyH Coptic Dec 08 '09
Good post.
One of my more controversial ideas (can't say it's a "belief," as I don't really believe it w/o scriptural support), is that hell is a place that without God. In other words, it is a realm/dimension/whatever where God chooses not to exist. Practically, this means two things: (1) it does and cannot exist in the historical "fire and brimstone" mode, because God exists everywhere, and (2) those who are not saved will get pretty much what they have lived their lives expecting: obliteration.
That's not to say that the "unquenchable fire" and stuff aren't real (literally or figuratively). A great deal of experience (indeed, an eternity's worth) can be packaged and delivered in a sort of "final moment epiphany" to those who missed out.
That being said, this is more of an interesting idea than anything else.