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Question Title	Posted By	Question Date
Hell	Jonathan	Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Question: To expect that one will live forever after death is a harmless, comforting indulgence. The Hebrews picked it up from the Zoroastrians, and the Western world has never looked back. To expect that one will be exalted and glorified is more presumptuous, but as ego-gratifying fantasies go, it’s innocuous. To fantasize that God will give you perpetual virgins to have sex with for all time might be childish, but it’s hardly mean-spirited. To imagine, on the other hand, that those that one disagrees with will suffer unspeakable torments forever at the hands of a merciful, just God, well, that’s just sick. To believe such a thing is to hope that it’s true. Any evidence is ambiguous enough to permit a variety of beliefs, so it is the believer’s preference that makes the difference. To believe in such an afterlife is to indulge one’s own viciousness and to magnify it. Considering such an enormity to be right and proper should disqualify one from the company of right-minded souls.
Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM Dear Jonathan: I feel saddened that someone like yourself is so intellectually impoverished that you deny what God has given you inherently in your soul -- a fundamental knowledge of Him. I am also saddened that your intellectual prowess is so lacking as to buy into the false histories that those who fear to believe in God tend to accept -- such as the belief in life after death was picked up by the Hebrews by the Zoroastrians. No, dear. The Hebrews picked that up from God. In fact, the Zoroastrians picked that up from God. I agree that the Muslim concept of perpetual virgins waiting to certain martyrs in heaven is nonsense, but then that did not come from God, that came from a perverse man who invented his own rather violent and harsh religion. As for the torments of hell, my dear Jonathan, God does not mete them out. The torments of hell are self-inflicted and result in the self-choice of rejecting God's grace. God does not force anyone to accept Him. If one chooses to deny Him, God allows that because love does not force. You have the choice and you must live with your choice. That is called accepting responsibility for your actions and choices. If one chooses not to be friends with God, then they may have their wish. The images of fire and brimstone are literary images that illustrate how terrible it would be to live without God. Perhaps you do not think living without God is that terrible now. But in the afterlife you will have perfect knowledge of the Truth and knowing that Truth, being without God will be terrible indeed. But, it is your choice. There is no viciousness in God. God is love. God loves us so much that He gave us free will. If that were not true you would not be able to have this silly opinion that you have. God gives you the choice. A right-minded soul is a person who recognizes his Creator and has the good sense to want to be in friendship with the God who is Creator and Father of us all. It is a presumptuous, ego-gratifying, intellectually impoverished, unreasoned fool who says there is no God and thinks that eternity is either nothing, or thinks that he can live eternally in the childish manner of no responsibility or consequence. We will certainly pray for you in hopes that you will come to your senses, mortify you ego, begin to think for a change, and come to acknowledge the God who loves you. God Bless, Bro. Ignatius Mary Footer Notes: This forum is for general questions on the faith. See specific Topic Forums below: Spiritual Warfare, demons, the occult go to our Spiritul Warfare Q&S Forum. Liturgy Questions go to our Liturgy and Liturgical Law Q&A Forum Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office) Questions go to our Divine Office Q&A Forum Defenfing the Faith Questions go to our Defending the Faith Q&A Forum Church History Questions go to our Church History Q&A Forum

Question Title

Posted By

Question Date

Hell

Jonathan

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Question:

To expect that one will live forever after death is a harmless, comforting indulgence. The Hebrews picked it up from the Zoroastrians, and the Western world has never looked back. To expect that one will be exalted and glorified is more presumptuous, but as ego-gratifying fantasies go, it’s innocuous. To fantasize that God will give you perpetual virgins to have sex with for all time might be childish, but it’s hardly mean-spirited.

To imagine, on the other hand, that those that one disagrees with will suffer unspeakable torments forever at the hands of a merciful, just God, well, that’s just sick. To believe such a thing is to hope that it’s true. Any evidence is ambiguous enough to permit a variety of beliefs, so it is the believer’s preference that makes the difference. To believe in such an afterlife is to indulge one’s own viciousness and to magnify it. Considering such an enormity to be right and proper should disqualify one from the company of right-minded souls.

Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM

Dear Jonathan:

I feel saddened that someone like yourself is so intellectually impoverished that you deny what God has given you inherently in your soul -- a fundamental knowledge of Him.

I am also saddened that your intellectual prowess is so lacking as to buy into the false histories that those who fear to believe in God tend to accept -- such as the belief in life after death was picked up by the Hebrews by the Zoroastrians. No, dear. The Hebrews picked that up from God. In fact, the Zoroastrians picked that up from God.

I agree that the Muslim concept of perpetual virgins waiting to certain martyrs in heaven is nonsense, but then that did not come from God, that came from a perverse man who invented his own rather violent and harsh religion.

As for the torments of hell, my dear Jonathan, God does not mete them out. The torments of hell are self-inflicted and result in the self-choice of rejecting God's grace. God does not force anyone to accept Him. If one chooses to deny Him, God allows that because love does not force. You have the choice and you must live with your choice. That is called accepting responsibility for your actions and choices. If one chooses not to be friends with God, then they may have their wish.

The images of fire and brimstone are literary images that illustrate how terrible it would be to live without God. Perhaps you do not think living without God is that terrible now. But in the afterlife you will have perfect knowledge of the Truth and knowing that Truth, being without God will be terrible indeed. But, it is your choice.

There is no viciousness in God. God is love. God loves us so much that He gave us free will. If that were not true you would not be able to have this silly opinion that you have. God gives you the choice.

A right-minded soul is a person who recognizes his Creator and has the good sense to want to be in friendship with the God who is Creator and Father of us all.

It is a presumptuous, ego-gratifying, intellectually impoverished, unreasoned fool who says there is no God and thinks that eternity is either nothing, or thinks that he can live eternally in the childish manner of no responsibility or consequence.

We will certainly pray for you in hopes that you will come to your senses, mortify you ego, begin to think for a change, and come to acknowledge the God who loves you.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

Footer Notes: This forum is for general questions on the faith. See specific Topic Forums below:
Spiritual Warfare, demons, the occult go to our Spiritul Warfare Q&S Forum.
Liturgy Questions go to our Liturgy and Liturgical Law Q&A Forum
Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office) Questions go to our Divine Office Q&A Forum
Defenfing the Faith Questions go to our Defending the Faith Q&A Forum
Church History Questions go to our Church History Q&A Forum