believing that Jesus Christ is their Savior.
That's not going to happen though, is it?
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believing that Jesus Christ is their Savior.
Mainstream Christianity has always taught that those who die outside the grace of God will be condemned to an eternity of conscious punishment in Hell. Five minutes of research would tell you that.Christian, do you suppose there is a hell?
Catholicism teaches that an act of perfect contrition suffices to be forgiven of all sin, but the flipside is that the deeper into sin you fall the less capable of contrition you become. In practice a serial killer would be exceptionally unlikely to repent and would therefore almost certainly end up in Hell.According to some Christians if the Ripper accepted Jesus as lord and savior he would end up in heaven. It's the same loophole as Hitler ending up in heaven for the same repentance.
Atheism as a sect of Protestantism is once again validated.As an atheist do I think any of this literal heaven/hell dogma is true? Hell no. It is absurd and self-serving. Christians always claim to be heaven-bound, and hell is reserved for anyone they don't like. Forget the destination of souls being God's judgment, Christians think they can make this decision for God, as if they are God themselves.
I'm being pedantic but there are only four cardinal virtues. The seven virtues are the capital virtues.To my mind heaven/hell makes vastly more sense as metahpors for how we live our lives. If we are kind, charitable, humble, share our resources to the needy, we would live in a heavenly state of mind. If we are greedy, selfish, mean, cruel, and uncharitable, then we live in a hellish state of mind. This is why there are the seven cardinal virtues and the seven deadly sins. Live by virtue, and you are heavenly. Live by vice and you are hellish.
“The wages of Sin is death.”Christian, do you suppose there is a hell?
Does hell exist? | GotQuestions.org
I see that the belief in hell isn’t that popular online as it is amongst the Christians I know in real life.
Sins are not equal.
There's no such a thing as all sins are equal in the afterlife.
And there are no sinless people. Even saints sinned.
Christian, do you suppose there is a hell?
Does hell exist? | GotQuestions.org
I see that the belief in hell isn’t that popular online as it is amongst the Christians I know in real life.
The confusion seems to be what exactly gets a believer inside the "grace of God". Obviously the Lutherans and Catholics of the Third Reich were not concerned with their acts against the Jewish populations of Europe. Most Christians would consider genocide to likley fall OUTSIDE of the grace of God. Christians have been very good at believing whatever they want, and justifying it in whatever way serves their earthly purposes.Mainstream Christianity has always taught that those who die outside the grace of God will be condemned to an eternity of conscious punishment in Hell. Five minutes of research would tell you that.
We have to wonder how often this perfect contrition happens. I would guess it is rare. Hell would seem more appropriate for extreme criminals, not your kid brother who is a good guy but isn't convinced that Christian doctrine is true.Catholicism teaches that an act of perfect contrition suffices to be forgiven of all sin, but the flipside is that the deeper into sin you fall the less capable of contrition you become. In practice a serial killer would be exceptionally unlikely to repent and would therefore almost certainly end up in Hell.
This makes no sense.Atheism as a sect of Protestantism is once again validated.
That's Christianity for you, it is a religion of "anything goes". Whatever kind of person you are you can find a form of Christianity that fits you. If you are liberal and tolerant of gays, there are Universalist churches. If you are moderate there's a church like Methodists, and even Catholicism if you want the pagentry and ritual. And if you are right wing there's the Baptist and evangelical churches. Even if you are racist there's the KKK, which claims to be a Christian organization. There is no narrow truth in Christianity, it is a broad set of options that anyone can pick. One thing Christianity has done well is market the idea of hell to scare followers into submission and alliance. But as I noted, there is no set moral norms for Christians to follow, so it is "anything goes" including genocide and terrorizing minorities.Non-Protestant Christianity rejects the notion that any given person can be totally assured of their salvation while still alive on Earth. To be assured of salvation you have to die in a state of grace. Far from self serving its actually quite scary to contemplate the possibility that one might end up in Hell.
That's interesting. That would be a good thread to start, discussing the various virtues and vices.I'm being pedantic but there are only four cardinal virtues. The seven virtues are the capital virtues.
Nope, not in most cases, although it does happen in some cases.That's not going to happen though, is it?
Jack the Ripper will not go to any heaven. He will just go to a really bad purgatory and then be reborn back on Earth - this cycle will continue until he corrects his ways. But there is no eternal hell.Well...thinking that Jack the Ripper deserves Heaven as reward for his trophies...well..
is a bit twisted...isn't it?
Some Chriatians believe that atheists have the same chances to get to Heaven, but only if these atheists do what these Christians 'believe' they are supposed to do to get there.
I meant you don't need to believe in God to get to Heaven
You don't? I knew something good would happen today! <sings and dances around> I'm going to heaven, hooray hooray hooray!
Not sure it's something i would rejoice about.
For one think it would be full of smug pious people saying "i told you so"
As you know, I also disagree with the Christian doctrine of heaven and hell.You are aware of my personal beliefs about the afterlife, which is why I disregard the Christian doctrine of heaven and hell. Based on my experiences and knowledge of the afterlife, I believe that the spirit world will be very different from what a lot of Christians believe and expect it to be.
As you know, I also disagree with the Christian doctrine of heaven and hell.
There is a really funny story a Baha'i once told me about the Christian expectations of heaven. If you want I can post it.
You're happy about going to Heaven? Why ?You don't? I knew something good would happen today! <sings and dances around> I'm going to heaven, hooray hooray hooray!
Not sure it's something i would rejoice about.
For one think it would be full of smug pious people saying "i told you so"
It isn't whether "hell exists or not" that is the issue. Non-Christian usually makes it a big issue.Christian, do you suppose there is a hell?
Does hell exist? | GotQuestions.org
I see that the belief in hell isn’t that popular online as it is amongst the Christians I know in real life.