Hell Houses

[poseur]

What is your opinion of them? Have you ever attended one personally?

For those of you who don't know what a Hell House is, it is a kind of haunted house exhibit that churches create around Halloween. They tend to depict sinners dying and then being drug to hell. They tend to depict controversial issues like abortion, homosexuality and AIDS, suicide, drug use, gang violence, Wiccan baby sacrafices, etc.

Some of the tackier houses will depict a woman getting a gory late term abortion. The doctors are pulling out chunks of raw meat that are meant to be pieces of baby while the woman cries and the nurses tell her to shut up. Demons dance on the coffins of gay AIds patients (or dying patients stating that they hate god), and Wiccan covens killing babies.

I consider such events to be disgusting scare tactics. I have watched them on youtube but haven't had the opportunity to see one in person.

 

[AuroraWillow]

If it involves slandering other religions and misrepresenting their practices and other things just to scare children and misinform them....I think it's disgusting.

 

[Man of Faith]

Whatever gets people saved as long as it doesn't break the law or Christian values is fine with me.

 

[AuroraWillow]

Whatever gets people saved as long as it doesn't break the law or Christian values is fine with me.

So, it's ok to lie to children to convert them?

 

[Atomist]

So, it's ok to lie to children to convert them?

no... thou shalt not lie. It's one of the commandments.

 

[Man of Faith]

So, it's ok to lie to children to convert them?

That would break a Christian value, but we don't have to lie to children, the truth is scary enough.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

I think they're friggin' hilarious. Anybody dumb enough to be scared by them is hopeless anyway.

 

[AuroraWillow]

That would break a Christian value, but we don't have to lie to children, the truth is scary enough.

And, what exactly is the truth that's so scary that it can be made into a haunted house?

 

[Man of Faith]

And, what exactly is the truth that's so scary that it can be made into a haunted house?

Well the OP is referring to hell houses, not haunted houses. The Biblical is clear what happens when we die and I accept that to be the truth. From what I have read, those hell houses have warnings about young children and caution parents to decide whether or not to take them inside.

 

[Willamena]

What is your opinion of them?

Doesn't sound like nearly as much fun as people are supposed to have at Hallowe'en.

 

[AuroraWillow]

Well the OP is referring to hell houses, not haunted houses. The Biblical is clear what happens when we die and I accept that to be the truth. From what I have read, those hell houses have warnings about young children and caution parents to decide whether or not to take them inside.

You're dodging my question.

Most of them don't just show depictions of what modern Christians understand hell to be, they include things like, as the OP said, full term abortions, and Pagans eating/sacrificing babies

You can send Children into a room and show them images of fire and torture all you like - I think it's wrong to scare children into believing (for many reasons I won't go into here), but lying, which is what usually happens in these "hell houses" is unacceptable to me.

 

[AuroraWillow]

Doesn't sound like nearly as much fun as people are supposed to have at Hallowe'en.

Agreed. At least the Pagans really know how to party for the holiday, yeah?

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Too much ignorance, not enough candy.

 

[MW0082]

I would be very interested in seeing one, if not for anything more than to laugh at the inconsiderate liars....

 

[Smoke]

Most of them don't just show depictions of what modern Christians understand hell to be, they include things like, as the OP said, full term abortions, and Pagans eating/sacrificing babies

You can send Children into a room and show them images of fire and torture all you like - I think it's wrong to scare children into believing (for many reasons I won't go into here), but lying, which is what usually happens in these "hell houses" is unacceptable to me.

Hell Houses are not parodies or misrepresentations of Christianity by non-Christians. They're run by Christians. Admittedly not the best sort of Christians.

Personally, I have no respect for any church whose members think scaring the **** out of children is a godly act.

 

[AuroraWillow]

Hell Houses are not parodies or misrepresentations of Christianity by non-Christians. They're run by Christians. Admittedly not the best sort of Christians.

Personally, I have no respect for any church whose members think scaring the **** out of children is a godly act.

I'm not saying they're misrepresentations of Christianity. The Gods know that modern evangelical Christianity is worthy of this kind of thing.

What I'm saying is that they misrepresent or blatantly lie about other religions and people in general.

 

[Smoke]

What I'm saying is that they misrepresent or blatantly lie about other religions and people in general.

Oh, I see. I didn't really get that, since that's pretty much what they do in every other situation, too.

 

[Wandered Off]

It's no small irony when a belief system purporting to be fundamentally based around love and forgiveness considers threats to be a form of evangelical outreach.

 

[Man of Faith]

It's no small irony when a belief system purporting to be fundamentally based around love and forgiveness considers threats to be a form of evangelical outreach.

You can't have forgiveness without there being something to be forgiven for. If you aren't lost you can't be found.

 

[Willamena]

You can't have forgiveness without there being something to be forgiven for. If you aren't lost you can't be found.

Inventing things to be 'lost for' delves into the realm of the frightening.