by leavingwt 18 Replies latest jw friends
Long before the WT came to be, ther were discussions and debates in regards to the nature and existence of Hell.
That USA Today decided to run an arfticle on it, considering the issues facing the US right now in terms of the infulence of fundamentalists, is not that surprising.
Not all that surprised.
So WT got that right. Big whoop.
Hell can adversely affect someone psychologicaly. I was observing a discussion on beliefnet a while ago with a Witness, and he told the board that his grandmother ended up going crazy (psych ward and everything) over her strong belief in hell. I forget what denomination.
This is a great line of reasoning. It's one I would constantly use in FS.
(Reality check: A trillion years is a mere droplet in the ocean of eternity.)
I've heard JWs and ex-JWs say that the 'no literal Hell' doctrine was one that attractd them to Watchtower. Have JWs lost one of their selling points?
There are many notions of "hell", even in Judaism.
That the JW's CHOOSE not to view their interpretation of "hell" (cast into the lake of fire at the end of days) as a "typical" one or that it referres to "hell' is, their bias.
Since they've lost Hell, they can talk more about their Arianism.
LOL !
Well, the trinity is always an easy target !
Aunt Bee:
Here is the summary of Eternal Torment: Image & Reality as requested:
BTW, Edward Fudge reviewed and commended my manuscript a while back. (name dropping am I now ;)
As to publishing intentions, considering the excellent material out there already, I'm not sure that there is a need.
PART I: SIFTING THROUGH DUST AND ASHES
STUDY PARAMETERS PART I:
SIFTING FOR ETERNAL TORMENT IN:
a. Sheol
b. Hades
c. Gehenna
QUESTION BEING ADDRESSED IN PART I:
Do we find eternal torment in the "hell" of scripture?
I. REVIEW SUMMARY OF OUR FINDINGS IN PART I:
QUESTION ADDRESSED: Do we find eternal torment 'inside' the
"hell" of scripture?
IN PART I OF OUR STUDY WE PROBED FOR ETERNAL TORMENT BY SIFTING THROUGH THE DUST AND ASHES OF:
a. Sheol (Old Testament)
- But we didn't find any hard evidence for conscious
torment in any of the 65 Sheol passages.
b. Hades (New Testament)
- We examined all 11 "Hades" passages, 10 of which gave
no support for the idea of torment of any duration.
Although we found one dramatic passage of scripture
that spoke very clearly of extreme pain and anguish,
no clarification was made of the duration of that
pain. In addition there was powerful evidence within
the text itself that suggested the entire account did
not represent historical narration.
c. Gehenna (New Testament)
- We looked at all 12 passages that used the term
Gehenna. Although we didn't find any synonyms for
pain or torment in any of the passages, we did find
some rather perplexing imagery including;
Everlasting Fire, Gehenna Fire, Unquenchable Fire
and Undying Worms. However, all of these images,
if interpreted in the light of other scriptural passages,
can be readily explained without reference to ongoing
suffering of any kind.
PART II: SIFTING THROUGH FIRE AND FLAME
STUDY PARAMETERS PART II:
SIFTING FOR ETERNAL TORMENT IN THE ESCHATOLOGY OF:
d. The Old Testament
e. The Gospels
f. Acts and the Epistles
g. Revelation
QUESTION BEING ADDRESSED IN PART II:
- Do we find everlasting conscious punishment outside
the "hell" of scripture?
REVIEW SUMMARY OF OUR FINDINGS IN PART II:
IN PART II OF OUR STUDY WE PROBED FOR ETERNAL TORMENT BY SIFTING THROUGH THE FIRE AND FLAME OF:
d. Old Testament Eschatology
The predominant punishment imagery of the Old Testament
is unquestionably that of destruction. Endless torment of
immortal souls is simply not found in the Hebrew scriptures.
e. The Gospels
We found considerable "weeping and gnashing" imagery
in the exclusion parables of the gospel, which would
be expected of the condemned as they are faced with
rejection at Christ's coming. However, the duration
of that weeping and gnashing is consistently absent.
Matthew 25, the parable of the sheep and the goats,
speaks of eternal punishment and eternal fire. However
this language, by itself, does not designate the nature
of that punishment. In order to prove eternal torment
from this passage it would first be necessary to smuggle
the word "conscious" into the text.
f. Acts and the Epistles
Destruction, rather than torment imagery, is rampant
in the Epistles. Certainly, as would be expected,
God's wrath will not spare the wicked vexation and
distress on the day of judgment, but again, endless
duration of such distress is simply not found.
g. Revelation
There is one explicit reference to eternal torment in
Revelation 20:10 which is applied to the unholy trinity
of devil, beast and false prophet. However, the literal
nature of this torment becomes suspect as we consider
the verse itself, the surrounding scriptures, as well
as similar judgment imagery in the Old Testament.
Not to sidetrack this thread but Hell will be be an informed aspect of the current GOP presidential race with 4 candidates believing it is a literal burning place for opposers. Think about what really goes on in the mind behind those photo shoots.
designs: That is actually quite amazing when one think about it..
