On Hell and Forgiveness

[Catholic_Lady]

For those claiming that theistic beliefs mean a person is delusional, I assume you realize that 17% of people world wide are non religious. Do you really think 83% of the earth's population have delusional disorder? (plus whatever percentage would come from the non religious group). That is an astounding number of people with a pretty serious mental disorder. Maybe we are wrong for having a religion, and you are right for not. But to claim we are all mentally ill, all 83% of us, is unreasonable and illogical.

Yeah CL... the word delusion is connotatively linked to mental disorder, but check the definition...

de·lu·sion
dəˈlo͞oZHən/
noun

1. an idiosyncratic belief or impression that is firmly maintained despite being contradicted by what is generally accepted as reality or rational argument, typically a symptom of mental disorder.
   "the delusion of being watched"
   synonyms:
   misapprehension, misconception, misunderstanding, mistake, error, misinterpretation, misconstruction, misbelief; 
   fallacy, illusion, fantasy
   
   

misconception... misunderstanding... mistake... all synonyms. When separated from its typical association with mental disorder, one can see why an atheist would consider theism "delusional."

https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictio.../Delusions

Delusions
Definition
A delusion is an unshakable belief in something untrue. These irrational beliefs defy normal reasoning, and remain firm even when overwhelming proof is presented to dispute them. Delusions are often accompanied by hallucinations and/or feelings of paranoia, which act to strengthen confidence in the delusion. Delusions are distinct from culturally or religiously based beliefs that may be seen as untrue by outsiders.

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@ CL
Ok I'm trying here. Every answer I come up with feels dishonest. That's a long question, with a lot of parts, a lot of assumptions, and a lot of definitions hanging me up. You seem to be working with definitions of words like God, perfect, and love that I'll having a hard time moving past. I've been agonizing over how to answer for like half an hour, so please understand I'm doing my best.

If we were in a room face to face with a nice dinner followed by some good wine this could be a long conversation.

So instead of arguing over what words mean, the best honest answer I can give you is only if I rewrite the question a little so I can stop getting hung up.

Would I accept love from any being if I believed it was truly felt and honestly freely given? Yes.

Would I accept it if I sensed it was not really love, and not freely given? No. Been there done that.

Would I be able to accept that any being in the universe IS love? No. Love isn't a thing it's a concept (or group of concepts).


I hope you find this satisfactory. I really did try to give the best honest answers I could.

Thank you Aurora.