The concept of Hell discourages belief

[Gabriel Syme]

If ultimately, the life we choose differs from that which The Bible outlines as the standard, and obviously there are millions of different interpretations of what that standard is, then God (Heavenly Father ) invokes his punishment to his children...

This punishment is described as unimaginable torture. It says "You will pray for death but death will not find you", this is an eternal and definite punishment from which there will not be a chance for salvation or rescue. God will cast you away land turn his back to you because to HIM you have already done so to him

My questions are many with comprehending these concepts..

Hi Texas Sailor,

From my Mainstream Christian (Catholic) view, your starting point is flawed.

I agree there are many different views as to how a Christian should regard the Bible and its contents, but these are not all equivalent views. These essentially boil down to:

1) The Mainstream and original view (Catholic and Orthodox Christians - these together are about 75% of all Christians)

and

2) The Protestant views (the many thousands of people who thought they knew better, giving rise to tens of thousands of different denominations, together accounting for approx. 25% of Christians).

Really an observer should confront the Mainstream Christian view ,to ensure the most worthwhile and accurate analysis. What you describe (in bold) above is not a Mainstream Christian view.

Catholics do not understand "hell" as being a terribly hot place, inhabited by devils (!) where people suffer forever. We regard "hell" as being the condition of eternal separation from God.

Naturally, if "Heaven" is the condition of being with God*, then "Hell" is the opposite. As Christians often refer to Heaven as "eternal life", then perhaps a better way to understand the Mainstream Christian view of Hell is to think of it as "eternal death".

(I make sense of this personally by thinking that, rather than go to some hideous (and pointless) fire-pit somewhere, perhaps some people do just die at the end of their mortal life. Just cease to exist. Whereas others return to God, like a raindrop returning to the Ocean, having followed the streams and rivers of life).

As regards God "turning his back on" people, Mainstream Christian understanding is that:

- God never turns his back on anyone
- God desires all people "to be saved" (to go to Heaven)
- God predestines no-one to go to Hell
- People ultimately damn themselves to Hell, by wilfully turning away from God and persisting in this stance

In summary form, from the Catholic Catechism:

(4 number digits are paragraph numbers)

1056 Following the example of Christ, the Church warns the faithful of the "sad and lamentable reality of eternal death" (GCD 69), also called "hell."

1057 Hell's principal punishment consists of eternal separation from God in whom alone man can have the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.

1058 The Church prays that no one should be lost: "Lord, let me never be parted from you." If it is true that no one can save himself, it is also true that God "desires all men to be saved" (1 Tim 2:4), and that for him "all things are possible" (Mt 19:26).

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/ar...123a12.htm