Some questions about heaven and hell (for any believer)

[Tonus]

Thanks for your answer Tonus, some things JW's think are fascinating - Do you think believing you cease to exist if you don't earn the ticket to paradise is considered more frightening/effective to persuade believers than eternal torture?

It seems intuitive that it would be less persuasive, but I am not sure. I think that psychologically, we are more motivated to move towards the things we desire (heaven/paradise) than away from things we fear (eternal torment). We chase rewards, but we try to escape punishment. I also think that we really have no concept of eternity, so the idea of endless torment may simply not resonate. So the idea of hell may be less persuasive than it might seem at first glance.

I think that the idea of death being final is both comforting and makes a bit more sense. Imagine that god is a generally nice guy. He creates us all and gives us a world to live in, then offers a choice: praise him obsessively and get to live longer and longer, or ignore him and the ride ends at some point. That seems more sensible than having the second option be "I will cause you indescribable pain and suffering forever and ever" based on a life that last 60-80 years. Even the Genesis tale seems to push this idea: when god kicks Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden, they no longer have access to the Tree of Life, from which they got their immortality. God threatens death, but doesn't actually strike them down, he just shortens the length of their contract. Nor is there anything to imply that they would suffer eternal torment upon death; they simply became 'ashes' and 'dust' once again.

So I think it could be more effective by making god seem more reasonable and less malicious and vindictive. It lets you focus on the reward instead of the punishment.