(May 10, 2011 at 1:59 pm)coffeeveritas Wrote:I've read the "Great Divorce", it' really the only book I've read by C.S. Lewis. As I recall it portrayed the separation as permanent.(May 9, 2011 at 1:58 am)Hunted By A Freak Wrote: Can you give me a brief synopsis of Rob Bell's perspective on Hell, I have a difficult time seeing myself agreeing with Rob Bell on most doctrinal issues.
Yes, that seems to be a pretty common sentiment. Anyway, Rob Bell mixes C.S. Lewis concept of heaven and hell in the book "The Great Divorce" with Dallas Willard's realized eschatology/ kingdom theology and N.T. Wright's concept of "life after life after death." If you read "The Great Divorce" "The Divine Conspiracy" and "Surprised by Hope" you'll pretty much get the whole of his new book. They are all great books, it's a great combo.
Quote:The controversial part: he does add one additional caveat, Rob Bell seems to say that Hell is not forever. He translates the phrase traditionally rendered "eternal punishment" as "age of correction." I read the phrase in context in the UBS Greek New Testament and his rendering does actually check out. So in his view the purpose of Hell (keeping in mind the word "hell" isn't actually in the Bible anywhere) is also loving. The purpose of hell is to make people face all their own anger/unkindness/ignorance and learn to be the kind of people that can be happy and fulfilled in the world-made-right (this present earth, fixed). I'm trying to be fair to Rob Bell here, I haven't had time to fully analyze his argument so I'm not sure where I stand on it. On the surface it is a rather appealing and exegetically sound narrative of eschatology.Rob Bell's perspective really seems to place him in the universal camp, possibly a quaker of some sort. A good place to answer this question would be the Old Testament, which also speaks of hell/hades, referred to of course as Sheol. And it basically says that its eternal:
Job, "When a cloud vanishes, it is gone, So he who goes down to Sheol does not come up."
Proverbs, "Sheol, and the barren womb, Earth that is never satisfied with water, And fire that never says, "Enough."
Ecclesiastes, "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going."
Isaiah, "For Sheol cannot thank You, Death cannot praise You; Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness."
For it to be true in the New Testament, it must first be true in the Old Testament. God the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Thanks for the breaking that down. I didn't think I had much in common with him. Late
And if a double decker bus crashes into to us, to die by your side is such a heavenly way to die...there's a Light and it never goes out.
