emilynghiem
Constitutionalist / Universalist
I don't know.
I'm sure the Christians will tell me I don't know what I am talking about (go figure), but from what I can tell, Hell is mostly an invention of Christianity.
Early Judaism had no concept of Hell, and eventually developed the concept of Gehenna, which is close to what we Gentiles would be familiar with as Purgatory. Rabbinic thought sees this Purgatory as a waiting place for all souls, wicked or not, and is never permanent. In any case, it was the abode of the dead and not a place of torment for the wicked.
The Christian concept of Hell, from what I have researched, was derived from the concepts of Hades, Gehenna, and Sheol, from Judaism, and then took on a far more sinister role of being a fire and brimstone place of eternal torment and excommunication from God.
If Christianity arose from Judaism, this brings several questions to bear. Was it once a temporary waiting place as the Hebrews understood it, and then became a place of torment when Jesus came? Did the Christians conceptually create Hell out of Gehenna as a means of generating fear? Does Hell exist at all?
I have also seen claims from Christians that "Hell" appears in the OT. In the King James version of the Bible, indeed it does. But I have also understood that this was how they translated "Sheol," and the concept of Sheol by the Hebrews is a complex one, but tends toward the view that it is a place of temporary atonement.
I am neither a Jew nor a Christian, but if I had the choice between them, I would embrace Judaism if they would have me. I much prefer Gehenna to Hell.
Dear JJ: I believe the concepts of heaven and hell are fairly universal and appear in one form or another across religions and cultures. The common factor is that wise and just actions lead to spiritual satisfaction and peace, whereas selfish and imbalanced actions cause suffering. So however you want to depict these two realms or realities of existence, that varies from system to system. As Shakespeare said it, that nothing is either good or bad but our thinking makes it so. Much of our heavenly peace or hellish suffering depends on what we focus and attract. In Christian terms, "divine forgiveness in Christ" breaks the cycle and makes the difference if we die in our human state of suffering or sin; or if we are reborn into the Kingdom of God where we transcend these material cycles and find peace.
You don't have to use the concepts of heaven and hell to teach this; you can even use the secular concepts of the human conscience seeking security, happiness and peace, and wanting to avoid pain fear and suffering. And you would be teaching the same things.