Chapter Thirteen
Hell
Who Knew a Garbage Dump Outside of Jerusalem Could Be Made Into Such a Useful Device With Which to Control People?
-Matt Arnold, ex-Christian
The fear of Hell has been a powerful tool used by Christian leaders over the years both to gain converts among unbelievers and as a method to control those already converted. Even the most liberal denominations support the idea that such a place exists and thereby carry the implicit threat. More conservative denominations make Hell a central theme to many of their sermons.
Hell is also a powerful motivator to convert others that you care about to Christianity. One outspoken fundamentalist Christian, Jack Chick, admonishes Christians everywhere to take on the responsibility of witnessing in order to save as many souls as possible. In one of his tracts, he wrote a poem. It’s hypothetically written by a lost soul in Hell to a living Christian friend who never witnessed to her while she was alive. It expresses that witnessing is the only loving thing to do for the unsaved:
“My friend, I stand in judgment now
and feel that you’re to blame somehow.
While on this earth, I walked with you day by day
and never did you point the way.
You knew the Lord in truth and glory
but never did you tell the story.
My knowledge then was very dim.
You could have led me safe to Him…
Yes, I called you friend in life,
and I trusted you in joy and strife,
And yet in coming to this end,I see you really weren’t my friend.” [1]
-Jack Chick, “The Letter”
Given the assumptions that conversion to Christianity is essential to salvation, the message of this poem makes perfect sense. If you believe that Hell is a real place where you really do go if you haven’t converted to Christianity, you’re doing anyone a great favor by converting them. If you leave them to their fate, you’re negligent and partly to blame for their damnation.
Is this a valid assumption, that Hell is a real place? Many people think so. What they may not know is that the source of inspiration for Hell, or at least the Christian concept of it as an eternal burning pit for the condemned, once had a physical location here on earth. It all got started with a garbage dump outside of Jerusalem.
The History of Gehenna (Hell)
The word “Hell” doesn’t appear in the Old Testament, at least not if the book is translated correctly. The King James Version of the Old Testament mistranslates the word “Sheol” to be Hell but actually the word means, “grave”. The ancient Jewish people believed that Sheol represented oblivion rather than a place of eternal torment. This is borne out by many passages in the Old Testament that describe Sheol.
(NRSV) Job 7:9 As the cloud fades and vanishes, so those who go down to Sheol do not come up. [2]
(NRSV) Psalm 6:4-5 Turn, O Lord, save my life; deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love. For in death, there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who can give you praise? [3]
(NRSV) Psalm 88:3-5 For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the Pit; I am like those who have no help, like those forsaken among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. [4]
(NRSV) Psalm 115:17 The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any that go down into silence. [5]
(NRSV) Ecclesiastes 9:5-10 …the dead know nothing; they have no more reward, and even the memory of them is lost. …for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going. [6]
(NRSV) Isaiah 38:16-18 O Lord, by these things people live, and in all these is the life of my spirit. Oh, restore me to health and make me live! Surely it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but you have held back my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back. For Sheol cannot thank you, death cannot praise you; those who go down to the Pit cannot hope for your faithfulness. [7]
Sheol, or alternatively “the pit of destruction”, was simply oblivion, not eternal torment. Hell, or at least the Christian concept of it, didn’t come into being until the New Testament was written. Where did the idea come from?
There is a valley located to the south, southwest of Jerusalem known as, “Gehinnom” or “Valley of the son of Hinnom”. This valley was the site of a cult to a god named, “Moloch” (alternatively “Baal”). Allegedly, children were burned alive in sacrifices to this god in Gehinnom.[8]
Jeremiah wrote of these alleged atrocities in his book of the Bible:
Jeremiah 19:4-6 Because they have forsaken me, and have estranged this place, and have burned incense in it unto other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah, and have filled this place with the blood of innocents; They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind: Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter.
Jeremiah’s prophecy did come true, at least insofar as the valley was stigmatized by what had allegedly been done there. The valley became so infamous in later years that the people of Jerusalem regarded it as defiled by the evils performed there in the past. They turned it into a pit where the city refuse was burned. Condemned criminals, after their execution, had the final dishonor of having their dead bodies tossed into this pit with the rest of the garbage.[9]
When the Gospels were written, they used the Greek name for Gehinnom, “Gehenna”. Those familiar with mythology and the occult will recognize this name as one of the synonyms for Hell.
So to review, this Valley of Gehenna was:
- A burning pit
- Believed to be a place of evil
- Associated with a sadistic god who was an enemy of the Lord
- A place where the wicked dead were tossed in to burn as a punishment for their sins.
Sound familiar?
Thus it came to pass that Hell was born. Human imagination quickly ran wild with the idea of a burning valley in which the souls of the damned would be consigned for all eternity. No doubt, the growing religion of Christianity quickly seized upon it as a means toward control and growth.
Question: Is the Old Testament wrong for using the term “Sheol” instead of Hell? If so, how can it be part of the “Word of God”. If not, then was Hell suddenly created with Jesus? If that’s the case, how does this fit with the Christian concept of humanity’s fall from grace at the Garden of Eden?
Christian Leaders Don’t Deny the Story of Gehenna
Christian leaders don’t deny that Gehenna was very much like their concept of Hell. They can see the source of inspiration and yet Hell is still real to them. Pat Robertson once said this in his teachings about that mythical place:
“Now, what is Hell like? Jesus said it's like Gehenna. Gehenna was the city dump outside of Jerusalem. He said the fire is never quenched and the worm does not die. It was eternal burning, a place of refuse and burning and He used that to describe Hell.” [10]
-Pat Robertson, “Teaching on Hell”
Robertson doesn’t provide scientific evidence or any other rational reason to believe that Hell is real (or at least he didn’t in this particular essay) but rather invokes the fear of the devil against anyone who would dare to question the existence of such a place:
“And the one thing the devil would like to do is to keep us from believing in him, or believing in any kind of punishment because we don't like punishment.” [11]
-Pat Robertson, “Teaching on Hell”
It really was an ingenious invention by this religion. Make Hell as horrifying as possible and you’ll never have to prove it exists. People will be so terrified by the images that they’ll do anything to avoid it even if they think there’s only the most remote possibility that it might really exist. They may not even consider that Hell is most likely not real, so “consumed” they’ll be in the description of it.
Philosopher Pascal summed up the very “logic” at work here:
Pascal’s Wager
Pascal’s Wager is a popular argument among Christians. Quite possibly, it was the most useful tool in their arsenal to gain converts as their religion rose to become such a prominent faith in the world.
The wager is simple and could be stated as follows:
- If the Christian is wrong and the atheist is right, neither have anything to worry about.
- If the Christian is right and the atheist is wrong, only the atheist has something to worry about.
Responses to this argument are legion, for the wager is logically absurd, spiritually vapid and morally bankrupt.
Logical answers to Pascal’s Wager
First, we have the logical fallacy of a false dichotomy: the misperception that there are only two choices.
If it turns out that Islam is the truth, then both the atheist and the Christian will burn in Hell. Even among Christians, there is some debate as to what the correct denomination is. Not all Protestants agree that Catholics can attain salvation (and vice versa). All these religious creeds exclude each other, so you can’t join them all just to “hedge your bet”. You have to pick the right one and there’s no evidence as to which one is correct.
Of course, Christians aren’t afraid of the Muslim Hell. They never even think of the possibility that in the hereafter they will have to face Allah and come to regret their choice to be a Christian. The Muslim Hell isn’t real to the Christian anymore than the Christian Hell is real to the Muslim because neither one has been indoctrinated to believe in the other’s Hell. When the Christians understand why the Muslim hell isn’t real to them, they understand why their hell isn’t real to anyone else.
Second, the Bible is not clear about the proper path to salvation. The contradictions on this point were reviewed in Chapter 6, “The Flip-Flopping Bible”.
Third, the assumption of the wager is that the cost of being a Christian is zero. This is not so. The “free gift” of salvation, as some call it, isn’t free. Atheists, deists and other freethinkers save 10% of their income and don’t have to spend time in church.
Fourth, the odds are not 50/50 as is subtly implied by the wager. This book effectively presents the case that Christianity could not possibly reflect the truth of our universe.
Fifth, which is more likely? Is it more likely that the whole “join or burn in Hell” rule was made by a god that expects everyone to join the right religion on pain of damnation, even though most people are never exposed to the right religion and this same god who demands worship leaves no evidence as to which one that is? Or is it more likely that church leaders made up that rule to increase their flock and therefore their wealth and power base?
Sixth, Pascal’s Wager itself is a logical fallacy, an appeal to fear. A threat is not a reason to believe something.
Spiritual Answers to Pascal’s Wager
First, the wager boils down to “believe in Jesus just to be safe”. This is a hypocritical reason to believe in Jesus. This is not spirituality. This is fear and threats masquerading as spirituality.
Second, it is impossible to believe what you don’t believe, by definition. You can lie to yourself and say you believe it. You can lie to others and convince them. Will your god be fooled?
Third, a threat is not a reason to love someone any more than it’s a reason to believe something. Neither is a bribe. Love can’t be demanded or bought. It can only be given freely, unafraid and without expectation, out of a sincere sense of admiration and respect.
The Moral Answer to Pascal’s Wager
Joining an evil force because it’s strong isn’t moral.
The Parable of “The War of the Worlds”
Some readers may know the story of the first radio broadcast of H.G. Well’s classic work, “War of the Worlds”. Many Americans, tuning into their stations at the wrong time, believed that the Earth was under attack from Martians. The fiction became real in their minds. The result was a tragic case of widespread panic. [12]
Were the radio listeners crazy for acting the way they did? No. The information (however wrong it was) that they acted upon was that the Earth was under attack from Mars. A perfectly rational response under such conditions would be to get your loved ones to the cellar, grab your shotgun and bunker down to keep them safe.
They weren’t crazy. They were simply tragically wrong. They were exposed to a fiction and mistakenly thought it was real. In this way, the Fundamentalist Christian is not hard to understand. Ranting televangelists and radical clerics are a source of endless amusement for those not caught up in the fervor of their faith but they’re not crazy. The way they’re acting is perfectly rational considering the worldview they hold.
Imagine Being a Fundamentalist Christian for a Moment…
It’s not hard to make the shift into the mentality of the Fundamentalist. Just try to imagine for a moment that Hell is a real place where you really go if you aren’t saved. Your immortal soul is in peril. If you make the wrong choice in life, you could pay for it for all eternity. Furthermore it doesn’t stop with just your soul. It is one thing to motivate a man or woman by telling them they’re in danger. It is another thing to believe that everyone you love, your family, your friends and your children are all in danger of eternal torment. If they go astray, they will be lost to the fires of Hell and you will be separated from them for all eternity. Now the stakes go even higher.
In fact, it's hard to imagine the stakes being any higher. Given the human need to protect our children, it's completely understandable why they seek to ban books, legislate morality (or, as they might say, "pass legal safeguards against sin") and regulate what their children are taught in school. Even violence might be understandable. People will act violently to protect their children from danger. What about protecting their children from Hell? If Hell really is real, shouldn't you do everything you can to protect your children from it?
There’s just one important thing that’s wrong about their logic here:
It’s Not Real!
The Fundamentalist Christian’s only mistake is they assume the fiction is real, just as these radio listeners of yesteryear did. Just as the panicked radio listeners who saw Martians around the corner, so to Fundamentalist Christians see Satan and his minions. The Martians disappeared in people’s minds when it turned out they weren’t there in the real world. Satan is more insidious. Since Satan doesn’t exist in the physical world, it’s enough that people believe in him to make him real.
In fact, as long as people believe in Satan and Jesus, they are real for they influence the world and how we live our lives in fear. In truth, they are symbiotic, interwoven concepts. Jesus most likely wouldn’t have nearly the number of followers if Satan weren’t a danger to be saved from. Satan couldn’t exist as a tempter without being the opponent of Jesus. If they were real, one might easily imagine them coordinating their duels as they converse behind the scenes. “Satan, I need you to go out and scare the mortals so they’ll come running to my church.”
There is no greater means of domination than fear. Keep people afraid and they’re easier to herd. Why do you think that sheep are a common metaphor for good Christians while Satan’s visage is derived from a goat? [13] Sheep are docile and easy to control. Goats are unruly and symbols of rebellion.
What evidence is there that Hell exists? None except for what the Bible says. Is this the same Bible says the sky is a dome and the sun, moon and stars are lights fixed in it? Is this the same Bible says that illness is caused by demonic possession and faith is the cure? Is this the same Bible says that dragons, giants and wizards are real?
At this point, the reader might be saying, “Ok, so there’s no evidence for the existence of Hell, we can see how the history of Gehenna fostered the myth and we can understand how the church might have been motivated to promote the myth but how can anyone positively claim for certain, as this subchapter does, that Hell isn’t real?”
The answer lies in what we observe in God’s Creation, the natural universe.
The Relativity of Suffering
For those who require any further proof against the existence of a literal place of eternal torment (or, for that matter, a place of eternal joy), we need only observe how pain and suffering are themselves relative and subject to our adjusting sensibilities. The human spirit softens under conditions of ease and luxury, until such luxuries are taken for granted. Similarly, we harden under conditions of adversity and eventually adjust until such hardships are taken in stride.
For example, we who live in modern times enjoy a greater standard of living and increased leisure time in comparison to our primitive ancestors. Yet we are unaware because our standards have adjusted. We simply take for granted the conveniences offered by modern technology and the greater wealth afforded by industrial production.
It was once said of a popular fictional action hero of 1980’s America, “What you call ‘hell’, he calls ‘home’.” Although you usually don’t come across great philosophical gems from action movies, the quote underscores how human beings adapt to the environment they live in until they come to think of whatever hardships they’re faced with as simply part of life.
It is therefore not only pointless but also virtually impossible to create a place where souls could exist for all eternity in pain and suffering. It may take years but eventually your pain sensors become accustomed to being constantly on fire. Your eyes adjust to the darkness. You reach the acceptance stage of grief. You make new friends and, after a few centuries, you forget all about your former life on earth. Similarly, it’s impossible to create a place of eternal joy. It may take years but eventually you would soften and take all the joys of Heaven for granted, no matter what they might be.
For similar reasons, the atheist’s “argument from evil” is a weak argument against the existence of God. Our perceptions of evil are every bit as relative and adjustable as our perceptions of suffering. If God were to intervene and cut the evil in the world by half, our sensibilities would adjust until we reached equilibrium and we would be doubly sensitive to the evil that remained. Ultimately, the choice in creating a universe would need to involve either micromanagement or allowing for choice (and therefore the existence of what we call “evil”). For better or for worse, we seem to live in the second universe.
Conclusion
There’s no evidence that Jesus and Satan are anything more than grown up versions of an imaginary friend and an imaginary monster-under-the-bed respectively. There’s no reason to think the Bible is anything more than fiction. The mythology of Christianity isn’t anymore believable than the mythology of ancient Greece. In fact, both are quickly debunked by even the most remedial of scientific knowledge that today every child knows. Hell got its start as a garbage dump and was turned into the legend it became through the efforts of the Christian founders.
So with the removal of all the theistic clutter and the false certainty they carry, we are left with a mysterious universe. Is there a God? Was the universe made or were we just lucky? What is the purpose to our existence here? What is morality in the absence of strict theistic teachings? How can we answer any of these questions without an ancient tome to guide us?
Keep these questions in mind as we proceed into the final part of this book.
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