Does the thought of Hell ever scare an atheist?

twonine29 · #1 11-06-2007, 03:48 AM

i know most atheists are confident in their belief that there is no God...especially the Christian God.

Does the thought of Hell ever worry you?

What if God really did create the world/create mankind, and decide that each man would have 1 of 2 destines...eternity in bliss or eternity in torment and our time on Earth would determine that. On top of that God decided there would only be one way to spend eternity in bliss(example: Belief in Jesus Christ as your savior). What if we are creations, and we will never cease to exist for the rest of eternity, and the rest of eternity will be spent in one of two places. Doesn't the slight chance that this is possible worry one just a little?

borisp · #2 11-06-2007, 03:51 AM

What if there really was a monster in the closet? I mean, cmon, there is some possibility that there is a soul devouring zombie in there. I'll admit it creates the sensation of fear from time to time.

twonine29 · #3 11-06-2007, 03:57 AM

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What if there really was a monster in the closet? I mean, cmon, there is some possibility that there is a soul devouring zombie in there. I'll admit it creates the sensation of fear from time to time.

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i anticipated this type of answer, and if u truly believe the two to have equal chance, then no of course you would never fear Hell.

However, Christianity is very prevalent in the world (as well as Islam). If one of these two were actually the correct religion, it would make sense that they are so prevalent. In either case, the end result for those not aligned with God are just horrible to fathom(...eternity...in torment...). But if God does exist, he makes the rules.

tame_deuces · #4 11-06-2007, 04:09 AM

Naw, I worry about how to live my life instead. And the term hell is just a bastardization of older religious terms for 'the place souls go to' after death anyway.

Accepting that hell exists is one thing, accepting that linguistical misinterpretations and faulty translations should happen to stumble across the truth by chance is something else completely.

Case Closed · #5 11-06-2007, 04:15 AM

I am confused about this hell. I have a bible with me, direct me to the passage that describes hell. Thanks.

chezlaw · #6 11-06-2007, 04:15 AM

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In either case, the end result for those not aligned with God are just horrible to fathom(...eternity...in torment...). But if God does exist, he makes the rules.

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Nah if gods a bastard it wont make any difference if you're aligned to him or not.

chez

twonine29 · #7 11-06-2007, 04:17 AM

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Naw, I worry about how to live my life instead

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eternity is a long time compared to one's life on Earth.

you may just cease to exist when u die...or u may live on for eternity...really could be either one...

tame_deuces · #8 11-06-2007, 04:22 AM

Well, bastard religions who stole their religious terms from existing beliefs and changed to suit their needs and continued to change them over the next 2000 years is really the least of my worries when it comes to an afterlife.

m_the0ry · #9 11-06-2007, 04:22 AM

No.

I was 12 when I decided hell was an absurd concept. I say this as genuinely as I possibly can: the threat of hell is so empty and meaningless to me that every time I hear it mentioned seriously in conversation I laugh, inside at the very least.

madnak · #10 11-06-2007, 04:25 AM

The concept of hell seriously [censored] me up as a kid. There's still some lingering episodic fear, but it's well under control now. I am a hypochondriac and I experience significant anxiety regarding my health - this may be the legacy of hell.

Thankfully, the power of religion to terrorize me gets weaker and weaker as I get older.