No one can possibly deserve endless
torment, let alone everyone. Society is obliged to take action against convicted
murderers. We can imprison them and can debate the justice or efficacy of
execution but torture must be unacceptable. Endless torture, if such were
possible, would be a punishment worse than the crime. Some Christian apologists
argue that Hell is not divinely inflicted punishment but freely chosen
deprivation. I reply to the free will defence elsewhere and summarize the reply
below but here I address Evangelicals who do believe in literal fire.
Even if the “original sin” doctrine were
acceptable, what would it entail? First, no one chooses to inherit original sin.
Secondly, it, or at least a combination of factors which, for purposes of the
present argument, can be labeled as “original sin,” influence our behavior
before we have become able to reflect on the morality of that behavior. It
follows that we are caught in a situation that is not of our making and that we
need help towards moral development, not the ultimatum: “Believe or be damned.”
We judge ourselves when we reflect that
our actions have been reprehensible and that we must live differently. This
realization is an acknowledgement that we are morally improvable, not that we
are damnable or accountable to a creator who, if he existed, would be
accountable to us. Any omnipotent creator would be able to make his creatures
both willing and able to act rightly. Thus, they would always freely act rightly
but would not be automata.
A finite fellow creature can advocate
courage and honesty but an omnipotent creator could have made us brave and
honest. A pacifist saint is physically capable but morally incapable of kicking
a dog that bites him. If we know the saint, then we confidently predict that he
will not kick the dog but do not think that he lacks free will when he fulfills
our prediction.
There are other philosophical problems
with Evangelicalism. The creator before the creation would be a self without
other which is like a square without sides. Is endless experience even possible?
Can memories accumulate indefinitely? A subject no longer able to remember his
earliest experiences would effectively be a different subject as we are in
relation to our ancestors. How could temporary suffering by one sinless person
negate the alleged necessity of endless suffering for the sinful many?
666 is the numerical value of the Hebrew
letters of the name Nero so Revelation is about the Neronic persecution.
It is not about still future events and there would be no reason to believe it
even if it were.
As long as states exist, they should be
secular institutions, treating everyone within their borders equally. Therefore,
there should be no Jewish state. Israel is built by men, not by God, and will be
as transient as any other human institution. Anglo-Israel theorists believed
that the British were the ten lost tribes and that the British Empire,
fulfilling the Promise to Abraham, would last forever. In Engels’ phrase,
Christian Zionism is a “fantastic reflection” of current US strategic interests.
Matthew and Luke wrote that Jesus was
born in Bethlehem only because they believed that it had been prophesied that
the Messiah would be born there. It was prophesied that a young woman
would bear a son to be called Emmanuel but not that a virgin would bear a son to
be called Jesus and this prophesy addressed then current events, not a future
Messiah.
No Pope would lead an ecumenical
movement denying the importance of religious disagreements or affirming the
divinity of all humanity. I do not defend Catholicism but nor would I insult it
by suggesting that.
In the Left Behind scenario, it
is possible to like, admire and respect a man, yet “fear for his soul.” Thus,
there is a dichotomy between the person and something else supposed to be him
but described as “his.” Christians sometimes claim that their religion addresses
persons, not abstractions. One Rapture FAQ writer’s response to 9/11 was not to
ask how to prevent terrorism but concern that some of the deceased may have been
waverers who had not yet committed to Christ so now are lost. This is a
diversion from reality.
Does the god who tries to save souls
then dismiss them so casually? Can’t he prevent an explosion, send more
persuasive messengers or allow spiritual development to continue in the
hereafter, assuming there is one? The Evangelical deity sounds as limited,
unimaginative and narrow minded as many of his disciples but then what we hear
about him is filtered to us through their understanding.
If we are after all in the hands of a
mad god who condemns all those who have never heard of him and all those who
honestly disbelieve that he exists, then all we can do is continue to enjoy this
life and to act on this Earth. But such a god might favor Catholics, Muslims or
Hindu fundamentalists instead of Evangelicals.
Despite their offensive theology, the
Left Behind books are well-written futuristic fictions which is why I
classify this discussion under “Science Fiction,” not under “Christian Origins”
or “Philosophy.” I refuse to buy the books new but acquired Volumes I and II
from an Oxfam bookseller who describes them as “evil” and usually bins them on
arrival. They are the only books that he will not sell. Thus, he does sell
anything else Christian whereas a nearby Evangelical bookseller would not sell
anything “occult." I will be interested to read parts of Volumes XII and XIII
because these describe Jesus’ return, when he effortlessly kills all his
surviving enemies, and his thousand year Reich, when those who are born after
his return but who refuse to believe are accursed and die young.
If you worship such a deity, please ask
him to reconsider his position. Human morality has evolved far beyond his. Thor,
whose hammer protects us from hostile elements, is a better friend to humanity.
Of course, Thor exists only in our imaginations but so surely does the cosmic
Jesus. Revolutionaries, scientists, doctors, artists and meditation instructors
all do far more human good than "born-again" Christians who aim only to sign us up to their
belief.
The global disappearance of all "born-agains"
is logically possible but, until it occurs, I will continue to believe that it
is physically impossible. If it occurs, then I will study subsequent events but
will be surprised to see either two Old Testament prophets killing their
attackers with flames from their mouths or a politician quickly overcoming all
the barriers to international co-operation and disarmament. The world is more
complicated than that and would become far more chaotic after a mysterious event
like the Rapture. I propose a treaty whereby this Jesus removes all his zealots and
leaves the rest of us to re-make the Earth.
In poetic, prophetic, apocalyptic or
dramatic writing, it makes perfect sense that a transcendent being manifesting
himself should proclaim, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” because theists and
mystics believe that such a being is indeed the beginning and end of all things.
That he should announce it like this in history is another matter. If he exists,
then he is already working cosmically and spiritually. Scriptural passages
express this present and perennial working in vivid and physical language. Dare
I hope that I have represented Revelation more fairly and accurately that
some American “prophecy scholars”?
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