same is also true for hell. The writers of the New Testament were not concerned so much with the exact nature of hell as they were with the seriousness of the coming judgment.
Third, the Purgatory view of hell is that of the Roman Catholic Church. It is not commonly known among protestant Christians as it is among Roman Catholic congregants. Simply put, Purgatory is a process of purifying suffering for those who have died in guilt or with a fault. This purification process goes through an interim period, beginning immediately after death, and up to the final judgment. However, this purgation process happens by fire, a symbol for purification and it is only for the dead that need it. Not everyone that goes to hell will experience purgation.
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It argues on both the nature and duration of eternal punishment against the Literal view of hell. Rather than an everlasting conscious torment for the damned, hell is destruction where the damned will eventually be consumed by fire, thus causing them to cease to exist. This view is also called Conditional Immortality or Annahilationism. Supporters of this view find a contradiction between God endlessly tormenting the damned and his endless love and grace towards them. They disagree on the idea that God is the one sending millions of sinners to hell especially when he could have predestined them to be saved. Pinnock, in defense of this view said …show more content…
No correct answer is possible unless we fully investigate the historical, cultural and literary background to the passages we want to consider. This means we must start with ancient Judaism and their understanding of the afterlife, how that developed during the second temple period into more complex ideas like judgment, reward and punishment of the wicked, hades, compartmentalization of the abode of the dead, and then the views of Jesus’ day, the NT and the early church. The development of eternal punishment in Judeo-Christian thinking is the subject of this research paper. The arguments proposed in this paper are laid out in three parts: Part I will examine the concept of the afterlife in Judaism, the origin and meaning of Sheol in the OT, and how it is described when it is used as the ultimate fate for the righteous and the wicked. Part II will address the rise of apocalyptic literature during the second temple period, explaining how Sheol became hell, judgment, rewards and retribution in the afterlife, hades, gehenna, and Tartarus. Part III will seek to investigate the views of hell in Jesus’ day, NT teachings, Jesus teachings on hell, and the early church. In the end, this paper will advance an exegetical rationale in favor of the literal view of hell. Historical evidences proved that the early Christians, as confirmed in Jesus’ teaching, and later NT documents, taught eternal
Dante Alighieri presents a vivid and awakening view of the depths of Hell in the first book of his Divine Comedy, the Inferno. The reader is allowed to contemplate the state of his own soul as Dante "visits" and views the state of the souls of those eternally assigned to Hell's hallows. While any one of the cantos written in Inferno will offer an excellent description of the suffering and justice of hell, Canto V offers a poignant view of the assignment of punishment based on the committed sin. Through this close reading, we will examine three distinct areas of Dante's hell: the geography and punishment the sinner is restricted to, the character of the sinner, and the "fairness" or justice of the punishment in relation to the sin. Dante's Inferno is an ordered and descriptive journey that allows the reader the chance to see his own shortcomings in the sinners presented in the text.
Faustino, Mara. Heaven and Hell: A Compulsively Readable Compendium of Myth, Legend, Wisdom and Wit for Saints and Sinners. New York: Grove/Atlantic Inc., 2004. Print.
Their punishment is not self-inflicted, it is decided by Minos. Just as careless as the sinner was with his own life, so is Minos in flinging the soul down to the seventh level, sprouting roots where it lands and becomes a tree destined to be fed on by Harpies and mangled by hounds for eternity. While many of the resemblances of the Inferno and What Dreams May Come seem mostly for cinematic effect alone, it is a testament to Dante's literary talent that his portrait of hell has been so enduring. The Inferno created by Dante indeed puts a face on hell and has influenced almost every look into the subject over the centuries since it was finished in 1321.
...cape her judgment nor argument with her edicts will sway her. Hell is an absolute, and all the more forbidding because of it. Though the violence depicted in these myths varies, the overall story remains unchanged. Disobeying the laws and strictures set forth by the government and religious doctrines will exact a hefty price, perhaps eternally.
pits, different cells in hell and there is a heart of hell. As Mary and JESUS went through hell their were people there who are begging god to let them in heaven and god says no because judgement has been set. He said there has been many people their way to introduce them to god and they refused. Souls are in hell begging for repentance and the answer is no because they had their chance and they turned their backs on god. Some souls even were at one time of another saved and they were going through something to make them stronger in the word and they though god was being unfair to them and blamed god for the mistake; therefore turning their backs on god. There are many false prophets in hell. As god walks through and stop to talk to these prophets they beg and pled for forgiveness and when god says judgement has been set they began to curse god and talk to him in the manner where they are really disrespecting god.
In Dante’s Inferno, hell is divided into nine “circles” of hell; the higher the number, the more likely the sin and the pain you will endure. However, I do not completely agree with Dante’s version of hell, perhaps due to the difference in time periods. In this essay, I will be pointing out my concerns with Dante’s description of hell and how I would recreate hell if I were Dante. The first level of hell in the Inferno is for those unbaptized yet virtuous. Although some did not have a sinful life, if they did not accept Christ, they were sent to Limbo.
Inferno, the first part of Divina Commedia, or the Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri, is the story of a man's journey through Hell and the observance of punishments incurred as a result of the committance of sin. In all cases the severity of the punishment, and the punishment itself, has a direct correlation to the sin committed. The punishments are fitting in that they are symbolic of the actual sin; in other words, "They got what they wanted." (Literature of the Western World, p.1409) According to Dante, Hell has two divisions: Upper Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of incontinence, and Lower Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of malice. The divisions of Hell are likewise split into levels corresponding to sin. Each of the levels and the divisions within levels 7,8, and 9 have an analogous historical or mythological figure used to illustrate and exemplify the sin.
Souls residing in Purgatory receive punishments despite the fact that this level is not considered part of Hell. As Dante and his guide, Virgil, enter Ante-Inferno (also known as Purgatory), Virgil explains to him that this is where the souls of those who did not take a side between God and Satan or did not do anything during their lifetime that would determine whether they would go to Hell or Heaven (III. 30-37). The punishment that the souls in Purgatory must face is being bitten by insects and weeping for the rest of eternity, which is unreasonable seeing that Purgatory, according to the Catholic Church, is a place intended for people who need to be cleansed of their sins before entering Heaven (“Catholicism and Purgatory”). The Catholic Church’s definition of Purgatory implies that the souls here have not done anything honorable enough to earn a place in Heaven nor have they done anything so wrong as to deserve being put in Hell. Because Purgatory is neither Heaven nor Hell, it does not make sense for the souls kept here to receive a punishment like the sinners in Hell do.
Dante’s Inferno presents the reader with many questions and thought provoking dialogue to interpret. These crossroads provide points of contemplation and thought. Dante’s graphic depiction of hell and its eternal punishment is filled with imagery and allegorical meanings. Examining one of these cruxes of why there is a rift in the pits of hell, can lead the reader to interpret why Dante used the language he did to relate the Idea of a Just and perfect punishment by God.
Sinners are placed in Hell according to the severity of their sins, lower for those who commit more grave sins. Dante’s placement of sinners can sometime be unjust and biased because of his personal beliefs and the beliefs of the Catholic church at the time. Dante unfairly places those who did not even have the option of being Christian in Hell and his little knowledge of mental illnesses combined with his old-fashioned Catholic beliefs prompts him to put those who committed suicide in Hell. Dante’s nationalistic and political bias also leads him put people he feels wronged him personally in the lowest circle of Hell. Dante speaks heavily about Divine Justice and God’s punishment but his choice of sinners seems too biased and ignorant to be the product of Divine
Christians ultimately believe in two places to go after death, Heaven where eternity is spent in a state that is beautiful beyond our ability to conceive, or Hell, where eternity is spent with Satan and his demons. All are tormented and tortured, in isolation from God, without any hope of mercy or relief (Robinson).
Hell will exist forever as place to hold Satan. The demons and those who choose him rather than Christ. But Heaven is the throne of God's glory and the reward for the righteous. We will receive our resurrection body and all pain of any kind will be gone for those in Heaven.
Justice is one of the major building block that society is built upon. It gives people a sense of retribution when they have been wronged. In Dante’s Inferno, justice is served in the supernatural realm. Throughout this play, the reader is exposed to the inner working of hell and the nine circles of specialized punishment it is composed of. Justice, in Dante’s Inferno, differs from justice in the mortal world in that it is decided, not by humans, but by God. However, it is not God’s justice that is portrayed in this divine comedy. While this divine comedy depicts justice coming from God, the justice in the Inferno is based on Dante’s personal views of the severity of the sin and the sinner. This paper will examine this issue by looking into the life of Dante and the potential reasons for his rankings of the sin pertaining to specific circles of hell.
... is taken to mean that hell and purgatory have the same punishment but in hell a person is there for all of eternity and in purgatory that person is there only as long as it takes to have his soul cleansed. Indulgences are meant to shorten this time. They cannot be used for anything else. Someone cannot just buy their way into heaven; they have to go through the same cleansing process of purgatory.
One way in which death can be viewed comes across the Catholic religion. The Catholic believers look life after death in a prospective of three different worlds, such as Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise according to the deeds committed during life. If a person during his or her lifetime committed any sins, this person’s next world will be the Hell. The traditional view in which people refer to hell can be found in the book written by Dante Alighieri, “La Divina Commedia”. The book states that the formation of Hell was given by the crash of Lucifer (the angel that wanted to be better than God) from the sky onto the earth. Crashing on the Earth in Jerusalem, his head formed an upside down cone inside the Earth. This is where is located the Hell. In the Hell, people pay for their sins with different penitences (12-13). For instance, a person that committed homicide will freeze in a lake frozen by the breath of Satan (XXXIV canto). If a person during his or her life commits any sins but asks for forgiveness, then he or she will go to the Purgatory. The purgatory is represented by an island with a mountain (23). One source states that “Purgatory is very similar to Hell; the main difference is that one will eventually be released from torture. The souls that go in the Purgatory are tortured with fire. These souls remain in purgatory until they become sufficiently purified to enter heaven”(2). For example, if a soul in the purgatory asks for forgiveness and pays the punition with some tests, the soul will be released and moved immediately to Heaven (2).