Of Eternal Hell

O endless wrath of God: how utterly
Thou shouldst become a terror to all men
Who read the frightful truths revealed to me!

--”The Inferno” by Dante Alighieri (translator: John Ciardi)

I finally finished Augustine’s “City of God”. I enjoyed it, and it is definitely a re-readable, especially since I take it that he must be one of the most influential figures in the shaping of Christian doctrine, if not directly behind Paul, then within the next half-dozen, and I like the flow of his rhetoric, though he can be a trifle repetitious in his apparent concern not to fall short in his labor and devotion to God. Still, it was a long haul, especially as I am a slow traveler.

Before I set the book on the shelves to collect dust for a while, I want to close out on a colorful note on Hell. It may not be encouraging to non-believers, as it is unappealing to myself, but I am not trying to proselytize, which would be silly since my own heart is a sore question. For myself, the idea of eternal Hell is perhaps the chief element that makes literalist Christianity unpalatable.

As I have argued in Christian forums, even when it comes to Hitler, while I can see a few thousand years in a lake of fire as possibly being a good idea, the idea of burning for eternity seems beyond the pale of a compassionate and loving God. It is such a gruesome idea. After those thousands of years, no one is saying that Hitler necessarily gets to go to Heaven, as he and his like may then simply disappear forever after their punishment, ceasing to exist in any form or manner.

Of course, one answer to this quandary is to deny this concept of eternal Hell the force of reality and to see it more as some serious food for thought, perhaps as vivid symbolism for a life lived in the absence of God, lost in the hell of one‘s appetites and bestial desires and utter selfishness. Though, when one goes this interpretive route, Christianity can easily become just a grand allegory, which is how I am still inclined to see it - a philosophical and spiritual discipline for honing our idea of the good life, the virtuous life.

Unsurprisingly, Augustine spells out a literal conception of fire and brimstone for unrepentant sinners, those who persist in the carnal values of a fallen world. I was struck when he responded directly to a hope I was holding onto, as suggested above, which was to see Hell as a means of purgation, a sort of stronger purgatory. However, Augustine makes plain that the Scriptures do not allow for this interpretation. At best, he allows that there may be a mitigation in the level of heat that some sufferers may enjoy:

However it is certainly not to be denied that the eternal fire itself will be proportionate to the deserts of the wicked, which differ though all alike are evil; and for some it will be milder, for others more severe, whether the fire itself will vary in its power and heat in proportion to the punishment of each sinner, or whether its heat will be everywhere the same but the pain will be felt in different degrees.

Thank God for small favors! For the present, I am thinking that this is more poetry than law, and that all such dreaming will cease with our last breath, but my thought is obviously still a work in progress. If need be, should there be something more after the end of the line, I can only throw my soul on the mercy of the Court, which is the only thing that any of us can do. Meanwhile, I'll go back to dreaming about Heaven.

Of Eternal Hell

O endless wrath of God: how utterly
Thou shouldst become a terror to all men
Who read the frightful truths revealed to me!

--”The Inferno” by Dante Alighieri (translator: John Ciardi)

I finally finished Augustine’s “City of God”. I enjoyed it, and it is definitely a re-readable, especially since I take it that he must be one of the most influential figures in the shaping of Christian doctrine, if not directly behind Paul, then within the next half-dozen, and I like the flow of his rhetoric, though he can be a trifle repetitious in his apparent concern not to fall short in his labor and devotion to God. Still, it was a long haul, especially as I am a slow traveler.

Before I set the book on the shelves to collect dust for a while, I want to close out on a colorful note on Hell. It may not be encouraging to non-believers, as it is unappealing to myself, but I am not trying to proselytize, which would be silly since my own heart is a sore question. For myself, the idea of eternal Hell is perhaps the chief element that makes literalist Christianity unpalatable.

As I have argued in Christian forums, even when it comes to Hitler, while I can see a few thousand years in a lake of fire as possibly being a good idea, the idea of burning for eternity seems beyond the pale of a compassionate and loving God. It is such a gruesome idea. After those thousands of years, no one is saying that Hitler necessarily gets to go to Heaven, as he and his like may then simply disappear forever after their punishment, ceasing to exist in any form or manner.

Of course, one answer to this quandary is to deny this concept of eternal Hell the force of reality and to see it more as some serious food for thought, perhaps as vivid symbolism for a life lived in the absence of God, lost in the hell of one‘s appetites and bestial desires and utter selfishness. Though, when one goes this interpretive route, Christianity can easily become just a grand allegory, which is how I am still inclined to see it - a philosophical and spiritual discipline for honing our idea of the good life, the virtuous life.

Unsurprisingly, Augustine spells out a literal conception of fire and brimstone for unrepentant sinners, those who persist in the carnal values of a fallen world. I was struck when he responded directly to a hope I was holding onto, as suggested above, which was to see Hell as a means of purgation, a sort of stronger purgatory. However, Augustine makes plain that the Scriptures do not allow for this interpretation. At best, he allows that there may be a mitigation in the level of heat that some sufferers may enjoy:

However it is certainly not to be denied that the eternal fire itself will be proportionate to the deserts of the wicked, which differ though all alike are evil; and for some it will be milder, for others more severe, whether the fire itself will vary in its power and heat in proportion to the punishment of each sinner, or whether its heat will be everywhere the same but the pain will be felt in different degrees.

Thank God for small favors! For the present, I am thinking that this is more poetry than law, and that all such dreaming will cease with our last breath, but my thought is obviously still a work in progress. If need be, should there be something more after the end of the line, I can only throw my soul on the mercy of the Court, which is the only thing that any of us can do. Meanwhile, I'll go back to dreaming about Heaven.