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Jonathan, Your question is a very important and difficult one. I think there are several points that you might want to consider in response. First of all, why does God allow anything bad to happen? Why did He allow the Holocaust, for example? Why did God allow the Christians to slaughter innocent people in the Crusades? Why did God allow the Israelites to fall to Baal worship and sacrifice their children in a fire? God commanded in the Law, "Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed (or passed through the fire) to Molech" (Lev. 18:21). Yet they did it anyway, as the prophet Ezekiel reports: "You slaughtered My children and sacrificed them to the idols." (Ezek. 16:21). And according to Jeremiah, "They built high places for Baal in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molech, though I never commanded, nor did it enter My mind, that they should do such a detestable thing and so make Judah sin." (Jer. 32:35). I believe God allows human beings some degree of free will to make their own choices about what to believe and what to do. God allows free will because He wants us to choose what is right and true rather than what is wrong and false, so that we may truly grow spiritually rather than be mere automatons. Sometimes people make bad choices, believe the wrong thing, teach erroneous doctrines and take actions that lead to a horrible outcome. Eternal hell is one example of this. God allows such a human teaching for the same reason that He allows anything else that is bad in this world: because He wants us to use the power of our minds and our spirits to choose to follow the path of truth and goodness rather than error. God has allowed people to misinterpret and mistranslate the Bible because humans are free to do so; if we weren't, then we wouldn't really be human, and we could never have a true relationship with God as spiritual beings created in His image. Without the ability to choose between good and evil, we would be nothing more than robots. I believe Christianity was hijacked in its early centuries by people who appropriated the faith of Jesus to serve political ends. The Roman Church after the time of Constantine was more interested in social control rather than spreading the love of Christ. That's the reason why that church became so ritualistic and concerned with dogmas. The doctrine of eternal hell was useful as a way of keeping people in line, both in society and within the church. With the threat of never-ending tortures of hell hanging over their heads, people may have been less likely to go against the teachings of Rome or oppose the church's political power. The defining moment in the history of Christian beliefs about hell may have been when the Emperor Justinian called a council in the year 544 to condemn the teachings of Origen, a third-century theologian who had taught universal reconciliation through Jesus Christ at the end of time. Justinian declared that the punishment of the wicked is ateleutetos, a word meaning "endless" in Greek. This word contrasts with the word used in the Greek New Testament for the punishments of hell, aionios, meaning "for an age." It is clear that Justinian chose to depart from the teachings of the Bible because he personally wanted to promote the idea that the wicked are punished forever, instead of for a limited period of time. This is only one important example showing how the church was no longer inspired by the Holy Spirit, but by the ideas of men -- specifically, political leaders such as emperors and popes. The doctrine of eternal torment became firmly established contrary to the prevailing beliefs of the earliest Christians and the original text of the scriptures. You may want to read this online book about the history of Christian beliefs about hell: Universalism: The Prevailing Doctrine of the Christian Church During Its First Five-Hundred Years by J.W. Hanson, 1899. One thing we must understand is that God often chooses to conceal His will from us, because He desires us to search for Him and seek after truth. This is part of God's plan for perfecting us in the image of Christ. Some are given ears to hear at a particular time, and others cannot hear until later -- either later in their life on earth, after they have gone through some difficult lessons and received God's grace, or else not until the life hereafter when they will finally see things as they really are. As the Apostle Paul said, "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." (1 Cor. 13:12). The Book of Proverbs tells us, "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings." (Prov. 25:2). And Jeremiah the prophet assures us that "You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart." (Jer. 29:13); "Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." (33:3). For some people, belief in eternal hell might be part of the plan for their life, as a necessary stage of development in their spiritual journey. It may be in some cases that the fear of damnation might have been the only thing that brought them trembling before the Lord in repentance. But as they continue to seek the Lord in spirit and truth and develop a real relationship with Him, they will find that the doctrine of eternal hell is unsustainable in their heart. As they discover that "God is love" (1 John 4:16), that "God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all" (1:5), they will realize this is inconsistent with a god who mercilessly tortures people forever with no hope of relief. Continuing to study the Bible and consider various interpretations, and praying to God for guidance, they will find they can no longer believe in eternal damnation but must accept universal reconciliation. You may want to read the following article for a perspective on how the eternal hell doctrine could be useful as a step on some people's spiritual journey, which might be one reason why God allows it to exist -- but not as a dogma that one should hold after it has outlived its usefulness in one's life: Christian Maturity: A Lifelong Journey by Ken Eckerty. In conclusion, we need to realize that the church lost a lot of its inspiration from the Holy Spirit and became mostly a human (and very political) institution quite early in its history. God was not going to come down from heaven, influence all the minds of every Bible translator and stand behind the shoulders of every printing press in the world. Even the books included in the official Biblical canon were decided based on human choices in a political process, and the canon is different depending on which church one belongs to. Read this article to learn more: Questions About the Biblical Canon by G. Rumney. Mistranslations and misunderstandings are wholly in the realm of humanity and its God-given free will of interpretation. Hell-fire and brimstone were inaccurately taught to be "eternal" to impress minds with its enormity -- to scare the hell out of us so to speak, for social and political reasons. If people can move beyond such simplistic motivations and into the realm of true spirituality and intimate knowledge of God, that is what we should be aiming for, both individually and for Christianity as a whole. Jonathan, may God bless you and lead you to an ever-stronger faith in the Good News of hope for all souls, that no one will be condemned to hell forever, but that God is saving all through our Lord Jesus Christ. Please continue to study the arguments for universal reconciliation until you are fully convinced of its truth, and if you have any further questions, don't hesitate to ask. Peace in Christ,
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Christian Universalist FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions
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Heavenly Father, please bless this ministry, lead multitudes to this website, and help them see the truth of Your love and forgiveness for all people through the power of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of the whole world. Open their eyes to Your true nature, take away their fears, and fill their hearts with the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. |