Quote:
Originally posted by trekkor
I'm afraid you are confused...
There is no hell where people are punished or tortured.
Dead are not conscious of anything...Body returns to dust.
Eccl 9:5,10
And, infant baptism serves no purpose as it is unscriptural.
How old was Jesus at his baptism?
KT
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I'm just passing on what I've been told by some bible thumpers. But maybe I am confused. Is the following (from wikipedia) not accurate?
The Christian idea of Hell is different from the Sheol of Judaism. The nature of Hell is described in the New Testament on several occasions. For example, in Matthew 3:10-12, Matthew 5:22, Matthew 5:29-30, Matthew 8:12, Matthew 22:13, Matthew 25:30, Matthew 25:41-46, Luke 3:9, Luke 12:5, Luke 13:28, Luke 16:19-28, and Revelation 12:9, Revelation 14:9-11, Revelation 19:20, Revelation 20:10, Revelation 20:14-15, Revelation 21:8; in the Book of Revelation Hell is also mentioned as the "abyss" and "the Earth". Jesus himself describes Hell as a place of "weeping and gnashing of teeth"; this quotation has frequent appearance in the New Testament.
The population of Hell comprises the souls of those who died without accepting Christ as their saviour, God's grace, in sin and without repentance, although beliefs on these categories differ among Christian denominations. Some consider the fate of righteous people who lived before the time of Christ (thus being non-Christian through no fault of their own) a complication, especially for the many righteous Jews of the Old Testament. In some traditions, these people went straight to Heaven despite not being Christians because Christ had not come and gone yet. In other traditions, they had to wait in Limbo until the Harrowing of Hell during the three days between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection.
According to Western Christian beliefs, the Devil and his angels (demons), who are receiving punishment, reside in hell along with the souls of the damned. This doctrine is not part of Eastern Orthodox teachings. Yet, Matthew 25:41 mentions the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. Revelation 14:9-11 and Revelation 20:10 can be interpreted to mean that after the Day of the Lord those who were condemned to Hell will remain there physically, tormented by eternal fire that will never consume them nor be extinguished - although Revelation 20:14-15 can be interpreted to mean Hell is death rather than eternal torment.
According to Luke 16:19-28 (Lazarus and Dives) nobody can pass from Hell to Heaven or vice versa, and fire is not the only tormentor, thirst being another, and more that are not described; in this biblical passage it is also mentioned that the souls that are in Hell can see those that are in Heaven and vice versa. Many view this story as a parable, and as such, believe its meaning may not literally define the existence in the afterlife, but instead serve as a lesson about the dangers of wealth and the unwillingness to listen to God.