Is everyone saved by Jesus or not? Very American.
Well, very Russian, too. Berdyaev and Soloviev were both universalists. And there is a distinct problem with the concept of eternal damnation. For hell to be eternal it would have to be, as it were, coexistent with God himself, whereas Jesus talks about the "everlasting fire," a distinctly temporal phrase. So I think it is safe to infer that hell will last until the end of time -- but no longer.
..."everlasting fire," a distinctly temporal phrase ... are you being sarcastic here? Does Revelation or other prophecies describe the lake of fire being destroyed?
ReplyDeleteI was definitely not being sarcastic. I was taking Jesus at his word. "Everlasting" means "lasting forever," until the end of time. It is a term of duration. There is no duration in eternity, which is a state of being without time. The problem with the notion of an "eternal" hell is that it would mean, obviously, that hell has existed from eternity. But we know that hell was created in time. Presumably, then, like all things temporal, it must perish. In my view, Jesus' words are the standard by which everything said in Scripture must be judged. That would include Revelation. My view of hell is that of the Abbé Mugnier: It is a doctrine of the Church, so I must believe it. But I do not have to believe that anyone is there. Again, as Jesus said, "You shall not come out of it until you have paid the last penny." But evidently you will come out of it. After all, everlasting is an awfully long time.
ReplyDeleteVery good. That's a subtle distinction b/w everlasting and eternity which I tripped over. I can't agree with you on the last part though. You can look to other parables of the Lord to see no possibility for ending the weeping and gnashing of teeth. When the would-be guests are thrown out of the wedding feast, they are not invited back in, and when the weeds are collected by the angels, they are burned. (cf. Matthew 13)
ReplyDelete