Why do believers still think the fear of hell is compelling for non believers?

1. 71

   JMcFarlandposted 10 years ago

   Why do believers still think the fear of hell is compelling for non believers?
   
   I stumbled across several new hubs recently talking about how if you don't follow Jesus,  you're going to hell to be consumed by both fire and insects forever.   Non believers recognize this for what it is - an appeal to emotion (namely fear) to convince others to join certain beliefs.  They seem to enjoy describing the torments in gleeful detail,  not realizing that Christianity certainly does not have a monopoly on the conveyor of eternal torment,  yet they aren't the least bit afraid of other hells.  Why do they think the fear is enough to warrant belief in unprovable doctrines?

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2. 87

   Austinstarposted 10 years ago

   Great question! Non-believers only know what they have been told to expect after they die. If they are good little members of the flock, they get to go to heaven, a place that no one knows about. But it's supposed to be "somewhere" where there is only love and peace and the big giant grace of their lord and master.
   Then they are told that anyone that disagrees will burn in eternal hell, another place that no one knows about, but it supposed to be pure torture. And the great and powerful Oz, er "God" has given you "free will" to choose to be a good little religious slave and presto/chango you MIGHT get to go to heaven or you might not.
   This thing called "free will" is the carrot or the stick choice we must all make whether we want to or not. At least that is the consensus of "believers".
   And that is their basic argument for trying to convert non-believers to believers. It's because they can't stand the thought of anyone frying in this god created hell!
   So yes, they are afraid, very afraid. And that is why they are compelled to preach - in hopes of being allowed to go to that promised heaven and eat that promised carrot.
   It's so whacked up!

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   1. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I agree,  although I have met some believers who seem to enjoy taking about hell,  not the least bit afraid for the people who will go there, if true.  I just don't know why they think it's compelling enough to believe for us.

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   2. 62

      Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Because they know they have no better reason to provide, which also leads them into making up the most random crap, whether it be about what sends you to hell or why you purposely send yourself there.

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3. 62

   Zelkiiroposted 10 years ago

   Because they expect me to somehow believe I'll still have my nerve endings to feel pain with, despite the fact that those things stay in the casket.

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      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Or a physical body to feel pain with.   "Spirits" don't feel pain,  and they have no flesh to hurt.

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      Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      In hell You could watch endless reruns of creationist videos.
      
      Your soul would probably get reckted an hour in.

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   3. 87

      Austinstarposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      No way, zelk, facts again? I wonder why they think souls are affected by fire. Oh, it must be spiritual fire?

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   4. 0

      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      But one day Jesus will raise all of us up and give us new glorified bodies, that cannot be killed.  You and your new body will be cast into hell, and the fire will ever consume you.

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   5. 62

      Zelkiiroposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Except, according to the Bible, the only people who get shiny new bodies are the denizens of Heaven. It says absolutely nothing about the damned getting new bodies.

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      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      No, even those bound for hell will get new bodies.

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   7. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Where?

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   8. 62

      Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Star...do you realize you essentially confirmed the sadistic tendency of your god? He will raise all those that are hellbound to give them new bodies that can NEVER die again just so they can suffer eternally.
      
      But he loves us...

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   9. 0

      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yes Link, call it what you will.  I don't know why God does what He does, but His ways are not our ways...Everything happens for a reason and for God's glory.

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   10. 0

       Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Psalm 14 says: "The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God."

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       Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       None of what I said was a personal attack on you.  I'm just saying what the bible is saying.

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   12. 71

       JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       You get that the majority of atheists,  including (I think) those of us commenting on this thread DON'T say there is no God,  right?   There is a big difference between withholding belief and affirming the opposite.   You're creating a strawman.

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   13. 71

       JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       I have removed anything that could even be seen as a personal attack,  and the responses to it in order to allow the conversion to continue.   No response to my question,  Star?

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   14. 0

       Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       An atheist says there is no god.  An agnostic says there might be a god.  I believe you call yourself an atheist, therefore, you do not believe there is a god.

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       SirDentposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       @ Julie.  Thank you.

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   16. 71

       JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Do you think you know what an atheist is better than an atheist,  Star?   You are creating a strawman out of the strong atheist position.  Not believing in a god is not the sane thing as saying there is no God.   To insist otherwise is a fallacy.

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       Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

       What atheist says there is no god? All of them, or some?
       
       I do hope you realize star there are such things as agnostic and gnostic atheists/theists.

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       Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       I don't see the difference.  It says in the bible that it's very black and white.  You're either for God or against God.

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   19. 71

       JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       1. You can't be against something you don't believe in.  2. There is a difference between saying "I don't believe in aliens" and"there are no aliens".  You may not be able to tell the difference,  but there is one. Asserting a strawman is dishonest.

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   20. 71

       JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       This coming from a person who also decided that Islam was satanic,  that other self professed Christians aren't her kind of Christian so they're not real Christians at all and that JWs are saved.   It sounds like she thinks she's god with the judging

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4. 86

   gmwilliamsposted 10 years ago

   
   
   Religionists strongly proclaim that hell is an abysmal place of the most infinite negativity. They surmise that no one in his/her right mind would desire to go there. They maintain that hell is or should be the biggest deterrent for those who refuse to go on "the right path" so to speak.  So they use psychological methods in order to get those whom they believe to be "in error" to believe "the correct way".

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5. 0

   Stargrrlposted 10 years ago

   Well, if I die believing in God, and He does not exist, I have lost nothing.  I will simply be dead.  But if I die not believing in Him, and He exists, I am in trouble.  I really feel in my heart that He is real, and that the other religions are made up.  That is why I am not scared of their hells. I truly believe Allah is Satan, and that to worship Allah would send me to hell.  Since I believe it, I don't want others to go to hell.  It may seem an appeal to emotion but I see it as looking out for my fellow humans.  That being said, I find hell to be an interesting topic, and that is why I write about it and read a lot about it.

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   1. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Pascals wager is another appeal to emotion, and it totally falls short of its intended target without the fallacy of special pleading.  http://wiki.ironchariots.org/index.php? … cals_wager

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      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Satan is very crafty.  He does what he does extremely well.

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   3. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yes,  according to the magic book that says how bad it is with absolutely no bias whatsoever. God created evil and Satan, who incidentally was never "the devil" until the new testament.

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   4. 62

      Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Unless you can show how the other religions are made up and yours isn't, then yes its purely an appeal to emotion and nothing else.
      
      I find the logic behind your first 2 sentences to be completely backwards as well.

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      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Link, Islam started when Satan disguised himself as the archangel Gabriel and appeared to Mohammud, and helped him write the Koran.  The Koran is basically a rip off of the bible.  Satan mimics God always.

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   6. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Do you have proof of your assertion about Islam,  star?   for someone who insists all beliefs should be given respect (our at least yours) that wasn't very respectful of you,  nor was the irrelevant strawman you created earlier of atheists.

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   7. 0

      Stargrrlposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Julie--read it.  Any apologetic will tell you the same thing.  I don't mean any disrespect--I have to admit I should use more tact...working on that.

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   8. 62

      Link10103posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Just...Read it?
      
      I'm sure that would go over well since the only places that probably contain those "facts" are Christian based and completely unbiased.
      
      
      
      Probably.

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   9. 71

      JMcFarlandposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I'm sure Christian apologists claim that,  but it's a claim.   Threw is no proof,  other than a bald assertion on your (and their) part.   I could say the sane thing about Christian belief.   Does that make it true or factual?

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   10. 85

       M. T. Dremerposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       It is my understanding that Allah (their word for god, not a name) is the same deity as Christianity. They are both branches off of the Abraham tree, which makes them variants, not opposites.

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       Zelkiiroposted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Basically. "Allah" translates to "The One (and Only) God," and is used in the same manner as the Hebrews used "El" or "Adonai" to avoid speaking aloud the True Name in vain.

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       Hell N0posted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Yep, i concure on pasquels wager.  Wrote a hub about the mozlem god and how much more scary sounding than the christian sundy fundy god.   Hell isnt even scriptural so i wont bother warning anyone.

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6. 85

   M. T. Dremerposted 10 years ago

   Hell is a pretty compelling argument for those unfamiliar with Christianity. It's why it's so effective at getting children to believe. The failing comes when a theist thinks that an atheist is uninformed. That's not to say that all atheists are informed. But most, if not all, know what hell is and have factored it into their conclusion. So, the believer understandably goes to the strongest tool in their toolbox (fear of eternal damnation) but they forget (or never consider) that the non-believer already considered this argument.

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7. 73

   stanwshuraposted 10 years ago

   They are cynical.  They think sticks work better than carrots.

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8. 58

   Josephf bailey jrposted 10 years ago

   I joined christiany base on fear when I was 8 or 9 yrs of age and my cousin told me I was going to HELL and gonna have boil spots on my skin , I was crying and terrified;now I'm much older and more spiritually mature none of this makes any since to me ,I now know NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST ME SHALL PROSPER so the word of GOD not only works in this physical realm but it also works in the AFTERLIFE!!! And GOD did not give us the spirit of FEAR , but every Sunday some preachers are teaching the HELL doctrine and doctrines of Devils and it is really a control mechanism.

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