faith

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Heaven or Hell?

There appears to be some controversy over whether or not the Pope said atheists can still go to Heaven after they die. My guess is that he made some merciful and constructive statement about atheists that got twisted into something entirely different… but regardless, it hits upon one of my biggest unsettled doubts about my faith: Heaven and Hell.

I can grasp that those who choose not to believe a certain creed will not reap the benefits and promises of that creed. For instance, an atheist can’t expect to get into the Heaven as described in the Bible. He can’t expect to achieve nirvana/Paradise/what have you without accepting what the creed has to say. That just wouldn’t make sense. What’s the point, if everyone can get in (especially without faith?)

What I cannot grasp, however, is that those who choose not to accept a certain creed (perhaps in favor of another) will go to Hell. In fact, it’s really, really hard for me to grasp Hell at all.

There are many ways Christianity has been interpreted over the years, but the biggest message I get from it is a loving, merciful God who views us as His (imperfect) children and wants us to succeed in achieving everlasting life. As for humanity, in many ways I am very cynical about it, but I also feel that very few people are truly evil. And those very few evil people are the ones who “deserve” Hell.

As for the rest of us in between…? I just can’t accept it!

I can’t accept that the majority of my friends, family, respected colleagues – who are not atheists, but are not “born again” Christians either – are going to Hell. I am blessed to know so many wonderful, overall good people (we are all flawed), but I can’t accept that my God would send them to Hell.

I know what the Bible says on the issue. I know the countless ways it has been interpreted. I know there is no one alive on Earth who can tell us what it all really means. I know that most people in the world have faith in something, just in different forms. We are all doing the best we can with what we’ve got, and reacting to what Life teaches us. In some ways all of our stories are the same, and in others, they are drastically different.

But it’s one of those confusing, complicated, and depressing subjects that I probably will never figure out. I like to think that perhaps “accepting Jesus” is living a Christ-like life. Many world views teach a very similar message to Christ’s, and I think most “Heaven-deserving” people are trying to lead that good life, at least as much as Christians are (if not more so, in quite a few cases.)

I don’t want to be one of those Christians who misses the entire point of my faith to mesh with my own wishful thinking, but I am also far too humanistic to believe it’s quite that cut and dry…  Are so few of us really getting in? Or, are so many of us really getting in just because we “believe” in Jesus?

Is it okay to just say “I don’t know?”

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The Power of Prayer

I don’t think that religion is a mass delusion at all, but I’ve come to the conclusion that prayer can be… particularly as a way to “fix” something or to get what you want.

Not that there’s anything wrong with it, in an of itself. I’ll never turn down someone’s prayers. By all means, the more people who pray for what I need or want, the better. But I do think it’s dangerous for Christians to preach that prayer works, and that God answers us.  I just don’t think that’s the case, and the pretense that it does work is only going to lead to disappointment, doubt, and self-loathing in poor unfortunate souls all over the world.

It’s true that miracles happen every day. Cancer disappears, accidents are survived, lost pets come home, and the weather clears up just in time for someone’s birthday party at the pool.

On the flip side, cancer kills, accidents destroy lives, pets die, and the storm ruins your party.

The kicker for me, of course, is that these things happen to people regardless of whether or not you prayed for it, and regardless of faith. They happen to Christians, Muslims, Wiccans, and Atheists. I wish we’d think twice before telling people to turn to prayer to solve their problems. How then do we explain when things go wrong?

What is the little girl praying for her lost dog going to think when he never comes home? What is the person praying his cancer is healed going to think when the cynic next to him is healed, but he is not?

They’re going to think they did something wrong. That God maybe doesn’t love them as much. That perhaps their prayers aren’t good enough, or that they are not Christian enough. In a way, it’s a form of victim-blaming to tell a person that their prayers or thought philosophies (like the famed Secret) will cure them, or prevent harm from coming their way.

We all know there are countless factors that go into why or why not something happens – and countless more that will forever remain a mystery. We aren’t meant to know why things happen, but I understand that’s a tough concept for people to embrace.

I pray all the time. I chat with God, vent to God, and yes, I ask God to help me. But I certainly don’t expect Him to. And who can blame him? Life isn’t supposed to be sunshine and roses. But every time someone tells me (or a vulnerable congregation) to surrender my problems to the Lord and pray them away, I cringe. I’ve never been a fan of the Church building up false expectations in people… but then again, I tend to have a “prepare for the worst” mentality these days…