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I am religious and believe in free will

71 (27.7%)

I am religious and do not believe in free will

10 (3.9%)

I am not religious and believe in free will

114 (44.5%)

I am not religious and do not believe in free will

61 (23.8%)

Total Members Voted: 251

[Frumple]

Yeah, there's a certain degree of biblical support for a fiery hell. There's also support for a number of other sorts, of course, but let it never be said that consistency was terribly important to the folks spread out over a generation or two that actually penned the bible.

[chaoticag]

Out of curiosity, how do people reconcile the huge variation within religion with the idea that only one path is right?

Beyond the "all paths lead to God" idea, which I personally don't find convincing (there are steps that lead to God. Different steps for different religions/denominations.)

Last I heard, at least as far back as the summer of 2010, it's not an idea that the majority of people that participate in cross religious talks don't quite take the idea of all paths lead to god idea seriously. At least that's what our professor told us in that Eastern Religions class said.

That being said, it's probably worthwhile to bring up the blind men and the elephant parable, where four or so blind men try and understand what an elephant is like through their sense of touch, and walk out disagreeing over whether it's thick and long, or broad, or flexible and thin.

I've also met a few people that believed that no god is as cruel as those their holy books described, and would believe that if there is a heaven, being a decent person would be all it takes for you to enter it.

[Teneb]

Yeah, there's a certain degree of biblical support for a fiery hell. There's also support for a number of other sorts, of course, but let it never be said that consistency was terribly important to the folks spread out over a generation or two that actually penned the bible.

All I can find about hell in the bible is that it is an unpleasant place where bad people go. Might be one of those things that got jumbled up during the many, many translation.

I guess I was wrong about Dante, although his work, despite seeming to be mostly political, does have a lot of influence.

[Bohandas]

Yeah, there's a certain degree of biblical support for a fiery hell. There's also support for a number of other sorts, of course, but let it never be said that consistency was terribly important to the folks spread out over a generation or two that actually penned the bible.

All I can find about hell in the bible is that it is an unpleasant place where bad people go. Might be one of those things that got jumbled up during the many, many translation.

I guess I was wrong about Dante, although his work, despite seeming to be mostly political, does have a lot of influence.

There's numerous references in the gospel to the wicked being thrown into a fiery furnace.

[lemon10]

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."

and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

There are quite a few more of those here by the way if you are interested.

Yeah, there's a certain degree of biblical support for a fiery hell. There's also support for a number of other sorts, of course, but let it never be said that consistency was terribly important to the folks spread out over a generation or two that actually penned the bible.

I've always felt that those who said that hell wasn't a place of eternal (fiery) torment were simply saying "But god is nice, he wouldn't do something so mean as eternal fiery torment for everyone that doesn't do exactly what he wants them to do", and thus managed to interpret the bible as saying that hell as stated in the bible doesn't exist.

[That Wolf]

I think you mean Buhdism, but yeah, I get what your saying. But, no, it does not offer the key things, like, uhh God. Buhdism is the worship of yourself, trying to become nothing, in order to attain perfect transcendence. Makes no sense to me at all. Christianity is a servant's religion. You're not in it for yourself, but for God. Almost all other religions are self-centered, whereas Christianity is centered on God. How is this like Buhdism?

HAHA
Wow, this sounds more ignorant than me, buddhism isnt about worshiping yourself, but its nice you think its that way. Im sure you are a selfless servant of god, one who devotes all his time and money to god.
What you got confused with buddism is human nature, worshiping yourself, I bet you did it today, a coffee prehaps? A little instant gratification *wink *wink. A little look in the mirror to see how pretty/ugly you are, you probably saw that beautiful person and thought 
You get the point.
You worship yourself
YOU worship YOURSELF

Classic religious I am better than you because I believe in X god, and ive got a vip pass because Y invited me

[Orange Wizard]

Coffee != worshipping oneself. Concern about one's appearance != worshipping oneself.

[That Wolf]

Coffee != worshipping oneself. Concern about one's appearance != worshipping oneself.

I hope that isnt sarcasim
Sounds like a bloody kiwi thing to do 

[Bohandas]

Buhdism is the worship of yourself

You're thinking of the prosperity gospel, which is a Christian credo.

[Frumple]

There are quite a few more of those here by the way if you are interested.

There's a significantly more thorough list here. Fire is indeed common, but it's not alone -- you've also got darkness, separation, silence, and just plain destruction. Many of the references to fire (that aren't just repeating themselves or someone else, anyway) definitely imply that it's not the only punishment, actually, if the translation preserved the meaning adequately. And, as always, description beyond "fiery" is generally decidedly lacking...

[That Wolf]

Another hypothesis...

I practice magic arts and I can throw fire and seperate water into hydrogen and oxy creating a fire ball (whatever its magic)
but I can also heal wounds and disease.
I am a nice person so instead of killing the filthy american scum with my power I decide to heal all who ask for it, yes all and i am capible of healing many diseases including genetic and mental diseases (not spiritual) and people try to pay me but I say no (i rob banks with my fire)

I would still go to hell right?
Beacause im a magic arts practitioner.

mind you hell wouldnt be bad if I could control the fire

[King Kravoka]

It depends on the source of power.

Like, if you got it from demons and false gods, that's bad. But if you get from, say, a field of nonspiritual energy that pervades the galaxy that can be understood and tapped into, that should be fine.

Also find a way to use for FTL travel.

[Bohandas]

Another hypothesis...

I practice magic arts and I can throw fire and seperate water into hydrogen and oxy creating a fire ball (whatever its magic)
but I can also heal wounds and disease.
I am a nice person so instead of killing the filthy american scum with my power I decide to heal all who ask for it, yes all and i am capible of healing many diseases including genetic and mental diseases (not spiritual) and people try to pay me but I say no (i rob banks with my fire)

I would still go to hell right?
Beacause im a magic arts practitioner.

Ironically that sounds exactly like Jesus

[i2amroy]

I would still go to hell right?
Beacause im a magic arts practitioner.

Depends on what version you are looking at. IIRC the original word used in the "suffer not a witch to live" translates more specifically as "person who uses magic to do evil". It's just that King James was big on burning witches, so they translated it as "witch". Under the original version you wouldn't be doing anything bad at all, so you wouldn't suffer in any ways (except for the bank robbing that is).

[That Wolf]

I knew it! Jesus was a bank robber. You cab see it in his eyes, the eyes of a man whos done things, things to get by. Its what you have to do to survive!