Entries tagged with “Heaven” from Trans-cendental

Are you an ambassador for heaven?

OK, my readers are all over the place theologically. Some people don't believe in an afterlife, much less heaven. Many don't know for sure whether they're going to heaven (though I'm sure a few are certain). I don't think any of my readers are descended from heaven, but who knows?

For those who believe in an afterlife in paradise, and especially those who tell others about heaven:

Are you the kind of person with whom someone would like to spend eternity?

I have a tendency to be sullen, and maybe I'm not a great ambassador for heaven. It's something I'm working on. I'm not saying this is easy.

There are other types of behaviors that can be troublesome as well. Spending eternity with millions or billions of intimidating people doesn't sound much like heaven. People who point out every mistake aren't a vision of Paradise. Same for selfish people, and uncaring people, and lots of others.

So while we're here, if we believe in a hereafter, maybe we can start working on being the kind of people with whom spending time would be heavenly. Then, when we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be.

And maybe we'll help create a little heaven on earth.

I know that, historically, the threat of Hell has been a powerful tool in bringing people to the church. But I suspect it doesn't work so well anymore.


For those who do not believe in the supernatural at all, the threat of Hell probably sounds something like this:

There is a place of eternal torment (I can't prove this scientifically). That's where you're going after you die (I can't prove this scientifically). But there's another pace you can go where everything is wonderful (I can't prove this scientifically). You will go there if (you believe in Jesus/give your life to Jesus/are baptized/stop drinking/stop being gay/stop believing in evolution/go to my church/tithe/etc.)

I don't think the threat of Hell is very powerful for those who don't believe in an afterlife.


For those who believe there is more to existence than what they see, is the threat of Hell working? If an evangelist is a messenger of the Gospel, or good news, then how is "you're a sinner and are going to Hell" either good (who wants to be told they're going to be punished forever) or news (when this is preached via television, radio, film, book, and billboard)? Yes, I know the good news follows - you can be saved - but if you have to deliver the bad news of damnation to preach the good news of salvation, a lot of people are going to opt for not listening at all.


More importantly to me, however, is how the early church attracted people. People seemed to be attracted to how Christians cared for each other and community. I don't see a lot of Helfire preached in Acts.

I'm wondering whether that's what we ought to be doing: preaching the good news of capital L Love. And in preaching, I mean first living the Love between us: our family members, our congregational members and friends, across congregations, associations, conferences, diocese, synods, and denominations. If we can first practice that Love and concern between each other, and then expand that circle so it becomes so large that everyone is within its perimeter, people will come to see us as a loving people. Then we can talk about a god whose Love is even greater than ours, and maybe we're starting the work Jesus called us to.


I don't recall the citation for the Bible verse that said "Go ye into all the world and tell people they're damned". If there is such a verse, let me know. Until then, I will take up the version of the Great Commission that says I am to preach the Gospel, the Good Word, that everyone is loved.

I was watching a rerun episode of South Park ("Make Love, not Warcraft") the other night. In it, the boys find a player who is just "killing" other payers' characters for no good reason, ruining the game for everyone.

Have you ever played a game with someone who doesn't play fair? Maybe it's someone who hides a card up a sleeve, or has a hidden stash of Monopoly money, or uses a non-regulation bat. Doesn't that take the fun out of the game?

But it is just a game, after all. So does it really matter if someone cheats?

I think it does matter. It matters to those who have been cheated and, if we're honest, it takes some of the fun out for the cheater. In some cases, not playing by the rules can raise the risk of physical injury to players.

So why do we play fair? Not because of some reward or punishment, but because playing fairly makes the game more enjoyable.

I think life is like this. There are some who believe in a single afterlife, some who believe in many reincarnations, some who believe this life is but a dream, and some who believe that the only reality is the one right here. One thing that is true for all of these ways of looking at life is that playing fair makes life better, and cheating makes it worse.

We need not rely on the carrot of Heaven nor the stick of Hell to tell us to be respectful and honest in our dealings with each other. All we need to understand is that life is better when we play fairly, even when we are in competition with each other for resources, ideas, or respect.

Love builds up. And what builds up helps everyone.

We know how it is - everyone ends up in Heaven or Hell for eternity. Heaven is beautiful, safe, everything good and right. Hell is eternal punishment - pain and burning and freezing and loneliness.

The trouble is, our visions of Heaven and Hell are substantially drawn from The Divine Comedy by Dante. Jesus actually offered life versus death. There is no eternal suffering in Jesus's ministry - the references to "unquenchable fire" are just that - a consuming fire that can't be stopped, not a fire in which things are burned but not consumed.

Jesus talks about those parts of humanity which are not desirable fruit being consumed in the fire. Whether those are individuals or aspects of individuals is less clear. However, I prefer to think of it as aspects.

In the parable of the wheat and the chaff, Jesus talks about the harvest and how the wheat will be threshed and the chaff is separated and burned. Chaff is the outside casing of wheat - the part that's not used.

So are we like wheat? Do we have good inside of us that would remain if the useless part is stripped away? I'd like to believe so. And I'd like to believe that what Jesus taught was how to maximize the grain - the seed of that which will live on after the useless chaff is gone.

Honestly, if the useless, undesirable parts of me are damned to the trashpile, or dungheap, or the unquenchable fire, that's fine with me. I'll be working on the seed to which Jesus promises eternal life.

If you prefer to believe in a God who punishes people with eternal suffering, that is your choice. I prefer to believe in a God who created us, loves us, and will help us to achieve  the best.