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Overview:Passages describing Hell are found throughout the Bible with a particular concentration in the Gospel of Matthew. The existence of Hell has been taught continuously by almost all Christian faith groups throughout their history. Hell has traditionally been viewed as a place of intense, eternal physical torment. In fact, because the Church has taught that inmates of Hell are trapped there for eternity without hope of release, their punishment is infinite in nature. Historically, the churches taught that many, perhaps the overwhelming majority of humans, would be punished there for all eternity, for sins committed during their life on earth. Beliefs about Hell have profoundly affected Christians:
Modern secular concepts of justice conflict with the traditional Christian beliefs about Hell. The idea of sentencing a person to eternal punishment for a thought crime - (i.e. the crime of believing differently about God) is repugnant to most people. Some of the concepts of justice that are violated by the existence of Hell are:
The gap between the traditional descriptions of Hell and modern concepts of human rights can only widen with time. As Rev. Joel Edwards commented in the above quote, Hell is an embarrassing reality to countless Fundamentalist and other Evangelical Christians. It is a major stumbling block that prevents many potential converts from accepting the beliefs of conservative Christianity. Many unsaved persons reject the concept that an all-good and just God could create a Hell. They could fear such a God, but they could never respect or worship Him. However, the concept of Hell and its tortures are a main theme throughout the Bible, particularly in the Christian Scriptures (New Testament). It cannot easily be avoided.
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