Eternality of Hell

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SkippingM

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If we inherit eternal life through Christ, and hell is the absence of God, then how can the human soul be eternally punished in hell?

In other words, how can the human soul in hell be eternal if it doesn’t possess Christ?

Thanks.
 
We became eternal at our conception. We are created in the image and likeness of an eternal God, so that eternal nature has been granted us, as a result of God’s very nature. Christ or not, our soul dwells forever.

The resurrection will be to eternal reward and glory, or to eternal shame.

Therefore, we must choose wisely.
 
Thank you for your answer.

So… the death that came with the fall, was it just physical?

I’m having trouble understanding what kind of life people will have in hell.

I know the Life that is in Jesus, which people will have in heaven, which includes the transformation of the physical body which will be raised up. But, then… what kind of life is there in hell? How isn’t that considered being alive? I just don’t get it.
 
Oh, it is life, but life without God, love, peace, happiness - everything good that we have received from God. It is emptiness and despair. The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is instructive here.
 
““Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.”
‭‭John‬ ‭5:24-29‬ ‭NIV‬‬
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So… when He says that some will rise to live and some will rise to be condemned…

Rise to live… physically as well as spiritually for all eternity.

Rise to be condemned… maybe not physically? Maybe yes? Maybe a different kind of spiritually? Because it can’t be considered the same “life”…

He says that those who believe have already crossed from death to life. So, definitely a spiritual life while in these bodies that will die. While others are alive in body but dead in spirit.

So then, when those are condemned… they are already dead in spirit of some sort. So what goes into hell? Is there a Spirit (the life that is in Jesus) and also a Soul (what makes us alive in these bodies even while spiritually dead)?

Is that Soul what goes to hell? And those people just don’t get the Spirit? Do their bodies get destroyed and only the Soul goes to hell? Or does the body also goes into hell?
 
SkippingM said:
Thank you for your answer.

So… the death that came with the fall, was it just physical?

I’m having trouble understanding what kind of life people will have in hell.

I know the Life that is in Jesus, which people will have in heaven, which includes the transformation of the physical body which will be raised up. But, then… what kind of life is there in hell? How isn’t that considered being alive? I just don’t get it.
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No, the Council of Orange made it clear that the death is of two kinds: body and soul. The death of the soul is in the loss of sanctifying grace. Note that there are five sacraments of the living and two sacraments of the dead (baptism, penance).
 
The “eternal life” mentioned in the Gospels particularly refers to “zoe”, which is used Biblically to refer to the divine life of God, true life, etc… this can be contrasted with biological life (bios) and spiritual/psychological life (psyche). So what we inherit though Jesus is a sharing in the eternal divine life. I feel like the English phrase “eternal life” does not capture this well, as the language only has one word for life which has a broad range of uses.

Those in Hell don’t have any sharing in the “zoe” of the eternal life of God.

Your question seems to stem from something literally being lost in translation.
 
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This is the answer I needed. Thank you. I’m at peace with the subject now.

But it raises another question. If we no longer have the true life within us because of the fall, then what is it within us (before we believe) that allows us to recognize His voice?
 
It says both body and soul can be lost in hell, but then says it’s the soul that gets condemned. So, not so specific. Thank you though. 🙂
 
Bodily resurrection of both the good and evil. Forever.

Do not complicate this! God is utter simplicity and makes things easy to understand as He has presented them.

The evil one complicates - always and everywhere so as to confuse and divide.
 
Thank you. I’m not trying to complicate things; I’m trying to understand. I just saw another part of the catechism that says the body will be raised into an incorruptible body, so as to be reunited with the soul.

This just made me so sad because the seriousness of hell got that much more real. I mean, peoples bodies will be transformed into incorruptible bodies, reunited with the soul, and then they might go to hell like that. Eternal damnation, body and soul… wow. Scary SCARY stuff.
 
“Where the worm does not die” - eternal putrefaction. Ever seen that? Smelled that?

Don’t go there.
 
“Don’t go there” as in “don’t go to hell,” or as in “don’t think about these things?”

I have to think about these things. Right now, specifically because some Jehovahs witnesses are returning next week & I found out while researching them that they don’t believe in hell. I’m trying to be prepared. I don’t want them or anyone to go to hell…
 
SkippingM said:
I’m having trouble understanding what kind of life people will have in hell.
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From the Book of Revelation:
The sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead, and each one was judged according to his deeds. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death— the lake of fire. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
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[Unrepentant sinners] will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.
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Also see Aquinas on the punishment of the damned, of which the most relevant quote is:
Fire continues in that place for all eternity by the ordering of Divine justice
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SkippingM said:
specifically because some Jehovahs witnesses are returning next week & I found out while researching them that they don’t believe in hell.
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Their doctrine is literally a milkshake of most known heresies. I’ve spent years studying it and it’s incredible how many errors it contains.

That being said, a properly trained member of the Watchtower Society would not believe one word coming from Catholics simply because they are Catholic, so they can’t possibly know what they are talking about.

I guess if you show you know the Scriptures, at least you make Catholics look good. But I’m not sure it’s worth arguing the points. After all, they believe Christ is St. Michael the Archangel, transfusions are evil, and many many other strange things that are very confusing to keep track of.
 
You answered the question in the question. If one rejects what it given it cannot be gained.
 
Sad to say, you and I will never convince them. Many who are far greater than you or I have tried and failed. JWs are essentially programmed. All we can do, as I see it, is plant seeds and let them go. You will have lost no friends and made no enemies. I just tie them up as long as I can to keep them from others. You want to get their attention? Call them Protestant! They use bible alone, the 66 book Protestant bible and reject both the Catholic and Orthodox faith. it is a disservice to Protestantism, but that gets them going. Also, they are not Christian, as they reject the Trinity.
 
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Years ago, two JWs came to our house. My late fathe told them: “We’re Catholic.” ❤️ They shrunk back and walked away.
 
SkippingM said:
This is the answer I needed. Thank you. I’m at peace with the subject now.

But it raises another question. If we no longer have the true life within us because of the fall, then what is it within us (before we believe) that allows us to recognize His voice?
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God gives actual graces for conversion.
 
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