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MrZetterlund
Guest
I have heard it somewhere tat the word hell means “separtion from God.” Is this true? Is there any scholarly basis for this?
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neisan
Guest
Yes,Hell is a place where God is not there to hold your hand.He isn’t going to protect you in the eternal torture that is Hell.You had your chance to be right with him in your life,if you decided to not repent,to not try to say “I’m sorry”,then he wants nothing to do with you.You let sin define your life,now you have to reap what you sow.
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Spirithound
Guest
Hell is itself separation from God, but the etymology of the Modern English word is rather more neutral:
from the Old English hel, helle “nether world, abode of the dead, infernal regions,”
from Proto-Germanic. *khaljo (cf. Old Frisian helle, Old Norse hel, Germanic Hölle, Gothic halja) “the underworld,” lit. “concealed place,” from Proto-Indo-European *kel- “to cover, conceal, save” (see cell).
from www.etymonline.com
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JRKH
Guest
There can be no doubt but that “hell” includes “seperation from God”, but whether that is the actual root meaning of the word itself I do not know.
I did find THIS article that might shed some light on the root hebrew words that we interpret as “hell”.
Peace
James
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Ron_Conte
Guest
The punishments of Hell include a deprivation of the beatific vision and all the other benefits of Heaven. The punishments of Hell also include various other types of suffering, not only the passive punishment of deprivation, but also active punishments.
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MrZetterlund
Guest
Alright, new question. People who live lives apart from God, away from the foundation Jesus Christ, could they be considered in a state of hell “separation from God.” -?
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Philthy
Guest
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NHInsider
Guest
They are partially there but since God’s presence permeates our world and since His Body is here, they are still buffered from the complete separation that they will experience in eternity. But it is quite accurate to say that if you choose separation from God in this life, He gives you what you choose. Which is why Jesus said we condemn ourselves when we reject Him.
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Clairvaux
Guest
Hell is no separation from God, it is in the full presence of God without His mercy, without His grace, because the full wrath is personally poured on those whom are condemd.
Psalm 137:7-8
Where can I go to get away from your Spirit? Where can I run to get away from you?
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
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davidv
Guest
How do you reconcile this position with this statement from the Catechism:
Bolding mine. If “self**-**exclusion from communion with God” isn’t separation from God, I don’t know what is.
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NHInsider
Guest
Well I would imagine that our Baptism friend isn’t particularly interested in reconciling his position with that of the Catechism.
BUT - I have heard it suggested that heaven and hell might be objectively the same, but subjectively opposite experiences, since being exposed to the Presence of God would be infinite joy to the believer who has been choosing to join his will to God’s during his life, and infinite woe to the non-believer who has chosen to reject God in life.
If it were possible to “see” and “know” the reality of God while being completely separated from Him and knowing that I would never experience unity with Him, I would think that would be hell.
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Clairvaux
Guest
Why do you think that iam not interessed in what the RCC catechism teaches ?
Iam on the board to learn about the Roman Catholic church, and even though iam still a baptist iam on my journey to discover the ancient church and the RCC doctrine.
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rwoehmke
Guest
Much of our world, God’s creation is but a reflection of who He is. In this life we know about God through our senses, because we are now incapable of beholding spirits. In the next life our spirit will know God directly without the intermediate need for the senses. How natural it seems to us to long for the experience of beauty and grandeur. That longing is ultimately our longing for the experience of God. Hell can be imagined as being in the presence of the most beautiful thing you will ever see and being unable to experience it or have a relationship with it; to know that through youir own previous choices, it is lost to you. 
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MrZetterlund
Guest
Just for a quick clarification, the reason I ask such a question is because I’m reading a book called, “23 minutes in Hell” by Bill Weise who states that he had no single thought of God, because the thought of such would cause the slightest bit of hope and comfort. I have also heard it been said that God is hope. And, of course, Jesus said “away from me, I do not know you” to the luke-warm in His parable. I believe that hell is a state of complete seperation from God. Meaning that people who willingly make the decision to be “separated from God” will get what they desire in advance.
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NHInsider
Guest
Sorry-I was responding to what I took to be a challenge to your position, asking how you reconciled it with the catechism. I’m sure when I was a Baptist (a long time ago, now) it wouldn’t have occurred to me to worry about whether my belief was in accord with the Catholic catechism.
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