Levels in Hell?

[hansard]

Can there be levels to Hell and eternal damnation?

One would assume that a genocidal, mass-murdering war-monger would stand a reasonable chance of going to Hell—unless, of course, he repented in his last moments (there’s an interesting thought, now, isn’t it?).
The same, obviously, with all unrepentant murderers, adulterers, thieves, bearers of false witness, heretics (including Protestants), blasphemers, etc, etc.
Those also going to Hell, apparently, are all those who have never accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour. All Jews, Muslims, atheists, adherents to the myriad of Eastern and tribal faiths, and, in general, all those who have lived and died in complete ignorance of Christ (i.e. most people in history). The same goes for anybody with an unforgiven mortal sin at their death.

Most of humanity is lost.

I realise that we have actually no idea who is currently in Hell, because that is God’s decision alone, but I must wonder:
Does an Australian aborigine from 40,000 years ago deserve the same eternal fate as the genocidal mass-murderer, simply because (for example) he waged war and killed on behalf of his tribe?
Does somebody who died last year in famine-torn Africa deserve the same fate as a mass-murderer, simply because the tribe had never heard the name of Jesus?
Surely a vicious killing is more serious than the mortal sin of not attending mass.

I could go on; hopefully you see the point. Well, what about it then? Are there levels to Hell, depending on the seriousness of the sins, the context of the sinner? Is there to be any justice administered to the damned, other than “all in the same fire”?

Is there any specific scripture or theology on this?

 

[bilop]

Can there be levels to Hell and eternal damnation?

I could go on; hopefully you see the point. Well, what about it then? Are there levels to Hell, depending on the seriousness of the sins, the context of the sinner? Is there to be any justice administered to the damned, other than “all in the same fire”?

Is there any specific scripture or theology on this?

Yes.

From the Old Catholic Encyclopedia:

(1) The pains of hell differ in degree according to demerit. This holds true not only of the pain of sense, but also of the pain of loss. A more intense hatred of God, a more vivid consciousness of utter abandonment by Divine goodness, a more restless craving to satisfy the natural desire for beatitude with things external to God, a more acute sense of shame and confusion at the folly of having sought happiness in earthly enjoyment – all this implies as its correlation a more complete and more painful separation from God.

newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm

Souls suffer more or less in Hell depending on their sins.

At the most extreme, the theological hypothesis of Limbo includes a region of Hell where there is no actual suffering (b/c the unbaptized babies therein committed no actual sin) only separation from the beatific vision.

God Bless

 

[hansard]

If Hell is just separation from the beatific vision, then it probably doesn’t matter what degree of sin led to a soul being there.
After all, can a soul be more separated than another from the beatific vision? You can either see it or you can’t.
No, if the absence of God is the punishment, then it must follow that one punishment fits all. You can’t have just a little presence of God, can you?
All or nothing, in that case.

 

[GEddie]

Does an Australian aborigine from 40,000 years ago deserve the same eternal fate as the genocidal mass-murderer, simply because (for example) he waged war and killed on behalf of his tribe?..Surely a vicious killing is more serious than the mortal sin of not attending mass.

I could go on; hopefully you see the point. Well, what about it then? Are there levels to Hell, depending on the seriousness of the sins, the context of the sinner? Is there to be any justice administered to the damned, other than “all in the same fire”?

Is there any specific scripture or theology on this?

In your aboriginal example; how is “killing for the tribe” in 38,000BC any different from “killing for your country” in the 1900s? If the 2nd is ok, (and almost everybody would say it is) then so was the 1st? Nationalism and the tribe-instinct are in essence the same thing, human life hasn’t changed (we have the same minds and bodies); only the circumstances.

God sees each life as it spools off the body, so to speak, and will judge accordingly. And someone who lived in 38,000BC will be judged based on the moral code he had within him; not a religion that didn’t exist yet.

While I can’t quote any authoritative source right now, I seem to recall hearing that there are indeed levels to both Hell and Purgatory.

 

[bilop]

If Hell is just separation from the beatific vision, then it probably doesn’t matter what degree of sin led to a soul being there.
After all, can a soul be more separated than another from the beatific vision? You can either see it or you can’t.
No, if the absence of God is the punishment, then it must follow that one punishment fits all. You can’t have just a little presence of God, can you?
All or nothing, in that case.

But it is also doctrine that there is actual pain and actual fire in Hell. The actual pain can vary in severity.

Souls could also vary in how much the separation from God hurts them.

God Bless

 

[hansard]

**“Souls could also vary in how much the separation from God hurts them.” **posted bilop.

Therefore, some wicked souls might prefer hell. Having utterly rejected God, why would they want the “beatific vision”?

Just a thought.

 

[aileron]

You might want to read Lumen Gentium. The Church does not claim that all the groups of people you list necessarily go to hell.

 

[Newbie2]

Dante had an interesting take on the subject; I’ve actually been thinking of writing an updated version of his “Inferno”. There was also a “puppet” version on the Ovation Channel not so long ago, which was quite creative.

Not entirely theological, though.

Since there would seem to be a “reward system”, i.e. that some would seem to be rewarded more than others in heaven, it stands to reason that others would be punished worse in hell. No solid theology behind this, just an opinion.