Will I go to hell?

[1ke]

I want people’s well-reasoned opinions on whether or not someone like me could get into heaven.

If you die in a state of mortal sin, you go to Hell. Catholic, Jew, atheist, whatever.

If you die in a state of grace, you go to Heaven, directly or by way of Purgatory first. Catholic, Jew, atheist, whatever.

So, the devil is in the details-- when you die, are you in a state of grace or not?

Objectively, apostacy is grave matter and would place you in mortal sin.

Subjectively, do you have full knowledge and free will? We cannot say, that is for God to judge. And, as the old saying goes, between the bridge and the water, there is time to repent. So, do we really know looking on from the outside? No.

The answer to your question is that it is possible for any person to go to Heaven and any person to go to Hell. It depends upon the state of our soul when we die.

 

[Veronica97]

I am not sure you are receiving very charitable answers here. First of all, no human can say who is going to Hell and who isn’t. Only God knows the heart. The Church has never declared ANYONE positively to be in Hell–not even Judas. But I am just wondering why you would ask the question in the first place if you do not believe in Hell (or Heaven)? If you TRULY do not believe in either place, then you would have nothing to be concerned about. I think deep down you KNOW the Truth. I would suggest that you say a prayer like this: “God, I don’t know if you exist, but if you do exist, please show me the Truth.” I think in time you will receive your answer.

 

[Robertanthony]

No one can say for sure, Poseidon. How much of that loss of faith is of you rown doing, how much is due to factors outside of your will. You say you live a moral life, I think it is way better than being an angry atheist who thinks humans have the same dignity as animals and live like the devil, committing every kind of sin. If you are open to God revealing himself to you then overtime I’m sure he will. If you have built an impenetrable fortress around your heart, intent on keeping God out at all costs, that is problematic. If you consciously, willingly, deliberately and obstinately reject all of God’s promptings to the bitter end, then he will give you what you want (nothing from him). How can someone be an atheist in his innermost being beats me. Just the mind-boggling absolutely crazy magnitude of the universe, how vast it is should make anyone with a tiny bit of reason and common sense left think, “It can’t have come about on its own”

 

[littlenothing]

I tend to agree with Meltzer here. Didn’t St Therese say you could be the worst sinner ever and, at jugdement, throw yourself at His mercy and you can be saved? It seems like maybe we can’t say if thee OP is going to he’ll because his life isn’t finished and we don’t know his heart at all. He asked us not to psychoanalyze (which actually seems a bit condescending to me), so I guess we are not allowed to even give him any benefit of doubt either.

If he willingly rejects God for eternity, yes he will go to he’ll. He may be on the path. Now. Seems like he is. But we don’t know what his faith formation was like at all, or what emotional things might have gotten in the way of his faith. No?

 

[littlenothing]

Oy, why did I bother? I don’t think he cares. He’s looking to argue.

 

[underacloud]

That’s why I mentioned invincible ignorance. You can’t claim it.

Non-Catholics / non-Christians CAN achieve Heaven, if they live virtuous lives and follow God’s laws to the best of their ability. The only way they are able to achieve this is by a gift of God’s grace. They may never hear the name of Jesus Christ, and they certainly never have any opportunity to learn the truth about Him. Thus the term “invincible ignorance.”

You don’t qualify. You were taught, at least partially, the truth of Christ. You reject it. In absence of circumstances that mitigate your culpability, like coercion by threat, that sends you to Hell. Sorry.

Sorry, but I disagree with your very rigid interpretation of invincible ignorance. Someone who is taught the faith may certainly remain in invincible ignorance, if the context of their life prevents them, through no fault of their own, from proper understand. Poor catechesis and bad example are factors that influence a persons ignorance of the faith even though they may be taught it. Other factors - such as sexual abuse by clergy to take an extreme example - may be an insurmountable obstacle to some people, even though they are taught the faith.

In fact, you suggest it yourself when you say “In absence of circumstances that mitigate your culpability”. You do not know the OP’s circumstances, so have no right to declare that they will go to hell. The ultimate destination of each soul is for God alone to judge, regardless of how it seems to others.

 

[JacarandaPurple]

Please don’t insult me with chastising me for saying he is going to Hell. Of course I don’t know what might happen in his last moments. But I am giving him exactly what he wants: discussion without psychoanalysis, emotion, or excuses.

The examples you give do not qualify as “invincible ignorance.” That is a technical term with an actual definition. I presented its definition as it was given to me, and as best I understand it, from a catechist I trust.

 

[Maryann_C]

Fatal logical fallacy: you don’t believe in Heaven either, so it’s moot.

Just to play along though, you can’t claim invincible ignorance. You know Christ and you rejected Him. He was pretty clear that He will reject you right back.

You also seem to have set up the idol of reason in His place. Idolatry is a whole other mortal sin.

By turning away from Christ and saying I no longer believe you rejected Him …you don’t have to be ‘mean about it’ you just walked away…same difference.

 

[InnocentFortune]

That’s why I mentioned invincible ignorance. You can’t claim it.

Non-Catholics / non-Christians CAN achieve Heaven, if they live virtuous lives and follow God’s laws to the best of their ability. The only way they are able to achieve this is by a gift of God’s grace. They may never hear the name of Jesus Christ, and they certainly never have any opportunity to learn the truth about Him. Thus the term “invincible ignorance.”

You don’t qualify. You were taught, at least partially, the truth of Christ. You reject it. In absence of circumstances that mitigate your culpability, like coercion by threat, that sends you to Hell. Sorry.

The capital CAN is false. At best it is MIGHT and even that is debatable and I highly doubt it.

 

[JacarandaPurple]

I always wonder at such vehement insistence on keeping truly innocent souls out of Heaven. Good thing it’s not up to you. Or me, for that matter.

 

[Poseidon]

I am not going to debate you, which is what you wish to do instead of getting a true answer.
If you had been properly instructed in the Catholic faith, you would know the answer and not have to resort to asking it in an on line forum.
The answer at the present time is yes you will go to hell if you do not go to confession and sincerely repent.
The reason is because you have had prior knowlege of G*D and have rejected Him. This is because of your intellectual arrogance which is evident in your retorts to those who have attempted to give a sincere reply to your question.
If you are really interested, or care for your soul in the slightest, I suggest that you go to or call the Rectory of a Catholic Church and have a chat with a priest. No one else on this earth can help you.

Please don’t insult me. I’m asking an honest question and you’re lecturing me about my “intellectual arrogance.” If you are going to answer the question then you’re welcome to, but you’re just using ad hominem attacks instead of telling me why you think I’ll go to hell. So I’ll ask you: why do you believe this?

 

[Brooklyn]

I’m with the rest. Why do you even bother to ask if you don’t believe in God, heaven or hell? I don’t believe in Santa Claus and the North Pole, to use the example given here, so it would be a complete waste of my time to discuss going to see Santa at the north pole. Since you are a total nonbeliever, why do you care what your eternity will consist of when you don’t even believe you have an eternity? As an atheist, you believe this life is all there is, that you are nothing more than random chance, and your life has no meaning anyway. It would seem you have settled this question in your mind, so why bother to ask?

But for what it’s worth, since God, the one you don’t believe in, is total mercy and love, he will never force you to be with him because that would only make you miserable. The only other alternative is hell, and that would seem to be what you have chosen.

Does that make you feel better?

 

[InnocentFortune]

Sorry, but I disagree with your very rigid interpretation of invincible ignorance. Someone who is taught the faith may certainly remain in invincible ignorance, if the context of their life prevents them, through no fault of their own, from proper understand. Poor catechesis and bad example are factors that influence a persons ignorance of the faith even though they may be taught it. Other factors - such as sexual abuse by clergy to take an extreme example - may be an insurmountable obstacle to some people, even though they are taught the faith.

In fact, you suggest it yourself when you say “In absence of circumstances that mitigate your culpability”. You do not know the OP’s circumstances, so have no right to declare that they will go to hell. The ultimate destination of each soul is for God alone to judge, regardless of how it seems to others.

I love modernism. The synthesis of all heresy to the aim of the destruction of all religion.

 

[Maryann_C]

I always wonder at such vehement insistence on keeping truly innocent souls out of Heaven. Good thing it’s not up to you. Or me, for that matter.

Amen but the key here is what constitutes “truly innocent” ? The OP does not wish for us to go into psychoanalysis on him ( or a hypothetical him) however. I doubt that he is ‘truly innocent’ having already had the Gospel shared with him and having chosen to reject it.

So back to the OP …OK I will take the bite that everyone else has ignored in your OP . Without the guidance of the Christian Gospel how do you know if you are leading a moral life? how do you know what morality is , without Christian teaching?

 

[littlenothing]

I think Brooklyn and Maryann nailed it.

 

[Poseidon]

Amen but the key here is what constitutes “truly innocent” ? The OP does not wish for us to go into psychoanalysis on him ( or a hypothetical him) however. I doubt that he is ‘truly innocent’ having already had the Gospel shared with him and having chosen to reject it.

So back to the OP …OK I will take the bite that everyone else has ignored in your OP . Without the guidance of the Christian Gospel how do you know if you are leading a moral life? how do you know what morality is , without Christian teaching?

That’s a good question. I have had Christian teaching, and for the most part I still follow it (obviously excepting things like praying, going to mass, etc.). But there are also some very good ethical systems that don’t require religious belief - reciprocation, humanism, etc.

 

[Brooklyn]

I always wonder at such vehement insistence on keeping truly innocent souls out of Heaven. Good thing it’s not up to you. Or me, for that matter.

You state that your religion is Catholic, so I assume you know that the Catholic Church teaches that none of us are innocent. Even newborn babies are not innocent. They have no actual sin as we do, but they are born with original sin inherited from our first parents. Even newborn babies must be cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. So yes, innocent souls do go to heaven. Unfortunately, the only innoncent souls this side of Adam and Eve were our Lord and his Blessed Mother. The rest of us - afraid not.

 

[underacloud]

Please don’t insult me with chastising me for saying he is going to Hell. Of course I don’t know what might happen in his last moments. But I am giving him exactly what he wants: discussion without psychoanalysis, emotion, or excuses.

The examples you give do not qualify as “invincible ignorance.” That is a technical term with an actual definition. I presented its definition as it was given to me, and as best I understand it, from a catechist I trust.

It has a definition, but it is a loose one - basically, ignorance that is innocent or involuntary. The examples I give certainly *may *qualify for any given person and it is up to God to decide.

Here’s a treatment on the topic from well know apologist James Akin:

catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=1203

Here is a section that expresses what I am alluding to, noting the last sentence:

“those who have accepted the Catholic faith are in a special position concerning innocent ignorance. Vatican I taught that God gives special grace to those who have embraced the true faith so that they may persevere in it, “not deserting if he [God] be not deserted.” As a result of this special grace, “those who have received the faith under the teaching authority of the Church can never have a just reason to change this same faith or to reject it” (Dei Filius 3; ND 124, D 1794, DS 3014). This applies, of course, to those who have genuinely accepted the Catholic faith under the influence of the Magisterium, not those who—though baptized or received into the Church—never actually accepted the Catholic faith due to absent or grossly defective catechesis.”

So, those who have been taught the faith may remain in invincible ignorance. Grossly defective catechesis surely includes teaching that is doctrinally correct but delivered in such a manner that it cannot be accepted…such as by abusive priests…or merely if it is accompanied by bad Christian example.

 

[NonServiam]

Why do you even bother to ask if you don’t believe in God, heaven or hell?

Because he’s interested in the attitude of religious people (who do exist). I think that’s a perfectly valid reason to ask a question, don’t you?

 

[Maryann_C]

I want people’s well-reasoned opinions on whether or not someone like me **could **get into heaven.

Re the word in bold… if you put it this way then the answer is of-course, because anything is possible for God and He could knock you off your *** and strike you with lightning just like He did with Paul but the fact remains that Jesus still said that HE is the Way and no one comes to the Father ( therefore into Heaven) but through Him and Jesus laid out the regular road map for us…this was after all the whole point of the Gospel!