Intense Fear Of Hell/ The End Times- Please Help

[shw11]

Hello everyone 

 

This is my first post on here- so let me just start by saying that I am not actually an ex- Christian (I have never actually been a Christian at all) but I have been browsing this site for the past few months due to my anxiety around general religious issues and I was hoping you might be able to help me out- I hope that's ok

 

As a bit of background, I have some anxiety issues which cause me to become quite obsessive over particular fears (usually philosophical/ existential things because my brain just seems to like focusing on them), and my latest 'obsession' i guess you could say has been around religion (particularly Christianity) and which of them (if any) is true.

 

Anyway, I had never given much thought to religious issues until recently. Both my parents are atheists, so that's pretty much the world view I have always held. Until a few weeks ago I got a nasty message from a Christian fundamentalist on tumblr, telling me I was going to hell for supporting the 'gay agenda' (I know), probably because I reblogged something about the Pride march. At first I dismissed at as bigoted ridiculousness, but then the idea of hell started to play on my mind, I did a tonne of research into it and found several people claiming it was indeed a real place with real flames where I indeed would go if I didn't except Jesus (I know this is old news to you guys- I didn't actually know much about Christian theology at the time so it was all pretty new to me). Like I didn't realise that a considerable number of people believed this stuff in a literal sense (sounds naive I know). So I came to the conclusion that if Christianity is true hell must be real, since the whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense without it, and if hell is real then I'm definitely going there (since even if I did convert it would be out of fear, and I wouldn't actually believe completely it- I'm pretty sure an omniscient God would be able to see through my bullshit). So, to summarise I don't believe Christianity is true, but I don't know for sure that it isn't- which is actually a pretty scary position to be in as I'm sure a lot of you will understand. 

 

So I've spent a lot of time over the holiday trying to 'prove' to myself that Christianity isn't true. I read a bunch of books by atheist authors (Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens etc.) and despite being provided with pretty compelling evidence that it's all nonsense, I can't rid myself of the anxiety/ niggling doubts that keep coming back to me. I know I should really just let it go as I will never be able to completely prove the whole thing false, but I just want to be reasonably sure that me and pretty much everyone I care about aren't on a one way train to some kind of eternal furnace, which is of course a pretty horrifying thought. The fear is making it really hard to concentrate on my school work, or anything really. These awful images of hell keep popping into my head. I feel nervous just singing hymns in assembly at school or walking past churches. I mean it's getting slightly ridiculous.  

 

Besides the hell thing, another part of Christianity that has been really messing with me is the whole end times/ rapture thing. I stumbled across a theory on the internet a while ago that the rapture will in fact occur between the the 22nd and 28th of September this year, followed by the Earth being destroyed by a giant asteroid. The evidence for this claim is rather dubious, but obviously due to my anxiety it has me terrified. Most people are saying we will get hit by this asteroid on the 23rd, so you can google the date to see the so called evidence. There are tonnes of youtube videos on the subject. I know people are always making these predictions, but part of me just can't dismiss the fear that something terrible is going to happen in just 2 weeks. So if anyone has anything to say on that I would appreciate it.

 

One last thing (I'm sorry this is getting really long)- what do you guys make of these people who claim to have been to hell and returned? there are a few of them floating around. A particularly scary one is Mary K Baxter, who even described a special place in hell for gay people (which really really got to me- I have a lot of gay friends who I really care about). Common sense tells me these people are lying to make money, but a lot of people really take them seriously. 

 

Well I could go on for ages but I should probable shut up now. Thank you so much for reading, I would really appreciate any reassurance/ advice on how to deal with these fears.

 

 

[bornagainathiest]

Hi shw11!

 

I can help you out when it comes to this asteroid nonsense.

 

This is the official NASA position on that rumor.  http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=4692 

 

This is the official website for the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center.  http://www.minorplanetcenter.org/

 

You'll note that there's no mention at all of any dangerous asteroids in the 'Latest News' column and that 'Close Approach' table (lower right of page) also shows nothing approaching Earth any closer than 2.14 LD's (Lunar Distances) during this month and up to Oct 18.  Asteroid 2015 RW35 passes the Earth today at 2.14 times the distance to the Moon.  While I'm not party to exactly how the MPC calculates a Lunar Distance, if we take a generally-accepted average of 238, 900 miles and multiply that by 2.14, we arrive at a figure of 511, 246 miles.  

 

So 2015 RW35 will zip silently past us at a very safe distance indeed.  Nothing to worry about there!

 

Here are some additional websites you can check out that are all dedicated to detecting and reporting dangerous asteroids and comets.

 

http://sentinelmission.org/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalina_Sky_Survey

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Near-Earth_Asteroid_Research

http://neossat.ca/

 

None of these sites have anything out of the ordinary listed for September 2015.

 

Here is a Wikipedia list of asteroids that are currently considered potential threats.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_VE191(Calculated to pass 46,000 miles from the Earth on Nov 27, 2015)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/(29075)_1950_DA(Calculated to have a 1 in 20,000 chance of impacting Earth in 2880 A.D.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1994_WR12(Calculated to have a 1 in 10,000 chance of impacting the Earth 

 

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

 

 

[Llwellyn]

Even hell and the End Times would present their own new opportunities for joy and challenges permitting growth, so I'm kind of hoping that Christianity is true, even though I refuse to agree that Yahweh is worthwhile to worship.  Very sorry that this is disrupting your life and taking away from your joy.  I'm glad that you have an awareness that your emotions flow from certain of your own predispositions towards anxiety.  Don't take it from us, but judge for yourself that Christianity ought to be no more than a low-level anxiety for you and not a major anxiety.  We just have to be adults and set aside our fears, just as we would try to set aside similar fears that we might see in other people.

 

"Yahweh will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you."  Joshua 23:15.  Just because Christians worship him and call him "good," and "God" does not make him any less a demon under legitimate objective criteria.  Yahweh is only one of many imagined demons who wish to bring evil upon humans.  Here is a list of Demons A-z.  Now remind me why you may be more worried about the demon Yahweh rather than the demon Allah or Naburus?  There is no way to be "certain" that any hypothesis of a divine curse is false.  I'm sorry if I've just added to you hundreds of new anxieties with that list of demons.  But now that you've seen the list, there is no way to be mathematically certain that any given one is "not true."

 

http://www.weird-encyclopedia.com/demons-a-z.php

 

Imagine what it might mean to burn in hell -- don't you think that you could adapt to that circumstance?  Don't you think you can grow?  Wouldn't there be some negative aspects of this life that would be improved?  If some demon Yahweh was imposing curses upon you, don't you think he would be getting some satisfaction?  Don't you think he would be learning from it, and benefitting from the experience?  Isn't it possible that he could perhaps one day stop or change his mind?  Isn't it possible that even if the suffering never went away, that would be ok too?  Life is worthwhile even if we suffer with our own burdens without relief.  I hope that your own life is pleasing to you even with your anxiety issues.

[♦ ficino ♦]

Hi, shw11, and welcome.

 

A lot of people find that fear of hell can be a real mind-fuck. It's one of the few things Christianity has going for it (maybe Islam, too). There are a lot of reasons to be anxious in this world. Christianity plays on everyone's fears, injects new ones, and then sells the medicine to help us try to cope with the fear it instilled.

 

It promises love, too - in its own warped way. But I think more people stay faithful out of fear than out of any other single emotion.

 

Off the top of my head I can think of two things:

 

1. you mention that you already have anxiety issues. If you are not in treatment for them, should you consider it? Does your school have a counseling center where you could start? Would your parents be supportive?

 

2. the more someone digs into the Bible as a collection of texts, the more contradictions, absurdities, atrocities are revealed. There are many passages that sound lofty, many others that sound scary, but the whole thing is laced with contradictions. The defenders of a literal reading of the Bible do ANYTHING to twist meanings of words, etc. to try to preserve the Bible as inerrant. In the end, their attempt falls under its own weight.

 

Citsonga posted somewhere on here a long list of Bible contradictions and Bible errors. There are also websites that outline many of them, if you just Google Bible contradictions.

 

There are also historical problems. No archaeologist who is not already a religionist thinks that the Exodus happened. There is no evidence of 3 million or so people with all their animals wandering in the peninsula of Sinai for 40 years. There is no record of it. And Egypt was controlling Canaan at the time it's supposed to have happened - so God was leading the Israelites out of Egyptian territory in order to bring them into Egyptian territory? But if the Exodus is a myth, the whole Torah is pretty much revealed as a human production, assembled in Babylonia during the Exile in something like the 6th century B.C.

 

What are the consequences for both Judaism and Christianity if the Exodus is a myth?

 

Bart Ehrman's books about the Bible are top scholarship and very spot on. He started out as a missionary-type fundy who couldn't go along with the cult anymore once he really dug into its sacred texts.

 

Stick around. We'll try to share our knowledge and experience, and look forward to your sharing yours.

 

Peace, ficino

[bdp]

Rapture: Hal Lindsey thought the rapture was definitely going to happen before the 1980's were over, and he had it all laid out and backed up with scripture and prophecy lined up with the headlines of those days.  Any 'prophecy' can be twisted to fit anything.

[mymistake]

Welcome shw11,

 

The main problem in this story is you are not thinking rationally about this issue.  You have mentioned no valid reason to think there is a hell.  There are Dr. Who fans but this does not cause you to fear that Daleks will attack the Earth, now does it?  Pastors, priests and preachers are apparently scammers.  They talk people into belief and then take the money.  Doesn't that put the responsibility on church leaders to back up what they say with solid evidence?  Really all this talk of hell is unfounded and deserves nothing more than an eye roll.  "Some people believe" is not a good reason.  

 

I think scammers are trying to take advantage of your anxiety.  Christians are trained to keep at it and if they are persistent enough they eventually find somebody who is vulnerable.  Do you have some sort of anxiety treatment that is not affiliated with a church?   I would focus on getting your anxiety under control and then learning logic so you can focus your thinking on being rational.  And please don't think I am being harsh with you.  I was a christian for over 30 years and most of that time I was moonbat crazy and I developed a crippling phobia regarding demons.  I was constantly afraid that demons lurked in my house and might attack me.  I blame Christian theology.  Christianity inflicts irrational thinking on humanity.  Don't wind up trapped for decades the way I was.  

[Blood]

Ancient people thought that there was an "underworld" below the ground where your ghost ("soul") went when you died. They imagined all sorts of things happening there, but none of them were so depraved as to propose that it was a site of endless torture. That was a Christian "innovation." 

 

Regardless, it is silly anyway, since a ghost -- having no body -- cannot feel pain. 

 

These are all just ancient fantasies that were written down and copied year after year because people thought that since it was old, it must be true. The modern world abandoned that idea a few hundred years ago but ancient religion holds on, like a vestigial organ that serves no purpose but nonetheless can cause serious health problems. 

 

The Old Testament had no concept of "hell." It called the underground "Sheol." This was (mis)interpreted in Greek as "Hades." Since the Christian religion is based entirely on the Greek translations of the Bible (not the Hebrew), they mistakenly assumed that the Bible was referring to Greek-like conceptions when it said "Sheol." So if you're not freaked out about going to Hades, which is usually called "Greek mythology," you shouldn't be scared of "hell," which is the exact same mythology. 

 

Have a nice day. 

[★ Citsonga ★]

The concept of "hell" can be terrifying. As others have pointed out, there's no real evidence of "hell" being true. I'm going to share something here that I've posted a few times before for others. A few years back I wrote a lengthy letter detailing a lot of problems with the Bible, and below is an excerpt that dealt with "hell." Hopefully your fear of the unfounded concept can be laid to rest.

 

 

The Lake of Fire

 

The Bible says that "the beast" and "false prophet" will be "cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Rev 19:20), and that "the devil" will also be "cast into the lake of fire and brimstone" and that they "shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Rev 20:10). After that we read that "death and hell" and "whosoever was not found written in the book of life" will be "cast into the lake of fire," which it also calls "the second death" (Rev 20:14-15). Though it doesn't specify here, one would assume that this implies that everyone thrown into this lake of fire would also be tortured forever, just like it says will happen to the beast, false prophet and devil. Granted, Revelation is highly symbolic, so one could argue that this is not meant literally, especially given the reference to a "second death." For the sake of this writing, though, I will treat it literally, as traditional Christians tend to do.

 

As a side note, many confuse "hell" with the eternal "lake of fire." However, as can be seen from the statement that "hell" will be "cast into the lake of fire" (Rev 20:14), they are technically not the same thing in the Bible. "Hell" here is the Greek term "Hades," which was used for the grave, the nether world, the realm of the dead. But, since most people think of "Hell" as the lake of fire, from here on out that will be what I am referring to when I use the capitalized word "Hell" in quotes. So, let's move on and take a closer look at the concept of eternal torture and what the Bible has to say about "Hell."

 

To hear Christians talk, "Hell" is one of the most important topics in Christianity. Indeed, what we supposedly need saving from is "Hell." Yet, if "Hell" is such a hot topic (pun intended), and burning eternally is the final punishment for the wicked, then why is the concept of the lake of fire completely absent from the Old Testament? Sure, the word "hell" is found in the KJV Old Testament, but it is the Hebrew word "Sheol," which means the grave, the underworld, the abode of the dead, a pit. Though there are several places where the Old Testament refers to "fire" symbolically, there is no place in it that says anything about eternal torture in fire (when preachers use Old Testament verses to prove "Hell," a quick look at the context always reveals that they mean something else).

 

In the Old Testament, the punishment for wickedness is said to be death (Eze 3:18-19; 18:20,24; 33:8-14; Psalm 37:20; Prov 2:22). Beyond that, Isaiah says, "They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise" (Isa 26:14). Daniel contradicts that by saying, "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt" (Dan 12:2), but though it doesn't fit with most of what we see in the Old Testament, even this verse doesn't say anything about torture.

 

There is a significant Old Testament verse to mention, though. Jeremiah says, "Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter" (Jer 19:6). In this verse, "The valley of the son of Hinnom" in Hebrew is "gay ben Hinnom," or "gay Hinnom" ("The valley of Hinnom") for short, and is the basis of a later Greek word "Gehenna" that referred to a valley south of Jerusalem where they reportedly burned trash, dead animals and at times the corpses of executed criminals. This "Gehenna" is translated "hell" in the New Testament.

 

So, for clarification, there are two Greek words commonly translated "hell" in the New Testament. "Hades," as mentioned previously, refers to the grave or the netherworld. "Gehenna," on the other hand, was the city dump where refuse was burned. (The Greek word "tartaroo" is also translated "hell," but it's only used once in the Bible and its meaning is comparable to "Hades.") Now let's look at a few uses of "Gehenna."

 

When we read, "Whosever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire" (Matt 5:22), that "hell fire" is referring to the burning dump south of Jerusalem. So is the statement, "It is profitable for thee that one of thy members (body parts) should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell" (Matt 5:29-30). When we read, "Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell" (Luke 12:5), that is again using the burning city dump for imagery.

 

In addition we read, "And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched" (Mark 9:43-44). This is an often cited passage about "Hell," but let's dig deeper. Not only is this using the imagery of "Gehenna" discussed above, but it is based on an Old Testament quote that says, "And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched" (Isaiah 66:24).  What is being talked about here is clearly not eternal torture, but simply mounting corpses. The worm not dying out is meant in reference to constantly having rotting corpses to eat on. Whatever "fire" may be referring to here, it is clearly not depicting the "Hell" that Christianity teaches.

 

Again, if "Hell" was such an important topic, then why would God avoid making mention of it throughout the entire Old Testament? Why repeatedly warn of death as punishment if eternal torture was really the punishment? With the complete absence of "Hell" in the Old Testament, and the idea growing out of the imagery of a burning city dump south of Jerusalem called the Valley of Hinnom in the New Testament, isn't it quite clear that "Hell" is merely a doctrine that evolved over time?

 

Beyond that, what about the ethics of "Hell"? How can justice be served by inflicting infinite torture as punishment for finite infractions? How is being burned forever a befitting discipline for mere mortals? What loving father would ever do such a thing? Would any good judge ever issue such an unfair sentence?

 

Jesus supposedly said that "whosever believeth" in God's "only begotten Son" will "have everlasting life," and that "he that believeth not is condemned" (John 3:16,18). In Christian theology, that condemnation is "Hell." However, what about all the people who die having never heard about Jesus? What about people raised in different cultures far removed from Christianity, those who are indoctrinated with other views (through no fault of their own) to the point that that they cannot believe Christianity when presented with it? What about the many, many people throughout the ages who simply never had the opportunity to believe in Jesus?

 

Some Christians try to weasel out of that dilemma by suggesting that God is just and will deal fairly with those other people. They may even cite the judgment based on deeds that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 25:31-46. While that may seem to be a noble thought, it is flat-out contradicted by the very quote from Jesus listed above, that "he that believeth not is condemned" (John 3:18). If one doesn't believe, then he's condemned, with no recourse. Besides, there are other logical problems with this argument. Since it indicates that belief in Jesus really isn't necessary for salvation, then what's the point in evangelizing and sending out missionaries? That's commanded in the Bible, of course, but it would be rather pointless if it was true that God would judge everyone justly anyway and that believing in Jesus really isn't necessary for salvation!

 

In addition, what about other people, such as myself, who know the story of Jesus quite well but study Christianity and honestly conclude that it is without merit? With regard to us, as well as the aforementioned people who never heard of Jesus or who were already indoctrinated with another religious view, how could a loving God condemn such people to eternal agony when God himself has refused to show himself? If the all-loving, all-powerful, all-knowing God of evangelical Christianity existed and wanted to have a relationship with every person, then there would be no question that he is real and Christianity is true because he would make it clear! Yet the majority of people in the world have not been convinced of such. Where is this Christian God who is supposedly reaching out to everyone?

 

Another common Christian response is to bring up the quote, "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:20). Thus, it is argued, nobody has an excuse for not knowing, because "the creation" around us is proof. But is it really? If this verse was true and the natural world we see clearly depicted the Christian God, then everyone who looks at nature would automatically be convinced of the Christian God! Yet, throughout the world there are varying cultures with different religious views, and many of those people look at the exact same nature and see evidence of their gods! And other people look at nature and see no evidence of any god at all! How could this be if "creation" was so clear regarding the Christian God? Obviously, this argument from "creation" is simply false.

 

Think about this. You were raised in a Christian culture that convinced you that Christianity is true, but in the same way people raised in a Muslim culture are convinced that Islam is true, and people raised in a Hindu culture are convinced that Hinduism is true, and so on and so forth. The fact is that people's religious beliefs are primarily dependent upon demographics instead of logic, reason and indisputable evidence.

 

You cannot believe Islam to be true because you were programmed to believe Christianity. But the opposite is also true: Those who are programmed to believe Islam simply cannot believe Christianity. Put yourself in their shoes. What if you had been raised and indoctrinated with Islam, and therefore you could not believe Christianity? That would be no fault of your own; it would simply be the result of being raised in that culture. Would it then be fair to torture you in "Hell" forever and ever and ever, with no mercy and no relief, simply because you did not believe something that you had no ability to believe? Do you not see the absurdity and injustice in that? Do you really believe that a righteous, loving God would do that to his creation?

 

You've heard about "cruel and unusual punishment." Indeed, when someone commits a crime, we expect them to be punished, but we expect the punishment to be in accordance with the crime. However, how could any criminal deserve being tortured forever and ever and ever? We are mere mortals with a very limited life-span, so how could anything one does be worthy of unending agony? Such torture would be "cruel and unusual punishment"! And, again, the idea of issuing such punishment for a lack of belief by those who can't believe is even more problematic.

 

Clearly, any God who would torture people like that would have to be sadistic and unjust, because only a sadistic monster could be so cruel! To call any such God "good" is ridiculous, and is an insult to all that is good.

 

Given that the unjust nature of the doctrine of "Hell" is incompatible with the idea of a loving and just God, and given the way the Christian doctrine of "Hell" evolved out of the imagery of a burning city dump outside Jerusalem, it becomes quite clear that "Hell" is not something revealed by God, but merely a morbid myth that developed over time and became useful for scaring people throughout the ages.

[♦ Fuego ♦]

I was once palpably afraid of monsters I had seen on movies. My brain knew at some level that I had only ever seen them on TV, but I still ducked when going through doorways of my house so one that was hiding on the ceiling on the other side of the door wouldn't "get" me. Then there was a fear of hidden cameras in drawers and cupboards, so I'd make sure each one was closed properly before using the toilet. It took a lot of self-talk to overcome these irrational fears, but I did so. Part of me knew it was ridiculous and was tired of having to go through these rituals of protection all the time, so ultimately I was able to shake off the fears.

 

Christianity is based on fear. It brought in the idea of a burning place from other religions of the day, since hell isn't a concept in Judaism. Without that threat, most wouldn't bother with it. But the whole Mafia idea of this god who loves you but will burn you alive forever for not loving him enough is really some twisted shit. Millions follow out of fear of being hurt, and they also don't want to lose out on the big payout of heaven at the end. But it is entirely in their imagination, just like my monsters and hidden cameras. I was able to shake of Christianity and its invisible warfare, and have never been more quiet-minded and happy.

[florduh]

I know I should really just let it go as I will never be able to completely prove the whole thing false...

 

Right, we can't prove false every unfounded crackpot assertion. You can't disprove Jesus, Xenu or fairies; it's up to those making claims that such do exist to provide proof. We can't disprove doom and gloom prophecies until after the prophesied dates have passed, and we've done that hundreds of times just with Christianity. Fear keeps Christianity going after all these years of failure and impotence. Don't fall for it.

[qadeshet]

"so let me just start by saying that I am not actually an ex- Christian (I have never actually been a Christian at all)..."

 

Are you also afraid of the Muslim or Buddhist Hells? Or the Hells of ancient Egypt or Zoroastrianism? Ahura Mazda may send you to Hell if you're not carefull. Since you're not a Christian, why would you fear the Christian Hell? Perhaps you're problem is anxiety in general.

[shw11]

hello everyone, thank you for your replies, they've been very helpful

 

 

Imagine what it might mean to burn in hell -- don't you think that you could adapt to that circumstance?  Don't you think you can grow?  .

yeah i've thought about this- but i guess if an all powerful god had it in for you he would find a way to make sure it never got any better. i even read somewhere (can't remember where now) that some theologians went into great detail on the subject of hell and said that every moment there would be as bad as the first. it really is a repulsive concept.

 

 

1. you mention that you already have anxiety issues. If you are not in treatment for them, should you consider it? Does your school have a counseling center where you could start? Would your parents be supportive?

i've been in therapy for a few months now. but i haven't been since before the summer holidays which might be part of the reason why things sarted to get out of control when i started researching religion.

 

Are you also afraid of the Muslim or Buddhist Hells? Or the Hells of ancient Egypt or Zoroastrianism? Ahura Mazda may send you to Hell if you're not carefull.

good point- I've researched into most of the major religions. Buddhism doesn't have a hell that I know of. the qu'ran has a pretty graphic description of hell which had me in a panic for a while. however christianity seems to be the focus for some reason.

 

 

 

 Perhaps you're problem is anxiety in general.

I'm not denying that :/ but i don't if it's true that someone has to be indoctrinated which christianity or any other religion for the idea of hell to get to them

[shw11]

also if forgot to say- thanks to the person who posted all the astronomy links, they were very comprehensive and useful 

[older]

shw11:

 

Obviously, stop researching religion. Doing so just does you harm.

 

Irrational fears are certainly hard to deal with. We have all had them. What's more frustrating is that the rational side of your brain knows that these fears are false but the  irrational side of your brain generates the fears anyway. I see it as a "battle of the brains."

 

I used to be afraid of the dark, even as an adult. Then someone said that there is nothing out there at night that isn't out there during the day. Hm. After thinking about that, my fears went away. (Which really helps now that I'm interested in astronomy!)

 

Another one was the howling of coyotes in the field across from our house. That just creeped me out. Then someone said they were just singing to each other. Now I look forward to it.

 

So you need to find a similar path out of your fears. Here's one to think about:

 

Advertising is based on creating a need and then selling you something to fill that need. You don't really need most of the crap that's sold today (makeup?!) but advertisers convince you that life will be better if you buy something. And they just happen to have that magic something.

 

An old movie made in 1962 I really enjoy that follows this path is The Music Man. A hustler comes to a small Iowa town where everyone is happy and life is good. He finds a way to convince the people that a new pool table in the billiard parlor is going to cause trouble. He says, "Either you're closing your eyes to a situation you do not wish to acknowledge or you are unaware of the caliber of disaster indicated by the presence of a pool table in your community." He creates turmoil throughout the town and then pops up with the solution. A boys band. And he just happens to be able to create one. He'll sell the uniforms and instruments, but he plans to skip town with the money before teaching the kids to play. You should get this flick on line or from your library and watch it. It's a fun film. And when it's over, think about how religion does the same thing. It tries to create a problem that doesn't exist and then tries to sell you the solution to that problem.

 

Please check back with us and keep us up to date on how things are going.

[Margee]

Welcome shw11. Good to have you here with us. Thank you for sharing. You are not alone in this issue that brings us so much fear.

 

Overcame Faith, (one of our moderators) started this brilliant thread for all of us who were petrified of the end times and hell. You may want to sit here and read it one night.  It is well worth the read. We are so 'blessed' to have so many bible scholars on Ex-c. They know the history of the christian bible  inside and out. Sure hope that this helps a little. You hang out here for  awhile......you'll soon start to feel better.

 

(hug)

 

http://www.ex-christian.net/topic/44234-top-ten-reasons-not-to-fear-biblical-end-times-scenarios/#.VfXuzRHBzRY

[RenaissanceWoman]

...and if hell is real then I'm definitely going there (since even if I did convert it would be out of fear, and I wouldn't actually believe completely it- I'm pretty sure an omniscient God would be able to see through my bullshit)...

 

Even as a full blown believer, I struggled with this concept every single day. If I confess my sins but continue to do them, then god knows I'm full of shit and not really repentant. He knows I'm just saying the words, but my human nature will cause me to sin again -- at what point does he just give up on me? And honestly, I never really "loved" god and Jesus like some people did. I said I loved him, I sang about my love for him, and I tried so hard to feel the love. (Ever hear anyone wax poetically about how Jesus is the love of their life? wth?) But god knew I wasn't feeling it, so would that be enough to cast me into the lake of fire? Any time I had any kind of doubt, the omniscient god idea, you know... the god who knows your every thoughts and knew you before you were born and all that creepy stuff, I would panic. Could I donate enough of my time to the church, could I give enough money (give "til it hurts" as they say), could I lead worship with my music well enough to overcome all this? Ummmm, no. The bible says our good works are like filthy rags, but we must do good works to show our faith -- what? I'm telling you, every day as a christian is a mind fuck.

 

You are lucky that your parents did not indoctrinate you into this nonsense. My best advice to you now as a thinking logical adult is to stay away from this circular reasoning and infinite mind warp of religion. Free yourself from this trap.

 

Don't feel bad. I enjoy conspiracy theories too. Impending comets, imminent rapture, giant tidal waves, earthquakes, rumors of nuclear terror threats -- such juicy doom! Should I have 6 months worth of water, food and medical supplies on hand? Or maybe two years' worth? Should I be hording whiskey and toilet paper to use for bartering in a post-apocalyptic scenario? What would be my barter-able skill? My music, my knowledge of natural healing methods, my proclivity for public speaking and natural leadership? Awww, hell. Then I snap out of it and get on with my real life.

 

My point is, the world is full of ways to suck us in to doom and prophecy and all manner of nonsense. It's best to stay away, or take it with a grain of salt for mere entertainment value, if that interests you. Christianity is one such pit of doom. Best to stay away.

 

Others above have given you great responses. You have come to the right place; the good people here know so much stuff, moreso than most christians. I hope you are able to find some peace.

[Lilith666]

Why the fear of Christianity and its hell in particular? Many religions claim to be true and to have the answer to eternal happiness or escape from eternal misery, but you are only afraid of this one religion.

[Llwellyn]

 if an all powerful god had it in for you he would find a way to make sure it never got any better.

 

Not even a God has the power to prevent you from adapting to urgent interests.

[shw11]

Why the fear of Christianity and its hell in particular? Many religions claim to be true and to have the answer to eternal happiness or escape from eternal misery, but you are only afraid of this one religion.

i don't know... i guess partly exposure? i go to a christian school (i mean sort of, you don't have to be christian to go there but we have a kind of religious vibe), i have members of my extended family who are christians (my mum was raised as a strong roman catholic but later left the faith- i think it kind of messed her up a bit when she was younger). it's heavily embedded in our culture i suppose. i mean we have tonnes of 'faith schools', bishops in the house of lords, churches on every corner etc. (i am talking from a british point of view here- i know things are similar in the US, probably even more so). it just gives christianity an aura of legitimacy, you know? it makes you think, it must be true- how can all these people be delusional? i'm not really claiming to be rational here- i'm a very anxious person and i tend to get worked up about things even when i know i have no rational reason to. 

 

also the blog that sent me the message basically saying i was going to hell was a christian blog, so that's where it all started from. i did a lot of research into christianity because i sort of compulsively felt the need to reassure myself that it wasn't true, but obviously in doing so i was exposed to a whole new world of fundamentalism i didn't really know existed. i mean these people didn't seem unintelligent but they really believed in all this stuff- they seemed so concerned about when the rapture would be, what or wasn't a sin etc and i guess i just thought 'wow i should be worrying about this too'.

 

there were other things about christianity that really bothered me. for example the idea that our hearts are inherently deceitful- so all these feelings i had that christianity was immoral, that it was illogical, could just be satan deceiving me. rationally i know this is just a way to keep people in the faith, but it petrifies me all the same. there were stories i read about staunch athiests converting after having some kind of religious experience, which made me think 'it must be true, i just haven't experienced the holy spirit so i don't understand it'. quotes from the bible saying that atheists are fools (yes i know it would say that) made me feel like i was falling into some kind of trap. 

 

so yeah... i guess it just got to me. i know i shouln't have got so invested in it in the first place- it's just that i have a really hard time accepting uncertainty, so i feel like i have to research the things that scare me so i can 'know' if they are true. 

 

again, that you all for your replies, they genuinely have made me feel so much better

[Guest Ask21771]

Hello everyone 

 

This is my first post on here- so let me just start by saying that I am not actually an ex- Christian (I have never actually been a Christian at all) but I have been browsing this site for the past few months due to my anxiety around general religious issues and I was hoping you might be able to help me out- I hope that's ok

 

As a bit of background, I have some anxiety issues which cause me to become quite obsessive over particular fears (usually philosophical/ existential things because my brain just seems to like focusing on them), and my latest 'obsession' i guess you could say has been around religion (particularly Christianity) and which of them (if any) is true.

 

Anyway, I had never given much thought to religious issues until recently. Both my parents are atheists, so that's pretty much the world view I have always held. Until a few weeks ago I got a nasty message from a Christian fundamentalist on tumblr, telling me I was going to hell for supporting the 'gay agenda' (I know), probably because I reblogged something about the Pride march. At first I dismissed at as bigoted ridiculousness, but then the idea of hell started to play on my mind, I did a tonne of research into it and found several people claiming it was indeed a real place with real flames where I indeed would go if I didn't except Jesus (I know this is old news to you guys- I didn't actually know much about Christian theology at the time so it was all pretty new to me). Like I didn't realise that a considerable number of people believed this stuff in a literal sense (sounds naive I know). So I came to the conclusion that if Christianity is true hell must be real, since the whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense without it, and if hell is real then I'm definitely going there (since even if I did convert it would be out of fear, and I wouldn't actually believe completely it- I'm pretty sure an omniscient God would be able to see through my bullshit). So, to summarise I don't believe Christianity is true, but I don't know for sure that it isn't- which is actually a pretty scary position to be in as I'm sure a lot of you will understand. 

 

So I've spent a lot of time over the holiday trying to 'prove' to myself that Christianity isn't true. I read a bunch of books by atheist authors (Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens etc.) and despite being provided with pretty compelling evidence that it's all nonsense, I can't rid myself of the anxiety/ niggling doubts that keep coming back to me. I know I should really just let it go as I will never be able to completely prove the whole thing false, but I just want to be reasonably sure that me and pretty much everyone I care about aren't on a one way train to some kind of eternal furnace, which is of course a pretty horrifying thought. The fear is making it really hard to concentrate on my school work, or anything really. These awful images of hell keep popping into my head. I feel nervous just singing hymns in assembly at school or walking past churches. I mean it's getting slightly ridiculous.  

 

Besides the hell thing, another part of Christianity that has been really messing with me is the whole end times/ rapture thing. I stumbled across a theory on the internet a while ago that the rapture will in fact occur between the the 22nd and 28th of September this year, followed by the Earth being destroyed by a giant asteroid. The evidence for this claim is rather dubious, but obviously due to my anxiety it has me terrified. Most people are saying we will get hit by this asteroid on the 23rd, so you can google the date to see the so called evidence. There are tonnes of youtube videos on the subject. I know people are always making these predictions, but part of me just can't dismiss the fear that something terrible is going to happen in just 2 weeks. So if anyone has anything to say on that I would appreciate it.

 

One last thing (I'm sorry this is getting really long)- what do you guys make of these people who claim to have been to hell and returned? there are a few of them floating around. A particularly scary one is Mary K Baxter, who even described a special place in hell for gay people (which really really got to me- I have a lot of gay friends who I really care about). Common sense tells me these people are lying to make money, but a lot of people really take them seriously. 

 

Well I could go on for ages but I should probable shut up now. Thank you so much for reading, I would really appreciate any reassurance/ advice on how to deal with these fears.

You shouldn't be ashamed of not being able to let go I've been going through the same thing for years trying to prove to myself Christianity is wrong it's difficult because they seem to have an answer for every argument they are true masters of manipulation and how to use fear as a weapon my advice is if the fear comes again to relax and breathe deeply it's a very good technique to calm your mind and help you think clearly