How Can I Effectively Get Over My Fear Of Hell?

[SkepticalDaniel]

Logic, facts and an intellectual grasp of the situation all do nothing to address the emotional and psychological impact of a phobia. An irrational fear is something to be addressed by mental health professionals, not Biblical scholars.

I'm going to be seeing a therapist.

[SkepticalDaniel]

Sheol doesn't mean "Hell" as a place of torment. It's simply the abode of the dead, just like Hades, which is the original greek translation of Sheol, and Hel(l) of the germanic peoples (like the Anglo-saxons, i.e. the English, who wrote the KJV) had the same connotations before Christianization.

I'm familiar with that.

[SkepticalDaniel]

 

 

I was an IFB (Independent Fundamental Baptist) for a very long time, and it was really pounded into my head that hell was at the center of the earth beneath the ground. I've since then gotten away from the IFB church, but the fear of hell just keeps coming back and coming back. To give you an example of what I was taught, just look at the link here:

 

http://www.av1611.org/hell.html

 

How can I counter these fears? Does anyone have any suggestions?

I mentally/emotionally made myself more powerful than Jesus and God and Satan. It helped a lot to relieve that fear as I deconverted from Pentecostalism. Put all those bible characters 'below' you. Religion is toxic imagination. Kick its ass with your own imaginary antibiotic. Or mental rocket launcher, if you like. Be creative.

I'm probably going to use an imaginary Buster Sword like from Final Fantasy, but it's really hard, especially when you have OCD and Aspergers like I do. There are sometimes nights where I wake up, crying about the fear.

 

With Aspergers and OCD, our best advice is probably professional councelling. What you fear is imaginary.

 

 

Hell is one of those teachings that is very effective at keeping people under control and donating to the church. One thing that helped me overcome it was the simple question - who's Hell are you scared of? Vikings? Aztecs? The Christian down the road? Research where the modern versions of hell come from and you'll quickly realize it's all made up baloney.

 

And who's scared of baloney?

 

I remember that a YouTube user, anubis2814 said in his video series "Why Do Intelligent People Still Believe in Religion?" that hell is the perfect fear because there's no way to disprove a negative.

 

That being said, there are some Bible verses that have really traumatized me!

 

The Bible is just a collection of myths and legends written by men. Are you afraid of the Muslim Hell as well?

 

Thank you for the advice.

[disillusioned]

SkepticalDaniel:

 

First, welcome. It's always nice to have new people around these parts.

 

Let me just say that I'm sure that Llwellyn's heart is in the right place. Llwellyn thinks about things on a deeper level that many people do. BAA and I (amongst others!) have had many interesting exchanges with Llwellyn in the past. My respect for L's thinking is deep.

 

Having said that, I can very well sympathize with your fear of hell. Many of us here were similarly indoctrinated, and have struggled to overcome this fear. I've written extensively on this topic, both here and elsewhere. In my estimation, indoctrination of the type that I was subjected to ought to be considered child abuse. It seems that you have had a somewhat similar experience.

 

As for how this fear can be overcome, I have to confess that I don't really have a good answer in general. As others have suggested, it may be necessary to seek professional help. For myself, I can only answer that logic and reason have eventually led me to reject this kind of baseless fear. Because, at the end of the day, it is exactly that: a complete baseless fear.

 

Think about it. Why are we afraid of hell? Primarily because we have been told that we should be. We have no actual reason to believe that hell exists, other than that we have been told that it does. But those who told us that it exists also have no reason to believe that it does, except that they too have been told that it does. My suspicion is that if we follow the chain far enough, we will always find someone who stood to profit from keeping others in fear. But these people too had no special knowledge of the hereafter. They were simply lying to others in order to exercise power over them. It really is that simple.

 

No one in the world can authoritatively say what happens after we die. No one. There is no way to obtain that knowledge. I hope you can find some comfort in this fact. PM me if you want to talk more about this.

[SkepticalDaniel]

SkepticalDaniel:

 

First, welcome. It's always nice to have new people around these parts.

 

Let me just say that I'm sure that Llwellyn's heart is in the right place. Llwellyn thinks about things on a deeper level that many people do. BAA and I (amongst others!) have had many interesting exchanges with Llwellyn in the past. My respect for L's thinking is deep.

 

Having said that, I can very well sympathize with your fear of hell. Many of us here were similarly indoctrinated, and have struggled to overcome this fear. I've written extensively on this topic, both here and elsewhere. In my estimation, indoctrination of the type that I was subjected to ought to be considered child abuse. It seems that you have had a somewhat similar experience.

 

As for how this fear can be overcome, I have to confess that I don't really have a good answer in general. As others have suggested, it may be necessary to seek professional help. For myself, I can only answer that logic and reason have eventually led me to reject this kind of baseless fear. Because, at the end of the day, it is exactly that: a complete baseless fear.

 

Think about it. Why are we afraid of hell? Primarily because we have been told that we should be. We have no actual reason to believe that hell exists, other than that we have been told that it does. But those who told us that it exists also have no reason to believe that it does, except that they too have been told that it does. My suspicion is that if we follow the chain far enough, we will always find someone who stood to profit from keeping others in fear. But these people too had no special knowledge of the hereafter. They were simply lying to others in order to exercise power over them. It really is that simple.

 

No one in the world can authoritatively say what happens after we die. No one. There is no way to obtain that knowledge. I hope you can find some comfort in this fact. PM me if you want to talk more about this.

Well thank you, anyway. I appreciate you trying to help me. I think perhaps the best thing for me to do is stoping talking about religion and the Bible for a while, even though it's hard, considering that it's been a huge part of my life for many years.

 

There is a quote however, that has helped me, though. It's something that Bart Ehrman said in one of his lecture's, "The truth may not be what you were taught, but if it's true, then you should accept it, not run from it."

[Lilith666]

Let us know if the therapy helps?

[SageHealer]

My heart goes out to you, SkepticalDaniel.  I was raised to believe that I can never be unsaved, but I do sometimes worry about people who were never "saved" to begin with.  

 

It sounds like you still have faith in something greater than yourself, as do I, although not the god I grew up with.  Here's what helped me the most:

 

I was having the same discussion with a spiritual (but not religious) friend and her words the most sense of anyone's.  She told me that when I go into meditation and really communicate with the Being/Intelligence/Higher Self/whatever you want to call it, to remember that is pure Love and Good.  So how could it even have created a hell?  It is beyond any religion, dogma, or book.

 

I wish you peace.  You deserve it.

[SkepticalDaniel]

My heart goes out to you, SkepticalDaniel.  I was raised to believe that I can never be unsaved, but I do sometimes worry about people who were never "saved" to begin with.  

 

It sounds like you still have faith in something greater than yourself, as do I, although not the god I grew up with.  Here's what helped me the most:

 

I was having the same discussion with a spiritual (but not religious) friend and her words the most sense of anyone's.  She told me that when I go into meditation and really communicate with the Being/Intelligence/Higher Self/whatever you want to call it, to remember that is pure Love and Good.  So how could it even have created a hell?  It is beyond any religion, dogma, or book.

 

I wish you peace.  You deserve it.

Thank you. I need it.

[Ellinas]

Coming late to this one.

 

My impression, going over the history of this thread, is that therapy probably is the way to go for you.  This fear seems deep seated to the point where any suggestion to the contrary is irresponsible.

 

That's not to say that there are not perfectly valid suggestions that you can utilise alongside that - and there are plenty of those above.

 

In the end, I suspect that time will be the healer for you.  It takes time to get used to a new outlook, to start thinking in terms of a new world-view without intrusion from a deeply rooted past belief system.

 

I recall being concerned myself that I was effectively putting myself in league with the devil, with all the baggage that would entail - bearing in mind that I remained a theist, merely "changing allegiance" as it were.  I sometimes wonder if the jump to atheism would have been easier on that score.  Be that as it may, my method of dealing with the issue was to memorise a clear line of reasoning as to why Christianity was nonsensical and to repeat it whenever the fears surfaced.  It went something like this:

1. Christianity teaches that god is just.
2. Christianity teaches that god is loving.
3. Christianity teaches that god is all powerful and all knowing.
4. Christianity teaches that god created mankind.
5. An all powerful god cannot be forced to any act.
6. An all knowing god must be aware of the consequences of his actions
7. To create voluntarily a race knowing that the majority would burn in Hell forever is an act of cruelty.
8. Cruelty is neither just nor loving.
9. Therefore, assuming his existence, the Christian god is: (i) unjust, and (ii) full of hatred; or has: (iii) limited power, and (iv) limited understanding.  Possibly he has all four of these characteristics.
10. Therefore, by its' own logic Christianity is wrong about at least 50% of these teachings.
11. Therefore, Christianity cannot be correct.
12. It is illogical to fear something based on incorrect Christian teachings.

Feel free to adapt the above in whatever way makes sense to you if it helps.

 

All the best.

 

E

[Voice]

Daniel, I haven't read any replies, just your original post.

One thing that helped me overcome that fear was to embrace my vision of hell and expand it to our known universe, black holes and such, stars. There heaven and hell become one. 

A bi-polar interpretation of spirit realms isn't accurate. It's not black or white. It's a spectrum.

 

Why are you dwelling on websites such as the one you cited?

[Guest Furball]

Fear of hell is usually the last thing to go when de-converting. I came from the evangelical/puritanical side of christianity so I know all too well about the fear of being damned to hell. It took me almost a year to overcome it. For me personally, it was educating myself on the history of christianity and reading numerous books that give actual evidence showing christianity and the bible to be a pack of lies. If the bible can be shown to be fake, then the doctrine of hell goes out the window with all the rest of it's man made theology. The website you posted is nothing more than delusional people who have for the time, left reality and think they are doing god's will by putting out that christian propaganda for the unbeliever to see. Christianity's only recruiting tool is the fear of hell. Without it, the religion has nothing to stand on and nothing else to go on. Christianity is a fear based death cult and nothing more. When you have times where you're feeling afraid of going to hell, ask yourself why a good - all loving god would send you there for simply being human. If you really think about it, it doesn't make any sense at all. I can tell you from my own experience that it does get better, that the fear of hell will go away permanently as time goes by. I wish you all the best. 

[SkepticalDaniel]

Fear of hell is usually the last thing to go when de-converting. I came from the evangelical/puritanical side of christianity so I know all too well about the fear of being damned to hell. It took me almost a year to overcome it. For me personally, it was educating myself on the history of christianity and reading numerous books that give actual evidence showing christianity and the bible to be a pack of lies. If the bible can be shown to be fake, then the doctrine of hell goes out the window with all the rest of it's man made theology. The website you posted is nothing more than delusional people who have for the time, left reality and think they are doing god's will by putting out that christian propaganda for the unbeliever to see. Christianity's only recruiting tool is the fear of hell. Without it, the religion has nothing to stand on and nothing else to go on. Christianity is a fear based death cult and nothing more. When you have times where you're feeling afraid of going to hell, ask yourself why a good - all loving god would send you there for simply being human. If you really think about it, it doesn't make any sense at all. I can tell you from my own experience that it does get better, that the fear of hell will go away permanently as time goes by. I wish you all the best.

What's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

[florduh]

I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

 

Actual history disproves most Bible stories. Christians will say anything to sell their goods.

 

Stop going to those sites. You're like a recovering alcoholic hanging out in bars to see if you can resist drinking.

 

Wise up.

[Margee]

 

what's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

 

SD., have you had a chance to watch the documentary I left on page 2-post 34? It's very interesting because it will give you a great idea on how the earth got formed in the first place. Once you learn a little about evolution, the fear will start to fall away.

 

(hug)

[sdelsolray]

...

What's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

 

 

 

Then you're a gullible chump.  Virtually all Christian sites lie, cheat, misrepresent and are duplicitous.  They assume/pretend their religious dogma is true (how convenient) and more or less assume/demand you do the same (because you're a chump).   And then they start with their emotional and psychological manipulation.  They defend their bald assertions and lies with illogical and disingenuous Christian apologetics.  I see more use of logical fallacies on most religious websites than I see with most nutter websites (e.g., man didn't land on the moon), and they are much more devious while pretending to care.  Many ask for money and some chumps send them money.

 

Stay away from those cesspools of intellectual cowardice, emotional manipulation and psychological codependancy.

 

Again, this is something to take up with your new therapist.  Changing your behavior to exclude spending time with a particular religion does not take much adjustment.  It really doesn't.  Just fill that time with something else...something healthy.

[FlowerDemon]

observe that website honestly hun. It does not make sense when the article states: "Yes, God is a GOD OF LOVE — but God is also a HOLY GOD. A HOLY GOD demands payment for sin. Otherwise God would NOT and could NOT be HOLY."

 

Um...says who? Lol. This is simply one's opinion of what the Bible teaches and what the word HOLY means. Holy is supposed to mean "likeness of nature to the LORD" in some definitions. So it would be unholy for God NOT to require people to pay for their sins, and it would be unholy of God if he did NOT let millions of unbelievers burn for all eternity? WTF? That doesn't make any sense. If he is GOD of the whole UNIVERSE, powerful enough to do ANYTHING, then why did God make things this way? So black and white...basically either love him or burn in hell forever. That doesn't sound like a God of Love. Sounds more to me like a God of emotional blackmail!

 

Honestly the law of karma makes more sense to me than this garbage. From what I've experienced in my life, when someone has done something seriously fucked up to me, they had something bad come their way later on down the road. So in a sense, people do pay for their wrongdoings (at least that's what I believe). But it's absolutely nonsense to believe that people must pay for their sins by either believing in this one specific god, or burning for all eternity.

 

Other Christians would not agree with the article you posted. There are thousands of Christian denominations, some of which actually don't believe in hell even though the bible specifically mentions it. Some Christians believe Jesus was hung on a stake and not a cross. You get my point. These are all opinions of the same book, supposedly given to mankind by the same Holy God. If that were the case, people wouldn't be getting different ideas/messages from the same holy book.

 

On top of that, the stories in that article that mention people who actually saw or experienced hell..it's not enough evidence for me. If someone literally did see/experience hell as 100% true fact...completely real, not just the reaction of a clinically dead man being resuscitated, etc.....look if someone had proof of being there you would think it would be on the news and people would be repenting to Jesus Christ for they had an ultimate proof of the place he warned about in the Bible.

 

Besides, even if hell were real, so many other religions teach about the same kind of place. If hell were a real place, how would we know if it was the Christian hell, or a hell from a different religion, or perhaps from no religion at all? We wouldn't know.

 

The Christian God has done jack shit to prove himself to get people to repent. That article is supposed to stir fear in the reader. I'll be honest I shuttered a little bit when I was reading it, because it was what I used to believe. But I view the Christian doctrine of hell as a poorly arranged mathematical equation. It just does not add up. 

 

So to answer your question, to effectively get over your fear of hell, you should read every article you stumble upon  with a grain of salt. Read it with a rational logical mind, tainted in your own views alone and not what has been indoctrinated into you by others. I think it is actually a good idea to read articles like this, but also weigh them out with opposing artilcles. For example: read an article on why hell is real, and then read an article about why hell is not real. Weigh out the information you read and make an informed decision on what makes sense to you. Being a critical independent minded reader, i believe, is CRUCIAL to the deconversion process. If you can't learn to read something and form your own personal opinion/view of it, then it is going to be really hard to not be shaken when you stumble across an article about the hell you once believed in.

 

Also, focus on the present moment. Instead of worrying about the possibility of going to hell after dying, focus on what you are doing in that very moment. Find some hobbies and activities to plug into, and focus on every minute of that activity. For example, if I was walking to the store, I would focus my mind on every step I took, the environment of my surroundings, my 5 senses, etc...rather than getting lost in thought thinking about hell or other possible future consequences, while simply running an errand.

 

I'm glad I had Christianity in my life for a while because it taught me a lot of things, even though i'm no longer a believer. I learned firsthand, how unhealthy it is for the body mind and soul, to fret about something in the future that is simply imagined. it wrecks more havoc than a lot of people realize. Humans are not meant to constantly be living in a state of worry, stress, fear of the future, etc....and you will notice proof of this fact when you find yourself sick, tired, and mentally complacent after stressing for a prolonged period of time about something. I've literally stressed myself sick and made myself sleep for a day and a half one time.

 

Worrying about possible eternal damnation does no good for your life. I would recommend engaging in activities that make you feel happy, and take actions in your life that you know for a fact, will benefit you. i hope this helps 

[SkepticalDaniel]

 

...

What's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

 

 

Then you're a gullible chump. Virtually all Christian sites lie, cheat, misrepresent and are duplicitous. They assume/pretend their religious dogma is true (how convenient) and more or less assume/demand you do the same (because you're a chump). And then they start with their emotional and psychological manipulation. They defend their bald assertions and lies with illogical and disingenuous Christian apologetics. I see more use of logical fallacies on most religious websites than I see with most nutter websites (e.g., man didn't land on the moon), and they are much more devious while pretending to care. Many ask for money and some chumps send them money.

 

Stay away from those cesspools of intellectual cowardice, emotional manipulation and psychological codependancy.

 

Again, this is something to take up with your new therapist. Changing your behavior to exclude spending time with a particular religion does not take much adjustment. It really doesn't. Just fill that time with something else...something healthy.

Thank you for the honesty.

[rjn]

If Calvinism is right, we might as well not bother. It's already determined that grumpy middle class WASPs shall inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.

[midniterider]

SkepDaniel: What's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

 

...

 

Unfortunately, the tools are available for crackpots to write complete BS, and package it up in a nice professional looking website.

[SkepticalDaniel]

 

 

 

what's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

SD., have you had a chance to watch the documentary I left on page 2-post 34? It's very interesting because it will give you a great idea on how the earth got formed in the first place. Once you learn a little about evolution, the fear will start to fall away.

 

(hug)

No, I haven't seen the documentary yet. But I will check it out. By the way, thank you for the hug. You have no idea how much pain this idea has brought me.

[Margee]

 

 

 

 

what's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

SD., have you had a chance to watch the documentary I left on page 2-post 34? It's very interesting because it will give you a great idea on how the earth got formed in the first place. Once you learn a little about evolution, the fear will start to fall away.

 

(hug)

No, I haven't seen the documentary yet. But I will check it out. By the way, thank you for the hug. You have no idea how much pain this idea has brought me.

 

Yes I do have an idea what kind of pain you are in. I suffered tremendously when i first came here. Go read my first 1,000 posts and you will see you are not alone hun. Watch the documentary. You will see how the earth was actually formed. Come back and tell me what you thought.

 

Here's another big (((hug))) for you.

[SkepticalDaniel]

 

 

 

 

 

what's just hard for me is when I do it, I think about what the Christian sites say and how the use history to prove it as well.

SD., have you had a chance to watch the documentary I left on page 2-post 34? It's very interesting because it will give you a great idea on how the earth got formed in the first place. Once you learn a little about evolution, the fear will start to fall away.

 

(hug)

No, I haven't seen the documentary yet. But I will check it out. By the way, thank you for the hug. You have no idea how much pain this idea has brought me.

Yes I do have an idea what kind of pain you are in. I suffered tremendously when i first came here. Go read my first 1,000 posts and you will see you are not alone hun. Watch the documentary. You will see how the earth was actually formed. Come back and tell me what you thought.

 

Here's another big (((hug))) for you.

Thanks for the other hug!

[BlindReason]

Hi Daniel,

I'm also an Aspie. I understand the anxiety and the uncontrolable endless thought loops. Our brains seem to be wired to do fear better than any other emotion. You're probably experiencing the worst feeling imaginable. I went through my fear of Hell about a year ago, after I'd already realized I couldn't believe in God anymore. Funny how that works, isn't it? You will come out the other side, just like I did. You know intellectually that Hell can't be real. It will take some time for the nonrational parts of your brain to catch up. They exist to alert you to threats to your survival. Eventually they will shut off because there is no threat. THIS WILL END, I can guarantee it.

I'm angry that you're having to experience this unnecessary fear.

 

[BlindReason]

Now, about this moronic website:
First of all, one of the worst recordings I ever heard, and by worst I mean low quality, not scary. I could have made the exact same thing by taking my toy tape recorder to an amusement park as a kid and recording all the wimps screaming on the rides. Nothing about this recording is special. The only thing that gives it any meaning is the context of the website. And the website proves nothing. It basically says this: The Bible teaches that Hell is hot and located underground. Scientists have found very hot places underground. So Hell is real! Bullshit! People had to have known this long before the Bible was ever written. This shit just makes me so mad!

 

[SkepticalDaniel]

Now, about this moronic website:

First of all, one of the worst recordings I ever heard, and by worst I mean low quality, not scary. I could have made the exact same thing by taking my toy tape recorder to an amusement park as a kid and recording all the wimps screaming on the rides. Nothing about this recording is special. The only thing that gives it any meaning is the context of the website. And the website proves nothing. It basically says this: The Bible teaches that Hell is hot and located underground. Scientists have found very hot places underground. So Hell is real! Bullshit! People had to have known this long before the Bible was ever written. This shit just makes me so mad!

 

 

Yes. In fact, the recording was actually a remixed audio portion from the movie Baron Blood. I used to believe that the article was real.