A stream of thought from Oct 1999:
Suppose there was God. What does it mean for me as an atheist? Then is there hell? Am I going there when I die? Did I do something so horribly wrong by nor believing in God that I deserve to burn for an eternity just for having the wrong mindset, the wrong thoughts, even though in deed I have been basically good?
Or am I going to paradise? Did I do something so incredibly good that I deserve eternal blessing? This concept of good and evil, heaven and hell, eternal reward and eternal punishment sounds too much like a story parents tell their kids about what would happen if they didn't behave. “A monster will come and take you away” is good enough to keep a kid in shape, but an adult needs a picture of more severe consequences and the simple and clear idea of burning forever seems to have done the job for a lot of people.
Singularity of God – easily conceptualized. But why one, not two?
Suppose there was God. What does it mean for me as an atheist? Then is there hell? Am I going there when I die? Did I do something so horribly wrong by nor believing in God that I deserve to burn for an eternity just for having the wrong mindset, the wrong thoughts, even though in deed I have been basically good?
Or am I going to paradise? Did I do something so incredibly good that I deserve eternal blessing? This concept of good and evil, heaven and hell, eternal reward and eternal punishment sounds too much like a story parents tell their kids about what would happen if they didn't behave. “A monster will come and take you away” is good enough to keep a kid in shape, but an adult needs a picture of more severe consequences and the simple and clear idea of burning forever seems to have done the job for a lot of people.
Singularity of God – easily conceptualized. But why one, not two?
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