Saturday, January 22, 2011

Eternal torment

IF there is some sort of Abrahamic God, of whatever denomination then I fully expect to be damned for all eternity, and that God SHOULD exercise God's righteousness and do exactly that. I would expect nothing less than eternal damnation from such a God. If it turns out that Islam is right then I will expect damnation from Allah since I am an infidel and I do not regard Mohammad with respect any more than I regard Luther or Calvin. I perhaps have some regard for Wesley although I feel no desire to be a Methodist. I am age 62 and I often review my entire life in my mind and although I am not what anyone would consider a criminal, I feel that my shortcoming deserve damnation. I do not believe in religions which promise paradise for some emotional lip service. I DO make an effort each day to do what I consider right simply for its own sake and not to avoid some punishment in the afterlife. I have not touched a drop of alcohol or a flake of tobacco in 3 years but prior to that I drank and smoked too much. Each of us has "stewardship" of our own body and life even if there is NO God and this universe of ours is somehow random chance. I have never been an Atheist. I feel that there is something transcendent. As the years went by I became something of a self-identified Hindu/Buddhist, but I do not believe in trying to convert others to my views. It is my HOPE that existence and consciousness ends with death. I prefer not to exist. I asked one orthodox Jewish Rabbi what his views are and he said the wicked simply cease to exist while the righteous dwell with G-d in a new world forever. I choose nonexistence if I have a choice but I feel I am worthy of eternal damnation if that is the reality of things. I apologize that I have not opened your post to read it all, but I felt it important to express these views of mine without delay.

Not to gloat or goad, but you do NOT reconcile your Lutheran faith to that passage in Matthew for the simple reason that it is IMPOSSIBLE to reconcile sola fides with that passage. Now assuming that you WERE able to give an air-tight reconciliation of Lutheran teaching with that Matthew Ch. 19 passage, that does not mean that I would be persuaded to become a Lutheran, because as I explained earlier that is not what I seek. Obviously, life is pleasanter if we feel at peace even if our sense of peace is based upon a false notion. So if I were to dissuade you from Lutheran doctrines then you would be forced to choose some other denomination or religion so that you might again achieve a sense of hope. So in one way it is cruel for me to try and refute the foundations of your religion. But, on the other hand, IF you are lulled into a false sense of complacency by something which is logically inconsistent then perhaps it is better for you to realize your situation and take some positive action to find a more secure theological and philosophical foundation.


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