If Christ came to save, why do many insist on believing that God created an economy of salvation, in which the greatest possible numbers of people are lost, merely because they had the bad luck in being born in a place where they would not hear the Gospel? Or even more common, the message made hateful by the very people who should be living it. If the majority of mankind was created merely to be damned, then perhaps we should re-look at the belief that God is love, or even just, for that matter. Perhaps one reason Christianity has not done much to better the world is because unconsciously, we really believe that most people are cosmic trash, already dammed in God’s sight, so perhaps real love simply not there? For if God hates the majority of mankind, why should we not do it? For are we not made in God’s image and likeness. Though I think it is turned around, we make God in our own image and fragmented and shattered likeness.
Hell ultimately points to mankind’s freedom, the emphasis is on freedom. Grace is grace, and I doubt that it only came into being at Christ birth. A revelation is something new to those who hear it, but that does not mean that what was revealed has not always been at work in mankind. The New Testament points to the desire of God that all be saved; for as St. Paul says, “God wills the salvation of all men”; what does that mean? So again, why would we believe that the majority are dammed? I have talked to Christians who believe that hell is filled with good people, loving people; they were just not believers the way they believed. I have a friend who believes that all the Jews murdered by Hitler are now in hell. I know Catholics who believe that all non-Catholic’s are in hell; in fact they believe that even most of their Catholic brothers and sisters are with them (non-Catholics) in eternal torment; of course they are exempt. Why is it so easy to think that God who is revealed as love would do something like that. For them hell is not a choice, it is simply a bit of bad luck, belonging to the wrong church, or again having the bad luck of being born in the wrong place, or seeking and loving God in the wrong religion. Of course there are many non-Catholics who think that I am dammed. Making me an idol worshipper who follows the Pope, who is really the anti-Christ, the whore of Babylon, bringing into the world the reign of Satan; who thinks I can somehow win my salvation by good works alone. Which is funny, since the Catholic Church has always taught the divinity of Christ, and is in fact the mother of all Christian believers. The scriptural canon was also created by the Catholic Church in the 3rd century. So it is funny that many use the very scriptures put together by the Catholic Church, to prove its existence as an evil force in the world. Such ignorance is overwhelming, mind numbing, and based on a deep ignorance of their history, which is bound closely with the Catholic Church.
