Do People Really Worry About Hell?

[_barrelomonkeys]

It just occurred to me that since I don't believe in hell I don't really worry all that much about 'sins'. I have a code of ethics I do try to follow... although there are always exceptions and a bit of wiggle room. ;)

But for those of you that truly believe in a heaven and hell is this something you fret about?

Is there really guilt or terror involved when you do something 'sinful'? Whatever that may be.

It has occurred to me lately that I'm not entirely sure what 'sins' are or are not according to LDS belief. I'm not even really sure I know what mainstream Christianity considers sins. Masturbation? Premarital sex? Or just the top 10?

Are they all equal or are some certain to put you in outer darkness/hell? I'm interested to know from an EV point of view too.

I wonder if I'd be more hesitant to 'sin' if I had some worry about damnation. If I do something that's a naughty I just wake up the next day and go oopsie daisy and try to do better but don't fret too much about it. Just view it as part of learning about life. Unless of course it's something naughty I just really enjoy doing then I go on doing it.

So? What's the deal? Is there really a lot of wringing of hands over being a bad boy/girl?

[_Bond...James Bond]

I used to be terrible about kinda worrying about hell (not obsessing...but it was always in the back of my mind that I was going to either burn like a piece of charcoal or slow cook like a brisket when I died) from age 4-15 or so.....but I started disbelieving the EV story when I was about 16 or so and stopped worrying about Lakes of Fire and so forth.

[_msnobody]

It just occurred to me that since I don't believe in hell I don't really worry all that much about 'sins'. I have a code of ethics I do try to follow... although there are always exceptions and a bit of wiggle room. ;)

But for those of you that truly believe in a heaven and hell is this something you fret about?

Is there really guilt or terror involved when you do something 'sinful'? Whatever that may be.

It has occurred to me lately that I'm not entirely sure what 'sins' are or are not according to LDS belief. I'm not even really sure I know what mainstream Christianity considers sins. Masturbation? Premarital sex? Or just the top 10?

Are they all equal or are some certain to put you in outer darkness/hell? I'm interested to know from an EV point of view too.

I wonder if I'd be more hesitant to 'sin' if I had some worry about damnation. If I do something that's a naughty I just wake up the next day and go oopsie daisy and try to do better but don't fret too much about it. Just view it as part of learning about life. Unless of course it's something naughty I just really enjoy doing then I go on doing it.

So? What's the deal? Is there really a lot of wringing of hands over being a bad boy/girl?

I really don't think alot about Hell. I think I'd say as an EV, that we sin because we are sinners and not the other way around. I think I'm more at peace knowing that I cannot be righteous, but that I can have Christ's righteounsness for my own.

I think I'll name my next child Oopsie Daisy. LOL. Nah, I'm done with childbearing. I did buy my daughter an Oopsie Daisy doll once. Women were literally lined up at the door to the store when it opened and ran in hopes of getting this hot item for Christmas. I got one and the darn thing's head fell off not long after Christmas.

[_barrelomonkeys]

Well I've NEVER ever, ever, ever even considered hell. I knew other people thought there was a hell... but that was about it. That seems so horrible to be afraid of something that would occur after death... sort of ruins life!

It just dawned on me that it seems so odd to be worried about it..... perhaps I should be? ;P

Oh, I truly am a heathen aren't I?

[_Bond...James Bond]

Well I've NEVER ever, ever, ever even considered hell. I knew other people thought there was a hell... but that was about it. That seems so horrible to be afraid of something that would occur after death... sort of ruins life!

It just dawned on me that it seems so odd to be worried about it..... perhaps I should be? ;P

Oh, I truly am a heathen aren't I?

Trust me....if you were lucky enough to grow up not thinking or worrying about the possibility of being deep fried in a Lake of Fire...consider yourself the luckiest heathen on the face of the Earth.

[_barrelomonkeys]

Yanno when I was about 16 my parents were seriously considering sending me to a religious school of some sort... which was odd because I never attended Church and didn't grow up a Christian.

Woo doggie! There were so many freaking rules. Yardsticks that would keep the boys away (as if yardstick would keep my boy away!) and uniforms.

I vividly recall thinking 'oh man, good thing school is only 7 hours a day!' ;P

So no, never a worry about hell for me.

[_barrelomonkeys]

I really don't think alot about Hell. I think I'd say as an EV, that we sin because we are sinners and not the other way around. I think I'm more at peace knowing that I cannot be righteous, but that I can have Christ's righteounsness for my own.

I think I'll name my next child Oopsie Daisy. LOL. Nah, I'm done with childbearing. I did buy my daughter an Oopsie Daisy doll once. Women were literally lined up at the door to the store when it opened and ran in hopes of getting this hot item for Christmas. I got one and the darn thing's head fell off not long after Christmas.

hahaa. She really was an oopsie daisy doll!

[_Trinity]

I used to be very conscious of the afterlife. It was my life's goal to be the tip top, highest echelon of the celestial kingdom. I am a very goal-oriented, aggressive sort of a person, so was probably more mentally aware of the afterlife - heaven/hell thing more than the average person.

Then I had three children, and the oldest was three. It dramatically changed my view of hell because I truly felt I was living it. I went days without sleep, I was pregnant and sick about half the time. It's kind of funny that those little tiny children so drastically altered my eternal view of things. There was no way anyone could possibly threaten me with hell because I felt like I had already been there, done that.

[_Always Thinking]

I think you will find that for those of us who really truly believe(d) our religion, the idea of heaven (or 3 degrees of glory) and hell (or outer darkness) was very real.

Yes, there was a lot of time spent feeling guilty. A LOT.

Constant worry, if only in the back of the mind.

Also, it was not just the sins of commission that I worried about, but the sins of omission, too.

Because I tend to be lazy and never get around to doing things, I knew that I'd be in big trouble. Even though I never drank liquor, coffee or tea, never smoked, and never had premarital sex, etc., I was still never going to be good enough. I was never consistent enough with doing the things we were told to do. We needed to keep a journal, magnify our callings 100%, share the gospel with our friends, have daily scripture study, do our visiting teaching, keep food storage, have daily prayers, and on and on. I knew I fell short, and if anything was going to keep me out of the highest degree of glory, it was going to be the stuff I was too lazy to do.

I didn't it let it bother me too much, but as I looked at myself and the ones I loved, I knew that most of us would fall short, and that we would most likely never make it to the Celestial Kingdom together. It worried me.

[_MishMagnet]

I think the LDS belief of it being nearly impossible to reach "hell" is rather comforting. I had a boyfriend (who left the church) tell me hey, if I'm only good enough for the Telestial Kingdom it's still better than here and I think here is great!

I find the belief that all sins are equal too large to even get my brain around. Not all Christians believe this way but some do. They say yeah, I said "oh my God" and I'm just as bad as a murderer, although I'm saved through Jesus.

I also think religion allows us (in many cases) to think of hell as a place where all the people WE hate are. Sometimes I do wish there were a hell for people like Hitler and others who really have no conscience. I wish they would suffer forever for their actions.

From my previous LDS life I remember practically killing myself with my efforts to be good enough. Ironically I don't ever remember feeling I was Celestial material. I guess I felt I was flawed and lacking in my deepest self and no amount of scripture reading or praying was going to make up for it.