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To: Maximilian
Maybe you'll be good enough to explain what sort of place hell can be if its entire definition is God's definitive absence.

Jesus frequently teaches in language that's prophetic, which is to say, not literal, but conveying truths distant and hidden that are not apprehensible to the human mind. The everlasting fire of hell is the fire of utter destruction; the fire of the burning bush is a prophecy of the Resurrection.

Do you think that you know more about the subject than He did?

No indeed. Do you think you know more about how to interpret revelation than Vatican II?

76 posted on 06/06/2003 9:58:56 PM PDT by Romulus
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To: Romulus
Maybe you'll be good enough to explain what sort of place hell can be if its entire definition is God's definitive absence.

It would be amazing if I could do such an impossibility. But the reality is that God is not absent from Hell. When has the Church ever taught that? Hell is the place of God's justice, which is equal to His mercy. When we see Christ's death upon the cross, and we reflect that God Himself came down from heaven to suffer in this way for us, then we realize the extent of His mercy. To contemplate His justice, and to be reminded that it is just as great as this mercy that He showed us on the cross, is a terrifying thought indeed.

But His justice does not consist of His absence. That would be an impossibility. Satan and his devils are already suffering what we will suffer for all eternity if we end up among the reprobate. But God is not absent from them. They live in God's creation just like all other creatures.

Jesus frequently teaches in language that's prophetic, which is to say, not literal

If that were the case in this instance, then it would not be too difficult to find a source in tradition which supports this non-literal belief in Hell. I challenge you to locate one traditional source among the patristics, Aquinas, the magisterium, etc. which supports your thesis.

The everlasting fire of hell is the fire of utter destruction

Wrong. The definitive teaching of the Church is that the fire of Hell lasts for all eternity and never consumes its subjects.

Do you think you know more about how to interpret revelation than Vatican II?

I can't say that Vatican II's intention was "to interpret revelation." But please cite one passage from Vatican II which states that "Hell is not a place." I'm quite certain that there is no such thing in the documents.

79 posted on 06/06/2003 10:27:38 PM PDT by Maximilian
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