Raising HellSupport this project of deconstructing the damaging, false doctrine of hell to make the world a better, more loving and liberated place.
Hell is nothing more than a man-made myth! Let's get the word out there together!
For the past 10 years, I have been freely offering my book, Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire, to anyone and everyone worldwide! That's because I feel a tireless devotion to setting the world free from the false teachings that elicit mental, physical and spiritual abuse and have contributed to world violence.
For 1,500 years, most of the world has been paralyzed with fear by the false, man-made doctrine of hell. This damaging doctrine has been proliferated worldwide by missionaries and Bible mistranslations, creating cycles of war, hate, and despair.
...I'm working full time to produce more high quality written and video content, speak at conferences, continue to share my book for free worldwide, and invest much energy as possible into uncovering the true character of God. Help me free minds, hearts, and souls with a donation or a small monthly regular support.
Getting rid of this mental bondage is the first step to real freedom, empowerment, creativity, restored relationship to God, others, self, and the Earth.
It's time for all hell to break loose! Get in on the party!
Raise Hell Around the World with Me!Raising Hell2020-04-01 | Support this project of deconstructing the damaging, false doctrine of hell to make the world a better, more loving and liberated place.
Hell is nothing more than a man-made myth! Let's get the word out there together!
For the past 10 years, I have been freely offering my book, Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire, to anyone and everyone worldwide! That's because I feel a tireless devotion to setting the world free from the false teachings that elicit mental, physical and spiritual abuse and have contributed to world violence.
For 1,500 years, most of the world has been paralyzed with fear by the false, man-made doctrine of hell. This damaging doctrine has been proliferated worldwide by missionaries and Bible mistranslations, creating cycles of war, hate, and despair.
...I'm working full time to produce more high quality written and video content, speak at conferences, continue to share my book for free worldwide, and invest much energy as possible into uncovering the true character of God. Help me free minds, hearts, and souls with a donation or a small monthly regular support.
Getting rid of this mental bondage is the first step to real freedom, empowerment, creativity, restored relationship to God, others, self, and the Earth.
It's time for all hell to break loose! Get in on the party!
Amazon Links: Raising Hell Full Version: http://amzn.to/2y4jCsc Kindle Full: http://amzn.to/2x30G02 Raising Hell Short & Sweet Version: http://amzn.to/2x58bBp Kindle Abridged: http://amzn.to/2xFNH5q Controversia Infernal (Spanish Version): amzn.to/2JlNwA4Falling Upward Ep 2: Questioning the BibleRaising Hell2024-03-19 | Join authors Logan Barone and Julie Ferwerda in this new series on maintaining and even deepening one's relationship to God/Divine Source during religious deconstruction (and reconstruction). In the coming weeks, we will dismantle difficult and problematic religious teachings that have kept us from joyfully apprehending the greatest truth about our essence. This enigmatic teaching of Jesus is the real "pearl of great price" that opens up new worlds of love, liberty, and ultimate empowerment.
This video discusses Biblical authority and inerrancy. Something every Christian is indoctrinated from infancy is that the bible is unquestioningly and irrefutably true. The Bible is infallible, inerrant and authoritative on all matters of life. It is a book synthesized over 6 millennia from thousands of oral and written traditions, transmitted across at least 6 languages, and translated by hundreds or thousands of scribes, translators, and scholars. The Bible that we today include dozens of versions, some of which even contradict each other. But what of it? Could the inerrancy of the Bible possibly be a false church doctrine? Where does the notion of inerrancy come from? And lastly, what are the spiritual and psychological implications of such a claim for us today?
Check out Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire, Julie's 300-page book (there's a 100-page version too!) that irrefutably demonstrated why hell can't be true using Scripture, history, Jewish perspectives, logic, and reason. Available on Amazon, Audible, Kindle, and always for free (PDFs) at her website. Also available in Spanish!
Controversia Infernal (Spanish Version): amzn.to/2JlNwA4 FREE PDFs: www.raisinghellbookgroupEpisode 1: Leaving Christianity to Find GodRaising Hell2024-03-03 | Join authors Logan Barone and Julie Ferwerda in this new series on maintaining and even deepening one's relationship to God/Divine Source during religious deconstruction (and reconstruction). In the coming weeks, we will dismantle difficult and problematic religious teachings that have kept us from joyfully apprehending the greatest truth about our essence. This enigmatic teaching of Jesus is the real "pearl of great price" that opens up new worlds of love, liberty, and ultimate empowerment.
Check out Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire, Julie's 300-page book (there's a 100-page version too!) that irrefutably demonstrated why hell can't be true using Scripture, history, Jewish perspectives, logic, and reason. Available on Amazon, Audible, Kindle, and always for free (PDFs) at her website. Also available in Spanish!
Controversia Infernal (Spanish Version): amzn.to/2JlNwA4 FREE PDFs: www.raisinghellbookgroupInterview with God is Grey: Is Hell Real?Raising Hell2022-07-29 | This interview was done a while back with Brenda @GodisGrey . She has a wonderful, impactful channel devoted to deconstructing the false, bi-polar version of modern Christianity (and God).
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupSurvival & Eating from the Tree of Life HD 720pRaising Hell2021-01-29 | Find out the answer to your burning questions...
Why has Julie been MIA for the past few months? What is the Golden Age and who is going to bring it in? What did Jesus mean by "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God"? What does it mean to eat from the tree of life and how can I get in on this?
All these and more in this latest video!
Here is a helpful graphic depiction of the transition of awakening. It really helped me make sense out of this past year. "Duality into Unity: Stages of Awakening by Elizabeth Arpil. youtube.com/watch?v=23ep8U23rrg&feature=youtu.be
Find this video helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupSending Love from New Mexico!Raising Hell2020-11-20 | Just a quick hello to let you all know I'm thinking about you. I hope you are still raising hell out there...the world needs less fear!
__________________________________ Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupEp 11: How Are So Many Christians Duped?Raising Hell2020-10-08 | This was one of my most difficult obstacles. How could millions of sincere Evangelical Christians be duped about hell, and somehow I am suddenly enlightened on the matter?
First of all, there are millions of deceived and misled people in this world. Just ask anyone in a particular subculture or religion and they will be sure to let you know that everyone else outside of their belief system is duped! The Christians believe the millions of Muslims are duped, and vice versa. The Evangelical Christians believe the Catholics are duped, and vice versa. The Buddhists believe the Hindus are duped. And so on. So being among a huge number of duped people is not all that unique or unexpected.
Maybe like you, I grew up in many flavors of Evangelical Christianity, a fragmented religion of certainty that teaches, “we can’t be wrong! We are the only ones who know and have the truth. We are the religion of Jesus and the apostles.” Yet even under that smokescreen of certainty, there are something like 35,000 denominations who all think they are the only ones correctly interpreting the Bible and who believe all the others are misled!
Think about this. According to the Pew Research Center from polls taken in the last couple of years, 65% of Americans claim to be Christians, with a total of 16% of Americans claiming to be Evangelical (hell-believing) Christians. That means that if you are a hell-believing Christian, you are in a belief system that says that approximately 84% of other people in your country have false beliefs, with about 50% of them being other Christians with beliefs that differ from yours. This percentage of people who believe like you do shrinks significantly when you leave the borders of the United States.
A significant minority of people who have their private truth is not a new phenomenon, not even in your circles. I'm sure we can agree that just because someone is standing against the majority of something does not necessarily mean they are wrong. In fact…Have you ever wondered what this verse means:
"However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth” (Luke 18:8)?
If there are so many people with faith…all the people in your church, your denomination, your religion…why is Jesus so concerned about finding faith?
Or how about this?
"And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world” (Rev. 12:9).
What makes you think that you (or I for that matter) missed out on being duped? How arrogant of us to think we are somehow smart enough, or perceptive enough to have single-handedly understood the mysteries of the universe while everyone else is wrong!
From the beginning of time, the masses (large groups of religious people) have always been wrong. Jesus came to overthrow the religious establishment who were certain they were right in their beliefs and the eyes of God, yet they were completely off base. Early Roman leaders and emperors used fear to garner political power. Unfortunately the Protestants carried forward some of the worst of the beliefs and practices, including the Catholic teaching of hell.
And this teaching of hell, which completely subverts the loving, compassionate character of God, is why Jesus was so concerned that faith would not be found upon his return to earth. Real faith is that which knows that “love never fails,” that “the greatest of all virtues is love,” that love is patient, kind, forgiving, loyal, always good.” Real faith knows that the character of God is consistent with that of functional, loving parents, and is never contradictory in expectations.
If you are truly following the Spirit, you should always feel like an outlier. That’s what the Bible is all about—people who bucked their predominant religious cultures in favor of deeper wisdom, understanding and truth. Moses, Abraham, Samuel, Esther, David, Joseph, Jesus, the apostles—all of them were on the outside of the religious systems of their day, calling their religious subcultures to extravagant belief in the goodness of God.
And that’s what I’m doing today.
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupReligious Deconstruction with Michael CampRaising Hell2020-08-12 | Join me today as I interview Michael Camp, author, podcaster, and former missionary and Evangelical fundamentalist Christian. Michael and I met about 10 years ago when we were both knee deep in our individual deconstruction journeys (not quite over our heads yet...that came later!) and have been fast friends since. He's been a huge supporter of the Raising Hell Book and mission since day one and I appreciate his heart for helping get people liberated from a false, damaging version of the Jesus/God/faith story.
Today Michael offers us some very useful perspectives on deconstruction and reconstruction the healthy and sensible way, a topic he's passionate about and currently developing material on for groups. Be sure to check out Michaels prolific and thought-provoking work at:
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupMy Deconstruction Journey-Fear to FreedomRaising Hell2020-08-08 | This is a brief look at my process through the walls of fear-based religion growing up, to where I'm at today, free of all the mental and spiritual captivity of the false teachings about God's character and plan for humanity. I hope you can relate to my journey and know that there is a way out of Egypt (more bricks! more bricks!) to the Promised Land, your real home.
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
Join the discussion on Facebook: Raising Hell Book GroupEp 10: Epic Bible Fails for Properly Warning People About HellRaising Hell2020-06-17 | Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Help me undo the damage and change the world’s mind about God for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
1. Genesis. The warning for eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was “death." No scare tactics of eternal death, ultimate doom and fiery destruction. And what happened to Adam and Eve when they ate? They died. And as a result, all people die.
2. The Old Testament. Never once mentions hell to anyone at any time. Again, no big warnings that if you disobey God you will be forever tortured in flames. And what do we do about the fact that Jesus hadn’t lived yet, if Jesus (literally) is the only way to God? What do we do with all those heroes of the faith who died before Jesus and didn’t know about putting their faith in him?
3. Sodom and Gomorrah. It’s interesting that Jude 6-7 talk about Sodom and Gomorrah being punished in "eternal fire.” If such a thing exists, why does God say he will restore Sodom and Gomorrah in Ezekiel 16:55? Ezekiel was written 1500 years after S&G were destroyed. The Septuagint says, “your sister Sodom and her daughters shall be restored as they were from the beginning.”
4. Jesus. In an earlier video, we noted that Jesus never actually spoke of hell, but of Gehenna, a literal valley outside Jerusalem. Even if someone did want to make a case that he meant hell when he used the word Gehenna, he never preached about this place or condition of judgment to the crowds, or to the Gentiles. What kind of savior refuses to warn most of the people he encounters? Also, Jesus was never in a hurry, and did not urgently proclaim a message of deliverance from eternal doom. Instead, Jesus said, “Forgive them Father, they know not what they do. ...When I am lifted up [I] with draw all humans to myself.”
5. The Gospel. The word “gospel” actually means “good news.” In Luke 2:10 the angel says, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people…” If most of the people who have ever lived are going to hell, wouldn’t the “good news” actually be really bad news for multiple billions? If hell is true the angel should have offered a stern warning, “I bring you good news of great joy for only the people who receive it and believe it. Everyone else will be doomed for all eternity.”
Once I looked up “gospel" in all the places it occurs in the NT Greek. It appears fifty-two times as an action, “bringing good news,” and seventy-three times in noun form, “good news.” It is never used in the same context with hell or everlasting torment or even judgment. The NT writers didn’t share it as “The good news or else!”
6. Apostle Paul. Paul was assigned as the apostle to the non-Jews. As Christians, he is our one chance to make sure we know how to get to heaven. Paul never once mentions hell. Only once he talks about “age-abiding judgment,” and he only ever talks about the gospel in a favorable light.
7. The Book of Life. In ancient Jewish tradition, the Book of Life (or "Book of Remembrance") is a dynamic, changing document whereby our deeds are recorded and measured—yes the way we treat others matters.
Ex. 32:32–33: “[Moses said] ‘But now, if You will, forgive their sin—and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written!’ The LORD said to Moses, ‘Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book.’”
And in Revelation 21:27 (literal translation), we see a present progressive verb: "And in no way should anything common, and committing an abomination, and a lie enter into her (the New Jerusalem); only the ones being written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.” (see discussion in Raising Hell on pages 263-4).
The Jewish teaching on this appears to contrast eonian, age-abiding life (obtained by loving God and others, justice, mercy) with the need for another death cycle and atonement (based on outward evidences/works of justice, regardless of faith), which supports the purpose of the refining process in life in the ages (do-overs, as many as needed). myjewishlearning.com/article/book-of-lifeEp 9: Can Free Will Send You To Hell?Raising Hell2020-06-03 | Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell.
Join the discussion on FB: Raising Hell Book Group
Supposedly, they say, that hell is a necessary consequence of free will. Since you have the free will opportunity to “choose Jesus before it’s too late,” they say, God will not force you to love him, so there are no excuses and you actually send yourself to hell. A few of the 12,000 reasons that free will resulting in anyone going to hell cannot be true (more on the video).
1. Do you really think that anyone would chose hell? No. Nobody would choose hell. Most of the people who have ever lived didn’t even know there was a choice to be made. Nobody who has ever lived could conceive of such a horrible place. 2. If free will were true, that means that you actually have the possibility of determining your own eternal destiny, as well as contributing to the eternal destiny of others. How could any good God permit you to have this much power and responsibility? 3. If free will with some kind of ultimate loss were true, and assuming that God is fair and just, this world would have to be a level playing field so that everyone had the same fair opportunity to believe in Jesus. Yet, this is not the case. We are born into this world with a totally unfair playing field due to millions of factors outside our choices. There is no “free” in free will. 4. If either free will (Arminian camp) or chosen (Calvinist camp) are true, then God is either too weak or too mean to save all of his creation, or to have adequately planned ahead for what was needed. 5. If God is too weak or too mean to provide a way to save or reconcile with all of his children equally, then Satan wins and God loses. 95% or more of all people for all time head off to eternal flames and God loses most of his creation to Satan. 6. If free will is true, God is like a distant, unloving parent who watches his uninformed, ignorant, or unready children go off to destruction without stepping in to help. That means God loves his children less than most earthly parents, and shows favoritism to a few. 7. If free will is true, what happened to the Apostle Paul? He was given belief and understanding despite his unbelief and lovelessness. He did not want it, was not looking for it, it just happened to him. Why would any of us be any different than this “chief of sinners”? 8. If we truly have free will, then we should also be able to exert our free will and choose not to go to hell. 9. What about the hundreds of verses in the Bible where God declares that his firm, decisive will trumps the will of man, is going to save all, that no one can oppose his will and plan, and that no plan of his can be thwarted or foiled (Job 23:13; 42:2). 10. In reality, the Bible teaches that you do not have “free will.” You have a limited will with limited power and influence, and you are not responsible for your destiny.
Verses: God's plans stand through all generations (Ps. 33:10–11; 135:6). God determines the steps and destiny of man, and all His purposes prevail (Pr. 16:4, 9, 33; 19:21; 21:1). God does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth (Dan. 4:35). “I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for me” (Jer. 32:27)? “I have sworn by Myself, the word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back, that to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance” (Is. 45:23). “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand” (Is. 14:24). “So is My Word that goes out of my mouth: It will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire, and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Is. 55:11, NIV). “My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all my good pleasure...I have planned it, surely I will do it” (Is. 46:10–11).
What God wants, God Gets. God wills that none should perish and all should repent (2 Peter 3:9, KJV). God wills all people to be saved (1 Tim. 2:3–4, KJV). God wills that NOT ONE would be lost—and that includes everyone (John 3:35; 6:39, KJV). God wills that His Kingdom fill the earth, and that His will be done by all (Matt. 6:10; Dan. 2:35). God has declared that every knee will bow to Him, and every tongue will confess Him as Lord and give Him praise (Rom. 14:11, Phil. 2:10).Ep 8: What About the Lake of Fire?Raising Hell2020-05-28 | Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. All Patreon subscribers will get a chapter each month from my upcoming book that deals with the hard questions after deconstruction of one's religious beliefs/worldview, such as if God really loves us so much, what about evil and suffering? How do we navigate paradoxes and contradictions? How do we keep from getting lost, off track, or duped again?
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
In Revelation 19:20 and 20:10-15, we find a terrifying passage about the lake of fire that burns with brimstone and sulphur forever and ever. If hell isn’t true, what is the deal with the lake of fire?
1. The lake of fire is obviously not literal. Revelation is full of symbolism—a woman riding on a beast and red dragon with seven heads, and a crowd of people standing on a sea of glass, and everyone knows it’s symbolic. But get to the lake of fire and suddenly hello! We are told we must somehow take it literally…in order to support our hell doctrine. Not!
2. Throughout Scripture, fire is symbolically rendered as a purifying agent. Fire (Greek “pur”) is the word we get our English word “pure” from and almost always figurative or symbolic with the purpose of purifying, refining, and for accomplishing general good. When interpreting and gaining an understanding of the symbolism of the lake of fire, it’s helpful to check out how the word fire is used throughout Scripture.
• God is “a consuming fire” (Ex. 24:17; Deut. 4:24; Is. 30:27; Heb. 12:29) • Believers are baptized and anointed with fire (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16; Acts 2:3). • Jesus and His messengers appear in and are described as fire (2 Thess. 1:7; Heb. 1:7; Rev. 10:1). • God will judge “all flesh” with fire* (Is. 10:17; 66:16; Rev. 19:15). • Fire acts as a testing, refining, and purifying agent, removing the chaff from our lives (chaff is on the wheat; it is not the wheat itself (Is. 48:10; Matt. 3:12; Luke 3:17; 1 Pet. 1:7; Rev. 3:18). • The Israelites were refined in a fiery furnace (Deut. 4:20; 1 Kings 8:51; Is. 31:9; 48:10; Jer. 11:4). • Everyone must have the experience of being purified by fire: “Everyone will be salted with fire” (Mark 9:49).
3. The Second Death. In last week’s episode, we looked at what is the second death. The second death is what we all go through to put to death our old nature that perceives itself as separate from God and others, and is a good thing! (see episode 7 and Galatians 2:20).
4. Brimstone. According to Strong’s Concordance #2303, theion, the Greek word for brimstone is defined as, “divine incense, because burning brimstone was regarded as having power to purify, and to ward off disease.” Notice that brimstone (theion) shares the same root word as “God” (Theos).
5. Torment. The Greek word for torment in the verse above is basanizo. Basanizo (verb) comes from the root noun, “basanos,” which is defined by Strong’s #931 as: A touchstone. Originally, a black, silicon-based stone used as “a touchstone” to test the purity of precious metals (like silver and gold). In the ancient Greek papyrii, basanos also meant, “touchstone, test.” #931 (basanos)was originally (from oriental origin) a touchstone; a “Lydian stone” used for testing gold because pure gold rubbed on it left a peculiar mark.
And if we put all three of those more literal meanings together (purification, divine incense to ward off spiritual sickness, and testing), throwing out the dubious insertion of torture, we begin to get a distinctly different feel than endless eternal punishment taking place in Revelation.
6. The Book of Life. On page 262-265 in Raising Hell, I demonstrate that the book of life is a changing document with names being continuously added and erased, not a final guarantee of some heavenly club membership (or declaration of doom).
More verses on fire: Isaiah 48:10: Ps. 66:10–12: “For you tried us O God. You set us on fire as silver is set to the fire...we went through fire and water; but you led us unto respite” (Septuagint). Zech. 13:9: “And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested (note the word “tested” in association with fire and gold—just like the Revelation passage above).”Ep 7: If Hell Isnt True, Why Did Jesus Die?Raising Hell2020-05-24 | Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (full length version, short and sweet version, and Spanish version)
I love this question. It requires that you get out of your old paradigm—one that isn’t even biblical.
Jesus didn’t die to keep you from going to hell. He died to show you the way to heaven. Also, Jesus didn’t die to change God’s mind about you, but to change your mind about God.
The fact is, we all have to die. And, we all have to die two deaths!
The first death is our mortal death, as in, stop breathing. The second death is the death of our sin consciousness self that seeks to separate ourselves from God and others. We all have to lay down this old ego-driven, disconnected version of ourselves and turn our lives and wills over to God in order to come into new life. This is the meaning of Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me.”
When Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father except through me,” he was saying, “My way is the way. My way is the truth...follow me. My way is through death and resurrection, that is how you get to the Father.”
In your second death of the ego or first Adam, you are saved from the death and destructive ways of being your old, unredeemed (not born anew) self. You are saved (“sozo,” which is also “healed") from the perception of separation from God and others that keeps you from being love, from experiencing the power of God, from transforming into your higher self.
Heaven, by the way, starts NOW for all who believe and are connected to the Vine. This is “eternal life,” or from the Greek, “eonian life.” Eonian life is age-abiding life in the age you are living and beyond. Anytime we are connected to our Source, God, as Jesus was, we are living in precious eternal life.
Jesus’s death also accomplished another benefit: he put an end to the old pagan sacrificial system. Jesus was a scapegoat of sorts, putting to death an old system of beliefs where a blood sacrifice is needed to appease an angry god. Jesus became the last sacrifice so that these unnecessary sacrifices would stop. This is the foundation for the nonviolent atonement theory, and is supported by many Scriptures.
Ps. 40:6 "Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired; My ears You have opened; Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required."
Ps. 51:16-17 "For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise."
Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you? But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God.
Thanks for joining this week!
Verse references: Mark 2:10, Galatians 2:20, John 14:6, John 15:5Facebook Livestream - Lets Get AcquaintedRaising Hell2020-05-23 | This video offers a recap of the first month of the Raising Hell Around the World Campaign for friends and supporters. So grateful for all of you!
Share Freely: Youtube Channel: http://youtube.com/raisinghell The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com (Full length, abridged, Spanish)
Purchase or Review: Full length version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2y4jCsc Abridged version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2x58bBp Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4Ep 6: Wait! Hell isnt in the Bible?!Raising Hell2020-05-13 | Find out why the word and concept of hell is a mistranslation!
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell
Why don’t literal Bible translations ever use the word hell in any verses? And why does every modern translation have a different number of occurrences for the word hell? Answer: Because neither the word nor the concept of hell is actually in Scriptures!
If hell was actually in the Greek and Hebrew text from which our modern Bibles have been translated, then EVERY Bible version would account for the exact same number of times the word hell is used throughout the Bible, yet check this out.
Number of times the word “hell” appears in different Bible versions: The Message=56 King James Version=54 New King James Bible=32 New Living Translation=19 New Century Version=15 English Standard Version=14 New International Version=14 Amplified Bible=13 New American Standard Bible=13 LXX Greek Septuagint=0 Young’s Literal=0 Concordant Literal=0 Complete Jewish Bible=0 World English Bible=0
Notice that none of the literal versions (e.g. Young’s Literal, Concordant Literal) contain the word hell. When you do a word study of the word hell in the versions that it does appear, you find that there are a combination of FOUR DIFFERENT WORDS that have been translated as hell, each with a definition that never means hell. * Sheol (Hebrew)-place of the dead where both good and bad people go in transition to their next experience. * Gehenna (Greek translation of OT Valley of Ben Hinnom just outside of Jerusalem) * Hades (Greek word and concept equivalent of sheol) * Tartaroo (a verb, not a noun or place)
In my book, Raising Hell, we explore all of these glaring mistranslations of hell, and find closer definitions to what the four words above actually meant to a first century Jew.
What is the “hell" Jesus referred to? It’s important to note that Jesus only referred to “Gehenna” (translated “hell”) on four unique occasions that we have recorded in the Bible. The word Gehenna is a carryover from the Old Testament Valley of Ben Hinnom, a literal valley outside Jerusalem. In those days it is said that Gehenna was a garbage dump where they burned trash and dead bodies, and where criminals were banished to live among the rubble. Gehenna is still there to this day. It was turned into a park. Yep, you can go have a picnic with your family in Gehenna, or Jesus’s “hell."
It is believed that in those days, Gehenna metaphorically represented a place of national judgment for Israelites, a time of isolation and reflection on acts of evil and injustice committed toward others. A lot of evil acts occurred in this Valley, including burning their children to death in fire to the god Baal (Jer. 19:4-5; 32:35). God said that it never entered his mind to command them to do such a detestable thing, yet we casually declare and somehow believe that God is going to burn God’s children in eternal fire! How hypocritical that would be!
It is important to note that Jesus did not warn the crowds or “unbelievers" about Gehenna. He warned the religious Pharisees and his disciples. If hell was the default destiny for mankind, Jesus would have been very uncaring and irresponsible not to be warning all the crowds and individuals he encountered about hell!
Nobody in the OT ever mentions hell. We learned that Jesus never mentioned hell. Guess what? Paul, the apostle to the “Gentiles” (non Jews) and the early Church, never mentions hell! If hell were true, being that it is the worst possible outcome for this existence, and Paul was commissioned with teaching the most important truths of the Jews to the new Christian converts, it is unconscionable that he did not once mention hell in any of his writings in the New Testament. And Paul likely wrote more of the NT than anyone else, yet failed to warn anyone of hell or eternal damnation.
We look into these words and address oh so many more questions in my book Raising Hell. Download a free copy today!Ep 5: Lost Forever or Found Eventually?Raising Hell2020-04-30 | Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell. Free links to book below!
In Luke 15, Jesus details three parables back to back—the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son (prodigal). What’s most interesting is that, in all three, the owner of that which is lost never stops looking UNTIL the item that is lost is found and brought safely home.
If even one sheep out of 100 is lost, the shepherd goes out looking and does not return home until he has found it. And even then, he brings it home on his shoulders, rejoicing.
The woman who loses the coin sweeps the house carefully until she finds it and puts it back where it belongs in her purse.
The lost ("dead" even) son comes home.
And get this. No one ever pointed this out to me in church teachings before. Before the lost son ever uttered a word of remorse or repentance, the father had been scanning the horizon for him, never ceasing to look for him. When he finally saw his son "a long way off," he had compassion for him, and ran and embraced him. The father’s heart of welcoming him home had nothing to do with the son first repenting. He was a beloved son, always.
The father says my son was lost and is found. He was dead and is alive. The Greek word for “lost” here is the same one translated in the NT to indicate people are destroyed. I offer a great discussion on this Bible word (apollumi) in my book, Raising Hell, on page 252 (see link to free download below). I show why sheep, coins, and people are sometimes lost but never utterly lost, destroyed or banished. They are always brought home.
We are all lost sheep (Is. 53:6), all prodigal sons and daughters. But we are all brought home safely!
Purchase or Review: Full length version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2y4jCsc Abridged version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2x58bBp Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4Ep 4: Questioning 2,000 Years Orthodoxy on Hell?Raising Hell2020-04-24 | Who am I to question 2,000 years of consensus? Find out why hell orthodoxy is a myth!
Find this info helpful? Want to make this knowledge available for countless others? Buy me “a cup of coffee” (or help change the world for just $3/month!): http://www.patreon.com/RaisingHell
When you start questioning hell, you are treated as if you are single-handedly going against nearly 2 millennia of peaceful consensus on a matter by every single Christian who lived since the days of Jesus. But is this true?
No! The current doctrine of hell came to be the orthodox position of the Roman Catholic Church over the course of 5 centuries. It was not the consensus or even teaching of Western Church for the first 200 years after Christ (and has never been the position of the Eastern Church, which is more closely aligned with the early apostles of Christ), and as with many other doctrines, came about through violence and bloodshed. In fact, the doctrine of hell did not even become a major doctrinal position until the 5th century!
I would go so far as to say that the modern day churchgoers would do well to realize the myth of orthodoxy! The teaching of hell came about in the early Roman Church as a means to control the populace with fear, and had political influence. Later pop culture contributed to the legends, through works like Dante’s Inferno.
The first person to write about “eternal hell” was the Latin North African Tertullian who lived in 160-220 AD and was considered the father of the Latin Church. For Tertullian, hell was a place you sent the wicked and everyone you didn’t like, in his case anyone who disagreed with him or argued with him about his theology! He envisioned a time when he would look down from heaven at those people in hell and laugh with glee.
Out of 6 theological schools in the first few centuries after Christ, only one taught this newly emerging doctrine of hell to its students, the Latin one at Carthage Africa. Four of the other schools taught that all people would be saved and reconciled through Christ through a restorative plan of ages.
Picking up where Tertullian left of, Augustine (354-430 CE) was a poor student of the Koine Greek (New Testament language) and so he reinforced the teachings of an eternal hell, and included anyone who wasn’t a Christian, including un-baptized babies. St. Augustine was also the inventor of hell-lite, or Purgatory, which he devised to accommodate the verses in the Bible that indicate God would reconcile with all. Unfortunately, Augustine championed the doctrine of hell and influenced hate campaigns and bigotry in the centuries to follow.
This influence by Tertullian and Augustine led to much bloodshed in the following centuries, known as the dark ages from 500-1500 CE such as the Albigensian crusades, Spanish armadas, Netherland’s butcheries, St. Barhtolomew massacres, the Inquisition, and many subterranean torture chambers used by church-aligned torturers!
In any case, hell did not become “orthodox” in the Western Church until the 5th century after Christ, which means that it was not orthodoxy back to the days of Jesus at all!
Hell is still not some peaceful consensus, even in our modern Bibles! Just take a look at the discrepancies of how many times the word “hell” appears in different Bible versions. If it is really there, and all the Bibles are being translated honestly and accurately, shouldn’t all versions have the same number of references to hell? The KJV mentions hell over 50 times, while the NASB only has 13 references. The literal Bibles and the Jewish Bible do not even contain the word hell! What’s up with that?
So now you know that 2,000 years of orthodox teaching on hell is a farce, which means that you are more than justified in questioning it! Let’s keep going!
Purchase or Review: Full length version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2y4jCsc Abridged version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2x58bBp Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4Raise Hell Around the World with Me!Raising Hell2020-04-18 | Share the Good News with me and change the world...
Tell me...how is your life different since you deconstructed hell? How can you make this new beautiful normal a reality for others? Times are ripe for people to be liberated from fear and connect with their God-given purpose and power!
Ok. So. Dare to Question! What have you got to lose? Well, actually, maybe a lot.
Beware! People who start asking questions surrounding the core tenets or long-held beliefs of their religious culture always get labeled as a troublemaker, rebellious, a black sheep, unintelligent, liberal, heretical, and maybe even cultish!
What have you got to lose might be a loaded question. If you’re like most of us who outwardly and persistently question the teaching that 1+1=3, coming up with a different answer, you might end up losing a lot. ...But you will also without a doubt gain a lot in the process.
I was always told that God is big enough for my questions. The truth can defend itself, so there is no harm in asking God anything as long as it is done with honestly and sincerity. That is, until it came to voicing those questions out loud…to my pastors, church leaders, and long-time church friends. Then the fangs and claws came out.
I was first regarded with suspicion: “She’s getting into dangerous territory here.”
Next, I was ridiculed and shamed: “She’s never been to seminary! "Who does she think she is researching these questions on her own?! "How ridiculous to question 2,000 years of streamlined consensus orthodoxy! "Why is she not submitting to pastoral authority? No wonder she got led astray.”
Finally, I was marginalized: “She is going to contaminate everyone with false teachings and dangerous ideas! She must be shut down or shut out!”
Like I said, you might lose a few things along the way. But you will save your integrity, your ability to think for yourself, and you will make new friends who are not afraid of your beautiful mind and legitimate questions. You will also open up a new world of wonder as you discover that God’s love is bigger than you ever dreamed possible.
God IS big enough for your questions. In fact, God loves it when you stop to question things that don’t make sense and use your brains, not simply following the crowd. Questions are rewarded with answers and new paths of discovery, most of which often threaten the establishment.
Is questioning safe? The character of God is at stake here. The world is living in bondage and disempowerment to a lie. It’s not safe NOT to question. Give it a try!Ep 2: Do You Have to be a Seminary Grad to Study Your Bible Critically?Raising Hell2020-04-02 | The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire Free PDFs of all versions at: http://raisinghellbook.com Full length version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2y4jCsc Abridged version Amazon: http://amzn.to/2x58bBp Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4
There's a fable by Hans Christian Anderson where a naive emperor paid handsomely to have two scoundrels make him some extravagant, one-of-a-kind clothing. The thread for this clothing was reported to be so light and magical that only those worthy and competent could see it.
As we remember from the tale, everyone in town pretended to see the emperor’s clothing when he paraded around town in his birthday suit. How could they not pretend? If they didn’t go along with the ruse, they would be singled out, ridiculed, and maybe even cast out.
It was only the child who advanced the emperor where he stood proudly on his carriage and said, “Why is everyone ignoring the fact that the emperor is naked?!”
My book Raising Hell challenges one such glaring, damaging falsehood in today’s church—the doctrine of hell. To allow yourself the ability to see the overwhelming evidence proving that hell cannot possibly be true requires the open, inquisitive approach of a child. A child has not yet been systematically indoctrinated, is not under the thumb of social constraints, and is able to approach life simply and honestly. I invite you to do the same.
But is it safe to question such important concepts in our modern Bibles? Do you need a seminary degree? The message of the Bible was lived, written down by, and proliferated by and for the common people, not the theologians and scholars (Pharisees) of the day. Jesus selected uneducated fishermen, tax collectors, women, and even prostitutes to understand and convey the mysteries of the Spirit, and I believe God still works this way today. In fact, the entire point of the faith journey is that it is a trail blazed from within—a personal relationship and transformational path between you and your Creator. You don’t need a pastor, a priest, a guru, or anyone else to interpret your inner dialog with the Spirit. “The Spirit will teach you all things" (John 14:26). Once you know and believe the Universe is safe, you will feel more comfortable learning to trust your inner guide and experience.
Through the centuries, the messages of Scriptures have been controlled by translators and scholars, while the rest of us common folks were at their mercy for reliability, interpretation, and authenticity. Unfortunately, these qualities were lost (and twisted at times) in translation along the way on some very important doctrines, with the most damaging to humanity being the false doctrine of hell.
Raising Hell demonstrates how the average lay person, the childlike, and even the actual child who sits in church can utilize the same online reference resources that today’s scholars, theologians, and pastors are using to discover plain lies being unwittingly proliferated about the character of God as well as beautiful hidden (in plain sight) truths.
Fact: There is no correlation between going to seminary and the ability to discern truth. Just like other institutions of our day (medical and scientific), pastors are educated in institutions with man-made biases, not with open-minded discovery. In other words, they are taught how to learn and how to think before they ever come into a pulpit (as admitted by many recovering pastors today).
One of the objectives of religion throughout time, is to control people’s thoughts and beliefs, namely with fear. "Fear sells." Unfortunately, Christianity was not immune to this problem. The main way this has been carried out is via Bible mistranslations. Most of these mistranslations are so apparent, even a 3rd grader could spot them.
If you are already a preschool graduate, you can and should bring your inner child along on this journey. You’re smart enough, capable enough, and discerning enough for this path of inquiry!Ep 1: Questioning HellRaising Hell2020-03-27 | The start of a year-long deconstruction of the false doctrine of hell....
I was a fully devoted Evangelical Christian, Bible study teacher, and church leader until my early 40s. I have read all the way through the Bible at least nine times…reading each and every time about what happens to unbelievers after death: they go to hell from all apparent evidence. So what happened to me that opened Pandora’s Box and led to me questioning this cornerstone doctrine of the Christian Church?
For me, it all started with learning Hebrew (via Messianic Jewish teachers) perspectives on Scriptures, and realizing that there is so much misinterpretation and missing background information in the Western Christian mind when it comes to understanding the Bible. Once you start learning what the Old Testament Feasts, Harvests, and Covenants are really about (future video, stay tuned!), and seeing the incredible depth of the Hebrew language and all its profound, rich meanings in each verse of the Torah, the whole Bible becomes practically a different book than the one you grew up reading. It made me realize the doctrinal certainties and misguided “statements of faith” pretty much miss the mark of authentic Scriptural intentions. Most Evangelical Christian Bible teachings are completely off-base and overly simplistic (in a bad way) despite their dogmatic certainty.
Studying through Messianic Jewish lenses opened up a whole world of meaning for me. Suddenly the Bible that used to seem pretty haphazard and disconnected in a lot of ways, now had context and continuity throughout from a different frame of reference. All of this made me realize that I needed to be more open-minded and humble in my approach to Scriptures and my current worldview. This was a major and very good breach in my old indoctrinated ways to considering other viewpoints and interpretations. But at least, thank God, every word of the modern Bible was inerrant (as I had been incessantly taught to believe).
And then one day shortly after that, it happened. I found my first obvious Bible mistranslation. And then I found more. And then I started seeing verses (as if for the first time) that I’d never noticed before, proclaiming that God’s love is truly unfailing, and never gives up on anyone—thief, prodigal, or unrepentant. Why hadn’t I ever noticed those before?
These occurrences sent me down the path of a year of intense studying, reading everything I could get my hands on surrounding the doctrine of hell, heaven, and salvation. What I found was completely shocking and life-altering, and I am going to be sharing my journey with you here, in short bite-sized pieces.
Does any of this resonate? Maybe the thing that led me to question hell is ultimately the same thing that led you to question and to find this Youtube channel. Watch and find out.Gods Love is Bigger Than You Thought!Raising Hell2020-03-04 | Intro to the video series exploring the false doctrine of hell and the beautiful alternative of God's truly unfailing love. Dare to question. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain! Don't miss an episode...all hell is about to break loose!
Want to help me proliferate this message? I donate hundreds of free books every year to ministry leaders worldwide to deconstruct and eradicate this false doctrine. I currently am working full time from home, devoted to removing the shackles from people's hearts and lives so they can be free to love God and love others the way Jesus did. See my video "Raise Hell Around the World with Me" to see what I'm up to and for more details. (youtube.com/watch?v=40iqs7Mp43E)