Changes

In the English translation of the [[Bible]]'s [[Old Testament]], the word '''hell''' normally corresponds to the [[Hebrew]] ''sheol'', which was simply the place of the dead. But in the [[Greek]] [[New Testament]] the word used is either ''Gehenna'' (the garbage dump outside the walls of Jerusalem where fires were kept eternally burning to consume the refuse and keep down the stench) or ''Hades'', the [[Greek]]s' dark, gloomy underworld. The modern English word appears to derive most directly from "Holle" or "Hela" or "Hel", goddess of the dead in Germanic/[[Norse mythology]]. When the [[Anglo-Saxons]] later embraced [[Christianity]], the existing word in the language was reused in the new Christian concepts.

In the English translation of the [[Bible]]'s [[Old Testament]], the word '''hell''' normally corresponds to the [[Hebrew]] ''sheol'', which was simply the place of the dead. But in the [[Greek]] [[New Testament]] the word used is either ''Gehenna'' (the garbage dump outside the walls of Jerusalem where fires were kept eternally burning to consume the refuse and keep down the stench) or ''Hades'', the [[Greek]]s' dark, gloomy underworld. The modern English word appears to derive most directly from "Holle" or "Hela" or "Hel", goddess of the dead in Germanic/[[Norse mythology]]. When the [[Anglo-Saxons]] later embraced [[Christianity]], the existing word in the language was reused in the new Christian concepts.

To Christians, hell is a place where the souls of the wicked are punished eternally for all the [[sins]] they perpetrated during their lifetime on Earth.  Since all have sinned (Rom 3:23) hell can not be avoided on one's own merits, but through the love gift of [[Jesus]] one can know, love, and serve [[God]] and share eternity with Him in [[heaven]].

To fundamentalist Christians, hell is a place where the souls of the wicked are punished eternally for all the [[sins]] they perpetrated during their lifetime on Earth.  Since all have sinned (Rom 3:23) hell can not be avoided on one's own merits, but through the love gift of [[Jesus]] one can know, love, and serve [[God]] and share eternity with Him in [[heaven]].

The Christian and [[Muslim]] religious traditions often emphasize the ''Gehenna'' aspect: Hell is extremely hot and filled with fire and [[brimstone]]. Opinion varies on the question of whether, while hell itself is eternal, experience of it purges away the sins of sufferers to the point of eventual redemption. See [[purgatory]]. A minority of Christians do not believe in an eternal hell as punishment, believing instead that the souls of the wicked are annihilated. This view is referred to as [[Annihilationism]].  There is also a question of whether hell has a literal burning fire, or whether it is separation from God and therefore has the same torment as if there was a burning fire. This view has been supported by writers such as [[J.P. Moreland]].

The Christian and [[Muslim]] religious traditions often emphasize the ''Gehenna'' aspect: Hell is extremely hot and filled with fire and [[brimstone]]. Opinion varies on the question of whether, while hell itself is eternal, experience of it purges away the sins of sufferers to the point of eventual redemption. See [[purgatory]]. A minority of Christians do not believe in an eternal hell as punishment, believing instead that the souls of the wicked are annihilated. This view is referred to as [[Annihilationism]].  There is also a question of whether hell has a literal burning fire, or whether it is separation from God and therefore has the same torment as if there was a burning fire. This view has been supported by writers such as [[J.P. Moreland]]. Many Christians, though, have dealt away with the concept of hell entirely as it contradicts the concept of a merciful God.

Although hell is a focus and a concern in Christian theology, the Bible has an even greater focus.  In the [[King James Version]] the word hell is mentioned 54 times, but [[heaven]] is mentioned 551 times.

Although hell is a focus and a concern in Christian theology, the Bible has an even greater focus.  In the [[King James Version]] the word hell is mentioned 54 times, but [[heaven]] is mentioned 551 times.