Monday 21 March 2011

More on Hell as a choice: giving people what they want. Forever...

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Accepting that 'traditional' depictions of Hell in terms of flames and tortures (whether true or not) are simply ludicrous to modern intellectuals - Hell can be depicted in 'modern' terms as was done by the likes of C.S Lewis (Screwtape Letters, Great Divorce, all over the place) and Charles Williams (Descent into Hell, theological essays etc.) simply as giving people eternally what they have chosen on earth.

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Just suppose that modern hedonistic individualism was given what it has chosen: but given 'only' this, and for eternity.

A life of complete individual autonomy to the point of utter isolation, a life of endlessly varied hedonism according to choice.

A thought-experiment:

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Imagine, for example, a wholly-convincing perception of an endless parade of novel and gratifying sexual encounters of exactly your favoured type with your favoured type of person (or other entity) - adding that even if this perception were actually a delusion rather than real, it would nonetheless be experienced as real.

And suppose that this went-on forever.

Is this state Heaven or Hell?

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If you think it is Heaven: congratulations, that is what you will get.

If you think it is Hell: congratulations, there is an alternative.

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