Rethinking Hell contributor Chris Date answers common traditional objections to conditional immortality and the final annihilation of the unsaved.
Sources Cited
- Peterson, Robert A.; Fudge, Edward W. (2010-09-15). Two Views of Hell: A Biblical & Theological Dialogue (pp. 88-89). Intervarsity Press – A. Kindle Edition.
- Christopher W. Morgan, “Annihilationism: Will the Unsaved be Punished Forever?” in Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson (ed), Hell Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents Eternal Punishment (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), 217.
- “Aubade,” read by Philip Larkin
- Plutarch, edited by Goodwin, W. Plutarch’s Morals. “That it is not possible to live pleasurably according to the doctrine of Epicurus.”
- Glenn Peoples, “Why I am an Annihilationist”
12 thoughts on “Episode 7: Traditional Objections Answered with Chris Date”
Really nice job, Chris, this should be part II of our introductory materials, after Glenn’s podcast. Now, can’t wait for the FAQ’s!
Thanks, Daniel!
I thought this was absolutely solid, Chris. Thanks for sharing some of the fruits of your study!
Hello sir I have a question for you.
Do you think it’s possible for God to send a concept, such as death to hell forever.
No, I do not. He can (and did), however, give John an apocalyptic vision in which a symbol representing death is thrown into a lake of fire, signifying that after the lost are destroyed and all who remain are glorified, immortal saved people, no one will die anymore (1 Cor 15).
Thoroughly enjoyed this podcast #7! I have a couple of questions: Was not the death that Jesus suffered the same we would have had to face had He not paid the price? Did He not suffer the “second death”–death of the soul? Otherwise He did not pay my true penalty. Of course, in successfully submitting to that death, He earned the right to the resurrection, which follows a natural first death, as in the case of Lazarus (Mary and Martha’s brother) whom he described as “sleeping” until the Resurrection. Do you not also believe that, as Genesis describes it, a person IS a soul, he does not HAVE a soul?
Hi Chris – just a thought as I’ve heard / read the appeal to death being the worst punishment possible while going through material for conditionalism. As you did in #5 of extra biblical arguments here, often the appeal is made to the worst punishment given in a society – ie. death. My push back in this very small point is that the appeal only works in regards to what we as a society allow. That is, what is worst than capital punishment might be near death torment that is unending, and the reason that it’s not the worst our penal code will allow is that very reason, it’s so beyond what we deem acceptable. This is why there is debate on whether we can torture people in interrogation, this why it’s at the center of the assisted suicide debate. It is not uncommon to acknowledge that worst than death is to live life near death. So again, to this very small point (because I have run across it so often and find it unconvincing) I’m giving a little push back to this argument.