Deconstructing Doctrine 11: Heaven and Hell

Christ our Judge via photopin (license)

This is the concluding blog post of my deconstruction of the Eleven Doctrines of The Salvation Army.

Rob Bell and Love Wins

In 2011, the pastor and speaker, Rob Bell, published his book, Love Wins, which dared to question our beliefs on Heaven and Hell. The backlash was immediate and fierce from the Evangelical Church. He was condemned as a heretic. He stepped away from his congregation, and people stopped coming to his events. The whole idea of even questioning whether or not there is a hell seemed too much for Evangelical Christians to accept. They disowned him.

Interestingly enough, he gained even more followers. He borrowed his son's microphone and began recording his thoughts in a podcast he called, The Robcast. I can't recommend this podcast enough.

I am cognizant that my own discussion of Heaven and Hell will lead to many people questioning who I am and whether or not I can still label myself a Christian.

This brings us to the final doctrine of The Salvation Army, #11:

We believe in the immortality of the soul; in the resurrection of the body; in the general judgment at the end of the world; in the eternal happiness of the righteous; and in the endless punishment of the wicked.

Squirrel Nut Zippers

In the 1990's, a jazz band from Georgia had a one-hit wonder with a calypso beat, called "Hell." I loved this song. It personified most of the preconceived notions we have of Hell.

It's irreverent, to say the least. I like it, even as I disagree with it.

So you're probably all wondering:  Do I believe in a literal Heaven and Hell? The question feels both important and at the same time irrelevant. Let me try to explain.

What did Jesus believe?

Jesus was a Jew. He wasn't a Christian. Nowhere in Hebrew Scriptures (Tanakh) is Hell EVER mentioned. Not once. For such an important concept in Christianity, one would think there should be some correlation in what Christians call the Old Testament. Judgment is mentioned in several places, but never a concept of Hell.

What is mentioned instead is an abode of the dead, called Sheol. English has a hard time translating this word. It is sometimes rendered as "the grave." Basically, it was an abode of the dead where everyone went, whether they were righteous or not.

Jesus' view on this is best exemplified in the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). In this view of the afterlife, the rich man who perished was in a punishment side of Sheol, but was also able to talk to Abraham, despite being separated by a huge crevasse. Most modern Christians reject this idea of an afterlife. People who are in Hell can't talk to people who are in Heaven, but here it seems that this is the case.

In other passages, where "hell" is used in English, the Greek equivalent is often Gehenna, which was an actual place outside of Jerusalem, used to burn refuse.

Now Jesus did preach about resurrection and judgment, but what does that all mean? These are questions that I am still exploring.

I believe in Hell

But it's probably not what you're thinking. I have seen Hell. More often than not, we humans are the best stewards of Hell. I saw Hell on the news when I saw a Hutu murder a Tutsi with a machete on a news footage on CNN. I saw Hell in the Churches of Rwanda, where the decomposed bodies, skulls and clothes were left to rot for a reminder for future generations.

I saw Hell in the eyes of released Kosovar Albanian men, who described how their sisters and daughters (who were Muslim) were raped by Christian men and had crosses sliced into their breasts.

I felt Hell in the tears of my children as they went through the pain of my divorce, not knowing exactly what was happening.

I experienced Hell when my corps officers (pastors) told me I was not welcome to be a member of their congregation.

I heard Hell as I listened to the desperate pleas on 911 of a boyfriend trying to take away the knives from his girlfriend, who had already slit her wrists and ankles.

More often than not, Hell is of our own making. We all suffer when we show or allow this cruelty to continue.

I believe in Heaven

But it's probably not what you're thinking.

I heard Heaven when my sons first told me that they love me.

I tasted Heaven when a poor Albanian family slaughtered a lamb and roasted it for me and my friend to welcome us to his home.

I experienced Heaven when I meditated and experienced the presence of God through centered prayer.

I felt Heaven when my pastor placed ashes on my forehead for Ash Wednesday.

I swam in Heaven when my pastor baptized me and welcomed me into the Church, with no thoughts about my orientation. I cried when the congregation applauded, validating that my journey had not been in vain.

I believe in the Realm of Heaven, which Jesus described to those he taught. The Realm of Heaven is like a parent, who welcomes back their long lost child (The Prodigal Son). The Realm of Heaven is like a heretic, who helps out the true believer, despite their differences in theology (The Good Samaritan). The Realm of Heaven is loving your neighbor, no matter who they are or what they have done.

The Realm of Heaven is therefore our responsibility to bring about here on Earth, not something for us to wait for when we die. By then it's too late.

What happens when I die?

I don't know for certain, but certainty is not part of my faith, or else it wouldn't be faith, just certainty.

Do I believe there is a place of Eternal Conscious Torment, a true Hell, which has been distorted by modern Christians by their perverted reading and understanding of Scripture? Absolutely not.

Am I going to a nebulous place in the clouds, guarded by a pearly gate and having streets of gold to walk on? I don't think so, either.

However, I do believe that God is in all and above all, a concept called panentheism. So when I die, I am still with God and God is with me. That gives me great comfort.

What if I'm wrong?

For my loved ones, this is probably the part that concerns them the most. I haven't given up on God. I still follow Jesus. I know the way I follow God is not like many people do and that's ok. Christianity is ever-evolving and changing. The way we worship is certainly not like Christians of the First Century worshipped. There's nothing wrong with that either.

Just because I don't believe in a fiery Hell doesn't mean I'm going to go there. I think that's the part that flusters most traditional Christians.

In the end, it doesn't matter and it's a waste of time worrying about it. Instead, our efforts should be concentrated on loving God by helping others, bringing about God's Realm on Earth.

The Eleventh Doctrine, reworded:

I believe that it's our responsibility to conquer the Hell we humans have made on Earth, by loving God and others, bringing about Heaven to Earth. God, who is with us, will never forsake us as we live and die.

Deconstructing Doctrine 10: Sanctifi-Holiness

The Happening via photopin (license)

This is the 10th blog in my series of deconstructing the doctrines of my former church, The Salvation Army. Please refer to the other posts if you haven't read those yet.

Sanctification vs. Holiness

A good friend of mine, who was a missionary to Germany before I was, once told me a story about giving a talk to a congregation about holiness. His German wasn't quite up to snuff yet, so he had a translator assist him. His opening remarks went thusly. (It's not an exact transcript, but you'll get the gist of it.)

"Today we will be talking about holiness." - Officer

"Heute reden wir über Heiligung." - Translator

"Or as it's sometimes also called, 'sanctification.'" - Officer

"Auf Englisch gibt es zwei Wörter für Heiligung." - Translator (If you don't speak German or have a German translation app, "In English there are two words for "holiness.")

English is a wonderful language, but it is really an amalgam of so many different language traditions. Sanctification and Holiness are basically the same term. "Sanctification" has it etymology in Latin and "holiness" is Germanic.

What is holiness? Given at its face value, and by what I was taught growing up in The Salvation Army, holiness is being set apart by God to be used for God's purpose.

Merriam-Webster has an interesting take on it:  "emphasizing the doctrine of the second blessing; specifically, of or relating to a perfectionist movement arising in U.S. Protestantism in the late 19th Century."

The Salvation Army comes out of the Holiness Movement. Along with Methodism, Nazarenes, and Wesleyans, these denominations emphasized the power of the Holy Spirit to transform lives, which brings us to the 10th Doctrine of The Salvation Army

We believe that it is the privilege of all believers to be wholly sanctified, and that their whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blamless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

What's good about this Doctrine

What I appreciated most about this doctrine was the emphasis that ALL believers may be wholly sanctified. ALL may receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. ALL. Everyone. Whosoever.

From its inception, The Salvation Army has ordained women. That was a radical statement. Hardly any other denomination did. Even today, most prominent Evangelical preachers (John Piper, John MacArthur, etc.) view that having a vulva makes a woman incompatible with preaching.

The Salvation Army never did.

Granted, it took them forever to begin implementing this theology in all of its manifestations. For the longest time, married female officers were not allowed to hold a rank of their own. It was always in their husband's name. That changed in the 1980's. In the 2000's, women were finally allowed to have their own rank in their own name. It is slowly starting, but finally married women officers are being able to be placed in positions of leadership over their husbands.

Unfortunately, there has still never been a female married General of The Salvation Army. That hurdle probably won't be surpassed any time soon. It took the Army nearly 150 years to allow wives to be superior in rank to their husbands. It will probably take just as long for there to be a married female General.

What's not so good about this Doctrine

Do you recall the Merriam-Webster definition of holiness? An emphasis on perfectionism? Therein lies the headache of this doctrine.

I knew many officers who tried to say that holiness is not perfectionism. Yet this doctrine of holiness tends to drive up to that idea. Holiness was emphasized as leading a "sinless" life. This was the Salvationist's key to the pitfall of Arminianism. It is possible to lose your salvation, but if you have been sanctified by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit will help you to avoid sin in your life. This led to many calls for being set apart by God. The Salvation Army began to have two meetings on Sundays:  a Holiness Meeting and a Salvation Meeting. The former was geared towards soldiers. The latter was geared to non-members. (That for the most part has gone away. Now for the most part they only have one meeting on Sundays.)

Trying to live a holy life, as defined by what others say "holy" is, made me a nervous wreck as a child. I would pray every night to God to forgive me for doing all the sins I had done in my life. That prayer became my litany. I was scared that there was something I had done that would negate my salvation and send me to be damned for all eternity in the Flames of Hell.

Worse than that, this idea of holiness became a call for officership (ordained ministry). The hierarchy of The Salvation Army, with its soldiers, officers, etc., put an emphasis on being an officer. Then your whole life was dedicated to God and in God's service.

The Salvation Army has a two-tiered level of lay membership:  adherent and soldier. Although never stated overtly, adherents are second-class members, who can never be in a position of leadership.

Then there comes officers (clergy) and soldiers (laity). Being an officer often came with this implication that it was a higher calling than "merely" being a soldier.

The guilt trip of this was installed by none other than William Booth, the founder of The Salvation Army, who stated,

"Not called! did you say? 'Not heard the call,' I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there. Then look Christ in the face - whose mercy you have professed to obey - and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish mercy to the world."

I understand that William Booth's drive and mission was to save as many people as he could. That passion ignited The Salvation Army and did much good in this world, but it came at a terrible price. Booth disowned 2 of his sons and would not allow them to be at their mother's deathbed because they left The Salvation Army.

God protect us all from such a calling.

What then?

My life with God is now so different. Perhaps it's the terminology that got in the way. I love the idea of being in communion with God. I love the idea of holiness, but I despise the baggage of perfectionism that comes with striving to be holy.

So instead of forcing myself to do all the right things, I turned to contemplation and meditation. The goal of holiness is communion with God. I have found that through meditation. It doesn't make me perfect, but it does make me whole and that is what matters to me. There are many helpful guides to meditation, especially on a Christian basis. Meditation is an ancient rite that many Christians are beginning to reclaim in their daily life. I have found it to be extremely empowering for me.

My own thoughts on meditation:  There is no wrong way to do it. Go easy on yourself, realizing that this is also a discipline we need to engage.  Sometimes we get distracted when we meditate. When that happens, just realize that this has happened, don't beat yourself up on it, and refocus on God.

It is through meditation with God that I have experienced what holiness means to me.

If you need a starter course, I would highly recommend this article from Gravity:  A Center for Contemplative Activism.

https://gravitycenter.com/practice/centering-prayer/

Reworking the Doctrine

If I were to rework this doctrine, I would say:

It is the privilege of all creation to seek out communion with God and with each other.