Nowadays, it's hard to imagine anyone preaching hell with such conviction. As a doctrine, many evangelicals find it awkward or embarrassing. The idea that someone – in fact, the vast majority of human beings since the beginning of time – would suffer Eternal Conscious Torment (ECT) for the crime of not believing in a God of whom they might never even have heard doesn't ring true.
Nevertheless, the idea that nonbelievers will suffer an eternity in hell is the default evangelical position. But increasingly, it's being challenged from within the evangelical constituency itself.
Read Full Article »