Tag Archives: heaven and hell

Recently I’ve been preparing for the inevitable. Last month, I reached an age at which I can say, “Four score and seven years ago, my mother brought forth on this continent a new baby ...” That was me. I’ve never been 87 before, never dreamed I’d make it this far. I’d wondered whether I’d see the turn of this century! But I did, so what’s next?

I have found my step-son’s assumption that folks go to church so that they’ll land in heaven rather than hell quite common among non-church goers. Perhaps this assumption comes from the presence of hell-fire-and-brimstone preachers on street corners or from the seeming monopoly fundamentalists have on popular media. It sure doesn’t come from the actual church-goers I know.

In the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church, there is no official doctrine or dogma concerning Heaven and Hell. However, they are understood from a consensus of theological opinions and commentary of the saints and church fathers.

In the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church, there is no official doctrine or dogma concerning heaven and hell.

Many Quakers speak of both heaven and hell as potential afterlife destinations, with heaven or some positive afterlife in the presence of God being far more commonly referred to in Quaker circles than hell.

Heaven and Hell are both states of being (or consciousness) in the present moment.