I’m afraid of going to hell, or experiencing immense pain after death. Like if I die and God does exist and he sends me to hell, like that.
When I was still in the Army Guard, each summer during our two week AT, I was one of the primary rappel instructors for the Jr. ROTC training events. (Basically, just several groups of high school kids from schools all over the state interested in a possible military career.) Anyway, prior to starting the rappel training, we would gather the kids at the front of the tower and give them a little demo. I would then introduce the other instructors and give the kids a brief pep talk. Part of that talk went something like this…
“How many of you are afraid to go off my tower today?” Naturally, most of the kids would raise their hands. And I would have MY hand high in the air right along with them. As you might expect, that got me a few strange looks and some worried mutters from the group. Then I would explain, “You may be wondering why I have my hand up. You may be wondering why your rappel instructor is afraid to hook up to a thin rope and step off the edge of a tower over thirty feet in the air. The answer is simple. It’s because it is SCARY. It’s not a natural thing to do.” That usually got me a few laughs. Then I would continue. “However, it is OKAY to be afraid. Matter of fact, I would be concerned about those who say they are NOT afraid. What most people do not realize is fear can be a GOOD thing. Fear can be your friend. It keeps you safe. It makes you cautious. It makes you double-check your equipment. Fear can heighten your senses. The trick, however, is to learn how to control your fear. DO NOT allow your fear to control you. Do not allow fear to keep you from doing what has to be done.”
Some of favorite memories from the rappel tower training were the very few kids who were genuinely TERRIFIED once they got to the top of the tower. Sometimes we would have to hold their hand to help walk them to the hook-up spot. They would literally be shaking and crying and begging us to let them go back down the steps. Then we got them hooked to the rope, and they were mere inches from the edge of the platform. And they would pretty much just freeze. But we were always patient with them. No screaming. No yelling. No belittling. Simply calm, confident, and reassuring. We would even get their classmates cheering for them when necessary. Eventually, they would finally gather their courage and take that leap of faith. Many of them crying their eyes out all the way down. And I had the MOST respect for THOSE kids, even if they did not go up the tower for another try. All that mattered is that they overcame their fear and stepped off the edge despite how scared they were. And I always made it a point to congratulate them and praise them for the outstanding job they did.
That is the mindset I’ve had for most of my life. (And how I’ve managed to survive this long is anybody’s guess. 
) As such, I’ve been fortunate enough to have experienced some amazing adventures over the years. Many things that most people only see on tv or read about in books. So I’ll say to you what I always told those high school students. It’s okay to be afraid. Use fear to your advantage. Always control your fear. Never let your fear keep you from doing what must be done.
(Edit for fond memories.)
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Do you even know where the idea of Hell comes from? Are you aware of the fact that it does not exist in the Old Testament?
Diane Pagels has an interesting take on the subject in that “Hell is a social construct.” The Satan, is always someone or something you are fighting against. The Christians always know who the Satan is - who is being influenced by him. That is the enemy. Socially Satan is the name they call their enemy (Influenced by Satan) and hell is his residence.
Hell as a place of punishment, of fire and brimstone, is never, ever mentioned in the Old Testament. Not once.
The “Sheol,” of the Old Testament was the place where all people who died went. (ALL) There was no torment associated with it and souls were not eternal. There are no warnings of eternal suffering to anyone in the Old Testament? Rather negligent, I would say.
Even in the New Testament, the “hell” Jesus talked about was an analogy pictured by the Valley of Gehenna outside of Jerusalem, where people burned their trash and waste. Hell didn’t become a lake of fire and brimstone until Revelation 20.
Christian theology has been scaring the shit out of children and the ignorant for centuries. After all, fear and terror are good conversion tools, right? If Hell is really a place of eternal torment, why would Job ask to be hidden there and remembered later? (Job 14:13, 14)
The reality is that the Hebrew and Greek words often translated as “hell” are also translated as “pit” or “grave”, and simply mean the condition of death, the common grave of mankind.
The earliest concept of heaven as a place of reward, and hell as a place of punishment, appears to have originated with Zarathustra, founder of the Zoroastrian religion.
Are you afraid of that hell? The Buddhists also have a hell, as do the Muslims. Are any of those Hells scary?
(Seems to me, hell is just a manipulation attempt.)
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That’s understandable. It can be a useful and beneficial outlet. The opportunity to communicate without having to accept or even acknowledge opposition or disapproval has it’s own appeal.
The ability to connect easily with others is very appealing as well.
Conversely, there is value in direct human connection in the immediate and spontaneous responses to your thoughts, expressions, ideas, etc… Some of the things that helps us develop the ability to interact effectively with others, are the experiences of acceptance as well as rejection of our thoughts in real time. Spontaneous reactions can help us learn the value of buffering our expressions, when appropriate or necessary, to maintain decorum, or provide a measure of “protection” of our emotional vulnerabilities.
A couple of things… you don’t have to justify yourself for everything you think do or say.
You are not wholly responsible for how people react. While we all bear some responsibility for the reactions of others, your main responsibility is to your own self-worth from being truthful, to yourself.
Yes
If you are on pins and needles worrying over what others think of you, you will be distracted from the learning process…
As far as fearing what’s after death, what makes you think there is anything after death? The definition of death is the ceasing of life.
Fear of the dark is an example of fear of the unknown. Fearing that which you cannot identify is a very primitive and basic fear which we all share to varying degrees and at different stages of our lives. You can learn to deal with this, but the path to do so is individual and voluntary.
Yes
And so I must reiterate, take it easy and enjoy this period of your life, when you have minimum responsibilities and maximum opportunities.
You are under no deadlines to commit to beliefs.
@Sheldon @Tin-Man @Cognostic @Nyarlathotep @Whitefire13
have all made great points well worth your consideration.
Which hell? Did you miss the entire point? Hell was invented by the Christians. There are also Buddhist hell, Zorastrian Hell. Hindu Hell, The hells of Asia include the “Gimokodan” and “Kalichi” The goddess Ereshkigal ruled the afterlive (heaven and hell) for the Sumarians and she did not give a damn what you did in this world. You just transition into her realm upon death. “Anaon”, is a Hell in Celtic mythology. It’s Tartaros in ancient Greek.
Look, this shit can go on for a long time. Do you have any idea how many gods there are in the world and how many hells. You are afraid of one god and one hell. Probably for no other reason than that is the one you were exposed to as a kid. You have no evidence at all that one of the other Hells is not the real Hell and you will be going there for believing in the wrong hell. Open your eyes and look around you? This shit has been going on for eons. My god is bigger and better than your god. My Hell is scarier than your hell. It’s all a bunch of smoke and mirrors. None of it stands against logic and reason. (None of it!)
Hell is an empty threat, and nothing more.
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@Cognostic did you mean Elaine Pagels?
She is awesome!