Hell is Real and People Go There
March 3, 2024
Jesus Christ: Yesterday, Today, and Forever ~
Every year on the first Sunday of Lent, we hear about Jesus in the wilderness praying and doing penance for 40 days, then Satan appears to tempt Him. In Our Lord’s case, Satan fails, in our case, he frequently succeeds. Why do Satan and the fallen angels (demons) tempt us to sin? Answer: to make our lives miserable and ultimately, to join them in hell for all eternity.
Some people don’t want to believe in hell, or at least that anyone is there. That’s understandable. On a superficial level, if hell didn’t exist then we wouldn’t have to worry about ourselves or anyone else burning there. That desire, as noble as it may at first seem, plays right into Satan’s hands.
The modern Catechism of the Catholic Church does not explicitly state that any one person is in hell. The Church isn’t in the business of declaring who is in hell, rather who is in heaven: the canonized Saints that we pray to, and the holy souls of purgatory that we pray for. While the modern Catechism teaches on hell, it doesn’t explicitly state that anyone is there. For this reason, I have heard over the years some Catholics say they don’t believe anyone is in hell, or that they hope that no one is in hell. Jesus Christ, the writers of the New Testament, countless Saints, Blesseds, and people with near death experiences of hell would emphatically disagree. To believe that no one is in hell would be to believe in the formally condemned heresy (falsehood) of universal salvation (also called Christian universalism or universal reconciliation). To hope or desire that no one is in hell, would be to hope that a terrible heresy is true. Imagine hoping that Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, and the damage that heresy would cause. Now imagine hoping that God has created a mass deception regarding hell, that Jesus Christ is a liar. All heresy causes immense damage to the truth of our faith, increases the likelihood of damnation, and plays into the hands of the demons whose goal in deceiving us, is to get us into hell!
Here’s just some of what the Holy Bible says about hell. “The torments of the damned shall last forever and ever (Rev 14:11; 19:3; 20:10). They are everlasting just as are the joys of heaven (Mt 25:46). Of Judas, Christ says: "it were better for him, if that man had not been born" (Mt 26:24). But this would not have been true if Judas was ever to be released from hell and admitted to eternal happiness. Again, God says of the damned: "Their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched" (Is 33:11, 14; 66:24; Mk 9:43, 45, 47). The fire of hell is repeatedly called unquenchable and eternal (Mt 25:41; Lk 3:16-17; 2 Thess 1:6-9). The wrath of God abideth on the damned (Jn 3:36); they are vessels of Divine wrath (Rom 9:22); they shall not possess the Kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:10; Gal 5:21), etc.” [1] In short, hell is for real and people populate it.
Finally, this. Did you know that there is a belief amongst all nations past and present, pagan and Christian, that evil doers will be punished after death? Just read up on the pagan Greek gods from over two thousand years ago. This universal conviction of mankind is an additional proof for the existence of hell, for its truth immanents from nature itself.
May Almighty God Bless You,
Fr. Thomas Nathe
[1] New Advent, Catholic Encyclopedia https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm
