Annihilationism is one of several doctrines of hell and judgement in the Christian religion. It states that the final fate of the wicked (sinners) is total destruction, similar to eternal unconsciousness. It rejects the traditional view that hell is a place of never-ending torture and/or separation from God. Doctrine, from Latin doctrina, (compare doctor), means a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system. ... Medieval illustration of Hell in the Hortus deliciarum manuscript of Herrad of Landsberg (about 1180) Hell, according to many religious beliefs, is a place or a state of pain and suffering. ... A Christian is a follower of Jesus of Nazareth, referred to as Christ. ... This page is about sin in the context of religion. ... Eternal unconsciousness is an idea of Hell. ... Torture is any act by which severe pain, whether physical or psychological, is intentionally inflicted on a person as a means of intimidation, deterrence, revenge, punishment, sadism, or information gathering. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ...

Annihilationism in the Christian tradition

In contrast to traditional Christianity, which holds that the wicked will suffer in torment forever, and universalism, which holds that all humanity will eventually be saved, Annhilationism asserts that God will eventually destroy or annihilate the wicked completely, leaving only the righteous to live on in immortality. Some think that the wicked will be punished for their sins in hell before being annihilated, but others consider the idea that God would inflict torture on someone, even in punishment, is inconsistent with God's personality. In Christian theology, universal reconciliation or universal salvation, is the doctrine or belief that all will eventually find salvation and reconciliation with God, going to heaven sometime after death. ... Humanity refers to the human race or mankind as a whole, to that which is characteristically human, or to that which distinguishes [[1]] human beings from animals or from their animal nature. ... Immortality (or eternal life) is the concept of existing for a potentially infinite, or indeterminate, length of time. ...

The doctrine is often, although not always, bound up with the notion of "conditional immortality", a belief that the soul is not innately immortal. At death, both the wicked and righteous will pass into non-existence, only to be resurrected (or more precisely re-created) at the final judgment. God, who alone is immortal, passes on the gift of immortality to the righteous, who will live forever in heaven or on an idyllic earth, while the wicked will ultimately face a second death. The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is a self-aware ethereal substance particular to a unique living being. ... This article or section should be merged with End times and Last judgment The Last Judgement - Tympanum sculpture at the Abbey Church of Ste-Foy, Conques-en-Rouergue, France In Christian eschatology, the Last Judgement is the ethical-judicial trial, judgement, and punishment/reward of individual humans (assignment to heaven... Heaven is an afterlife concept found in many religions or spiritual philosophies. ...

The vast majority of Christian writers, from Tertullian to Luther, have held to traditional notions of hell. However, the annihilationist position is not without some historical warrant. Early forms of conditional immortality can be found in the writing of Theophilus of Antioch (d. 185), although Amobius (d. 330) was the first to defend annihilationism explicitly (Against the Heathen, (Arnobius) Book II). The Second Council of Constantinople (553) and later the Fifth Lateran Council (1512-17) condemned the idea. Since the Reformation, annihilationism has periodically surfaced, as in the 1660 confession of the General Baptists. Additionally, at least one of John Wesley's recorded sermons hints that a person may be "destroyed, body and soul, in hell", although the denominations that arose through his influence do not share this viewpoint [1]. Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicized as Tertullian, (ca. ... Martin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German monk,[1] priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. ... There is also a Theophilus of Alexandria ( A.D. 412). ... For other uses, see number 185. ... Events May 11 - Constantine I refounds Byzantium, renames it New Rome, and moves the capital of the Roman Empire there from Rome. ... The Fifth Ecumenical Council (the Second Council of Constantinople) was a Christian Ecumenical Council that was held in 553. ... Events The Ostrogoth Kingdom is conquered by the Byzantines after the Battle of Mons Lactarius. ... When elected pope, Julius II promised under oath that he would soon convoke a general council. ... 1512 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... // 1517 Nothing Actuall 1517 1517 1517 ==== 1517 1517 ==== 1517 ==== 1517 1517 1517 1517 151== 1517 1517 ==== 1517 1517 ==== 1517 ==== 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 ==== 1517 ==== 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 ==== 1517 1517 ==== 1517 1517 ==== 1517 ==== 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 ==== 1517 ==== 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517 1517... The Protestant Reformation, also referred to as the Protestant Revolution or Protestant Revolt, was a movement in the 16th century to reform the Catholic Church in Western Europe. ... // Events January 1 - Colonel George Monck with his regiment crosses from Scotland to England at the village of Coldstream and begins advance towards London in support of English Restoration. ... A Baptist is a member of a Baptist church. ... John Wesley (June 17, 1703–March 2, 1791) was an 18th-century Anglican clergyman and Christian theologian who was an early leader in the Methodist movement. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ...

Since the 1960s, Annihilationism seems to be gaining as a legitimate minority opinion within modern, conservative Protestant theology. It has found support and acceptance among some British evangelicals, although viewed with greater suspicion by their American counterparts. The Church of England's Doctrine Commission reported in February 1995 that Hell is not eternal torment. The report, entitled "The Mystery of Salvation" states, "Christians have professed appalling theologies which made God into a sadistic monster. ... Hell is not eternal torment, but is the final and irrevocable choosing of that which is opposed to God so completely ... that the only end is total non-being."^[1] The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... Protestantism is one of three primary branches of Christianity. ...

Today the doctrine is most often associated with groups descended from William Miller and the Adventist movement of the mid-1800s (see Millerites), including Seventh-day Adventists, Bible Students, Jehovah's Witnesses, and the various Advent Christian churches. It is also held by some liberal Christians within mainstream denominations. Recently, a handful of evangelical theologians, including the prominent evangelical Anglican author John Stott, have offered at least tentative support for the doctrine, touching off a heated debate within mainstream evangelical Christianity. William Miller William Miller (1782 - 1849) was an American Baptist preacher, whose followers have been termed Millerites or Millerists. ... The term Adventist can refer to One who believes in the Second Advent (usually known as the Second coming) of Jesus. ... Events and Trends Beginning of the Napoleonic Wars (1803 - 1815). ... The Millerite tradition is a diverse family of denominations and Bible study movements that have arisen since the middle of the 19th century, traceable to the Adventist movement sparked by the teachings of William Miller. ... The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination which, as its name suggests, is best-known for its teaching that Saturday, the seventh day of the week, is the Sabbath and that the second advent of Jesus Christ is imminent. ... Charles Russell in 1911 The name Bible Students is used by many segments of what has been termed the Bible Student movement, all of whom follow the doctrinal views of Charles Taze Russell. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Adventist (Advent Church). ... The term Anglican (from medieval Latin ecclesia Anglicana meaning the English church) is used to describe the people, institutions, and churches as well as the liturgical traditions and theological concepts developed by the established Church of England, the Anglican Communion and the Continuing Anglican Churches (a loosely affiliated group of... John Stott Dr. John Robert Walmsley Stott (born 27 April 1921) is a British Christian leader and Anglican minister who is noted as a leader of the world-wide evangelical movement. ... Evangelicalism, in a strictly lexical, but rarely used sense, refers to all things that are implied in belief that Jesus is the savior. ...

Those who believe in this doctrine may not like to use "annihilationist" to define themselves. In his book The Fire that Consumes, Edward Fudge coined the term "conditionalist." Moreover, he limits "annihilationism" to refer to that subset of people who believe that the wicked do not rise to face the final judgment. In this sense, the term would refer to Jehovah's Witnesses, but not to Seventh-day Adventists and other conditionalist Evangelicals.

Justifications of the doctrine

Inaccurate View of Scripture

Annihilationists defend their beliefs by stating that those who believe in the eternal torture theory have misunderstood particular verses of the Bible. They claim the verses in Revelation only referss to the eternal suffering of the devil, the beast and the false prophet (Rev. 20:10) as well as those that received the mark of the beast or worshiped his name (Rev. 14:9-11) and not all sinners. Some annihilationists take it a step further by believing the torment of these is limited in duration or metaphorical in meaning, as shown Jude 1:7 in reference to the eternal fire and burning of Sodom and Gomorrah as well as in many other texts. Visions of John of Patmos, as depicted in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. ... Visions of John of Patmos, as depicted in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. ...

The foundation of the annihilationist view is based on passages that speak of the unsaved as perishing (John 3:16) or being destroyed (Matt. 10:28). They believe that verses speaking of the second death is referring to ceasing to exist. Traditionalist argue the second death is the spiritual death (separation from God) that occurs after physical death (separation of soul and body). Annihilationist are quick to point out that spiritual death happens the moment one sins and that it is illogical to believe that further separation from God can take place. In addition annihilationist point out that this view of hell conflicts the doctrine of omnipresence in which God is present everywhere, including hell. The Gospel of John is the fourth gospel in the sequence of the canon as printed in the New Testament, and scholars agree it was the fourth to be written. ... The Gospel of Matthew is one of the four Gospels of the New Testament. ...

Traditionalist often argue that ceasing to exist is not eternal punishment and therefore conflicts with passages such as Matthew 25:46. This argument uses a narrow definition of word "punishment" that must include some form of suffering. In common usage, punishment might be described as "an authorized imposition of deprivations -- of freedom or privacy or other goods to which the person otherwise has a right, or the imposition of special burdens -- because the person has been found guilty of some criminal violation, typically (though not invariably) involving harm to the innocent." (according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). By this definition, annihilationism is a form of punishment in which deprivation of existence occurs, and the punishment is eternal. Punishment is the practice of imposing something unpleasant on a subject as a response to some unwanted behavior or disobedience that the subject has displayed. ... The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (hereafter SEP) is a free online encyclopedia of philosophy run and maintained by Stanford University. ...

Some annihilationists may accept the position that hell is a separation from God by taking the position that God sustains the life of his creations. When separated from God, one simply dies. Some also suggest that the idea of man having an immortal soul is essentially a paraphrased version of the serpent's lie to Eve in the Garden of Eden. The Fall of Man by Lucas Cranach, a 16th century German depiction of Eden The Garden of Eden (from Hebrew Gan Ēden, גַּן עֵדֶן) is described in the Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man - Adam - and woman - Eve - lived after they were created by God. ...

Incompatibility with God's Love

Inherent in the annihilationist stance are notions of divine justice and love. Some Annihilationists claim that the idea of an eternal place of torment is morally repugnant, and an unfair punishment for finite sins. How can this accurately reflect God’s ultimate victory over suffering and evil, they argue, when it permanently installs a place of suffering in the final, eternal order? Likewise, how can the saved live in blissful joy knowing that some of their loved ones burn forever in hell? traditionalists retort that only God is qualified to determine divine justice, and raise suspicions that Annihilationists may be succumbing to modern cultural pressures. In religion and ethics, evil refers to the bad aspects of the behaviour and reasoning of human beings —those which are deliberately void of conscience, and show a wanton desire for destruction. ... A tradition is a story or a custom that is memorized and passed down from generation to generation, originally without the need for a writing system. ...

Secular Origins

Many Annihilationists believe the traditional notions of hell depend on Greek (particularly Platonic) ideas of an immortal soul, which have been erroneously read back into Christian scripture. Traditionalists find this irrelevant, pointing to passages in the Bible which they claim support the idea of an immortal soul. For other uses, see Plato (disambiguation). ...

Notes and references

1. ^ Doctrine Commission of the General Synod of the Church of England, "The Mystery of Salvation" (1995); Published by Church House Publishing, London, 1995; copyrighted by The Central Board of Finance of the Church of England, 1995, ISBN 0-7151-3778-6.

See also

• The problem of hell
• Traditionalism
• Universalism