Do not be afraid

Jesus often tells us not to be afraid yet fear is a very powerful motivator in our world. The church has used fear very successfully for centuries to maintain power over people. I live in a ghetto. It is a ghetto of wealth, power, and influence. It is an intellectual ghetto.  It amazes me how fear of hell influences so many people in my world.

I was recently asked by one of my friends (an Episcopalian) if I believed in hell. When I said that I didn't, he asked why I went to church. In his mind, the only reason for the existence of the church is to keep people out of hell. My friend's opinion is not an isolated one. This belief that the church is for the avoidance of hell is a dead end street. It is depressing and fills you with fear because you never know if you are good enough for "heaven." Luther's struggle with this very question led him to realize that this fear of hell is exactly what Jesus came to conquer.

Does hell exist? Of course it does and it is the hell here on earth that is of our own making. In Vietnam, I was exposed to the hell of war. As a director of an agency helping victims of child abuse, I saw hell up close. The best descriptions of this hell are not to be found in scripture. Shakespeare penned one of the best descriptions of hell that  I know of when MacBeth realizes that he has created his own hell by living a life of self aggrandizement at the expense of others. This is from the 5th act, 5th scene.


To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
    Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
    To the last syllable of recorded time,
    And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
    The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
    Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
    That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
    And then is heard no more: it is a tale
    Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
    Signifying nothing. 


A sampling of other artists' descriptions of hell include:


Picasso's Guernica
Spielberg's Shindler's List
O'Neil's Long Day's Journey into Night
Twain's The War Prayer




A life lived in service to others is a life free from fear and hell. This is the message of Jesus and Lutherans in the 21st century are relevant when we spread this good news of Jesus Christ.


Do not fear.