Wednesday, September 03, 2014
Tuesday, September 02, 2014
An Exorcist Talks about Hell
Father Gabriele Amorth is the chief exorcist in Rome knows about evil.
I am reading his book An Exorcist tells his Story and was struck what he has to say in the very beginning concerning hell.
First he makes it abundantly clear that: evil, suffering, death and hell (eternal damnation in everlasting torment) are not acts of God.
An illustration to this is a story about another well-known exorcist who was expelling a demon. The exorcist sarcastically told the demon "Get out of here. The Lord has already prepared a nice, well-heated house for you!" The demon responded as follows: "You do not know anything! It wasn't he [God] who made hell. It was us. He had not even thought about it..."
On pondering this it is not too difficult to believe because how could God, who is love, have created such an evil place, full of torment and despair. Hell could have only come from Satan and his minions.
Father Amorth goes on to clarify predestination with God's providence, which causes confusion with some.
He writes that when he is told that: "God already knows who will be saved and who will be damned, and therefore anything we do is useless, I usually answer with four truths that the Bible spells out for us:
God wants that everyone be saved; no one is predestined to go to hell; Jesus died for everyone; and everyone is given sufficient graces for salvation.
God is not only love but He is divine mercy. Let us not forget that.
I am reading his book An Exorcist tells his Story and was struck what he has to say in the very beginning concerning hell.
First he makes it abundantly clear that: evil, suffering, death and hell (eternal damnation in everlasting torment) are not acts of God.
An illustration to this is a story about another well-known exorcist who was expelling a demon. The exorcist sarcastically told the demon "Get out of here. The Lord has already prepared a nice, well-heated house for you!" The demon responded as follows: "You do not know anything! It wasn't he [God] who made hell. It was us. He had not even thought about it..."
On pondering this it is not too difficult to believe because how could God, who is love, have created such an evil place, full of torment and despair. Hell could have only come from Satan and his minions.
Father Amorth goes on to clarify predestination with God's providence, which causes confusion with some.
He writes that when he is told that: "God already knows who will be saved and who will be damned, and therefore anything we do is useless, I usually answer with four truths that the Bible spells out for us:
God wants that everyone be saved; no one is predestined to go to hell; Jesus died for everyone; and everyone is given sufficient graces for salvation.
God is not only love but He is divine mercy. Let us not forget that.