Heaven and Hell

Let me say right off that there is NO Hell and there is NO Devil. Just doesn't make sense. There is no way that any being, let alone the Supreme Being, could condemn someone to an ETERNITY of punishment. No matter what the offense. Even the argument that God is "Just" cannot possibly take precedence over God's qualities of fairness, forgiveness, and mercy. The human life span is less than a blink of an eye when compared to eternity. Someone misbehaves for a fraction of a blink of an eye and he is CONDEMNED for life? Not possible. So there is NO Hell. At least not as people currently define it. More on this later. Now let's consider the Devil. God is the All Mighty, All Knowing, and All Powerful. Just about everyone acknowledges these simple truths of faith about their deity.	Now, is it possible for ANY other entity to counter the authority or to achieve ANY measure of success when attempting to impose its will against the Supreme Being. The answer is NO! In fact there can't even be LIMITED SUCCESS. Against the All Powerful there can be only COMPLETE AND UTTER FAILURE. This is by definition!! Don't fall into the trap of believing in the Devil out of blind faith or because your organized religion demands it. Blind faith requires that you turn OFF your brain and accept what someone else tells you. Trust me, this is NEVER a good idea. Just look around you. So why would anyone invent a character like the Devil. Well, he exists for several reasons.	Holy Rollers and other fire and brimstone religious fanatics use the concept of a devil to get people to conform to accepted standards of behavior. Moderate ministers support the Devil concept because religions are highly intolerant of differences of opinion. You either support the whole religious program or go elsewhere. The good these people believe they do outweighs their need to express differences of opinions. So they sacrifice their freedom of expression. If I were the suspicious type, I'd suspect some religious leaders in using the Devil to separate us from our money. Maybe we can BUY our way into Heaven - to avoid the Devil. I'm not suspicious, but I have no doubt that there are some unscrupulous ministers out there, and faint hearted parishioners - ripe for the preying (no pun intended.)
And don't think that there IS a Devil just because you think that millions of ministers around the world believe it to be true. There is an inbred social dynamic that takes place in structured hierarchical organizations, whether it is your church, the military, or your company. Lesser afficionados are OBLIGATED to support the party line or at the very least remain silent with their objections. To speak out would erode leadership and ultimately hurt the common good. I read somewhere that a recent anonymous poll of French Catholic Priests revealed that fewer than 50% of them believed whole heartedly that Christ was One with the Father. Do you think that any of them dared voice this opinion in public? To the parishioners? I recommend that if you were taught to believe in the Devil as a child, consider him only as a fairy tale - one that should be disregarded in adulthood. Stop worrying. You've got to see: the Devil cannot exist.	But does it make sense that there is NO JUSTICE for those people who have misbehaved. Even people who are torturers, mass murderers, psychopaths, stock manipulators, or corporate raiders? No! If I may be so bold, Hell No! What happens is that when we die, we ALL go to heaven. At this time we receive God's infinite understanding from his absolutely correct frame of reference. For all of eternity, we remember and bear witness to any and all acts we may have committed in the BEFORE. Excuses like, "I was only following orders" don't hold up. They will know that they FAILED. Mental illness, mistreatment, or childhood trauma will provide only limited relief. Wealthy people will gain a new perspective of their time spent on earth.	No matter how they provided for their family or gave to charity, how can anyone justify living in luxury when so many are struggling just to stay alive. Ignorance also is no excuse. They will find out that God didn't give them their talents of intelligence, athleticism, or artistry primarily to MAKE MONEY. We will KNOW that the challenges we faced during our struggles on Earth and how we behaved during those challenges will define our souls and character for eternity. Even though this time on earth is so short that it is no more than a pin prick, it is also an extremely intense time. Also, it is the only time that we will ever feel any pressure or learn how we would truly react under this pressure. Living forever with this embarrassment or shame, or knowledge that we could have done so much more is the only Hell that any of us will see. It will be enough.