Teaching children about hell

[Cekoviu]

Children should not be indoctrinated into a religion in the first place, so the point is moot.

[Ors Might]

I mean, looking at this from the perspective of someone that believes Hell exists, it’d be pretty fucking negligent to not tell them about the place where they’d suffer complete and utter agony for all eternity if they don’t believe and act the right way.

I personally wouldn’t tell them as I don’t believe in Hell, but I can understand why someone that does would tell their kids about it.

[Rojava Free State]

No. Children already got the boogeyman to worry about. They don't need other imaginary horrors that don't exist to terrorize them.

[The Black Forrest]

Depends on the child. If they are prone to nightmares, do yourself a favor and don’t do it.

[Inkopolitia]

"Hey, you see that person over there that is minding their own business? They are going to Hell and suffer eternally just because they have a characteristic we don't agree with."

[Hyperbia]

It's fine, as long as we can also teach them about Ferri, Mictlan, Irkalla, Patala, Diyu, Neter-khertet, Tuonela, Kveskneli, Niflheim, Tártaros, Patala, Naraka, Abaddon, Metnal, Duzakh, Kur, and Tamağ.

You forgot Hel, Náströnd, Sessrúmnir, and Valhöll.

[Rojava Free State]

It's fine, as long as we can also teach them about Ferri, Mictlan, Irkalla, Patala, Diyu, Neter-khertet, Tuonela, Kveskneli, Niflheim, Tártaros, Patala, Naraka, Abaddon, Metnal, Duzakh, Kur, and Tamağ.

You forgot Hel, Náströnd, Sessrúmnir, and Valhöll.

don't forget davy Jones's locker, where the condemned must spend eternity with those sweaty socks that davy Jones threw in there back in 1970 and forgot to retrieve

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

I mean, looking at this from the perspective of someone that believes Hell exists, it’d be pretty fucking negligent to not tell them about the place where they’d suffer complete and utter agony for all eternity if they don’t believe and act the right way.

I personally wouldn’t tell them as I don’t believe in Hell, but I can understand why someone that does would tell their kids about it.

See, this is the problem. There's no such thing as "keeping thy religion to thyself." Religion is a contagious disease that needs to be cut off at the source.

Suppose you have two slanderers. One genuinely believes the misinformation they're peddling. One doesn't. By what standard do you treat them differently?

[Salus Maior]

I mean, looking at this from the perspective of someone that believes Hell exists, it’d be pretty fucking negligent to not tell them about the place where they’d suffer complete and utter agony for all eternity if they don’t believe and act the right way.

I personally wouldn’t tell them as I don’t believe in Hell, but I can understand why someone that does would tell their kids about it.

See, this is the problem. There's no such thing as "keeping thy religion to thyself." Religion is a contagious disease that needs to be cut off at the source.

Suppose you have two slanderers. One genuinely believes the misinformation they're peddling. One doesn't. By what standard do you treat them differently?

My, aren't you full of vitriol.

[Minachia]

First, it's the responsibility of all parents, religious and otherwise, to teach their children right from wrong, and that you get punished for doing bad things.

As for the religious (Christians, at least), focusing on the lake of fire and how the sinful are punished in it for eternity (which in and of itself is a bit wrong anyway) is perhaps the most, and pardon my language here, ass-backwards way of teaching our religion. Our teaching ought to focus on how God Himself sacrificed everything for our lives' sake, not the punishment that will be given to the wicked.

Furthermore, the "sinners swimming in a lake of fire" conceptualization of Hell is, well, wrong. As I understand it, Revelation describes the fire as being reserved for the devil, his angels, and the antichrist, not for your run-of-the-mill sinner. The punishment for sin that everyone would endure would it not for Christ is death, that is, total and complete separation from God. What exactly that means I cannot say because I ain't no theologian (ask the CDT if you want more).

[Holy Tedalonia]

Teaching them as a parent is ok, teaching them as a teacher isnt. Any religious parent (or any parent for that matter) has the right to teach their kids what they want to teach them, its how parenting works. The belt was more traumatizing to me then hearing hell existed.

[Telconi]

I mean, looking at this from the perspective of someone that believes Hell exists, it’d be pretty fucking negligent to not tell them about the place where they’d suffer complete and utter agony for all eternity if they don’t believe and act the right way.

I personally wouldn’t tell them as I don’t believe in Hell, but I can understand why someone that does would tell their kids about it.

See, this is the problem. There's no such thing as "keeping thy religion to thyself." Religion is a contagious disease that needs to be cut off at the source.

Suppose you have two slanderers. One genuinely believes the misinformation they're peddling. One doesn't. By what standard do you treat them differently?

What makes your slander better than mine?

[Giovenith]

I'd rather we not, but there's no good way to enforce it, other than our already existing standards for when any belief crosses into emotional abuse. We can only strive for a culture where open questioning and criticism of religion and critical thinking is encouraged, and services helping people recover from harmful religious beliefs available.

The sincerity of the parents' beliefs doesn't get much sympathy from me. Sincerity doesn't make bad ideas and harmful practices any less bad or harmful. The principle of "mind your own business" tends to get chucked out the window when it comes to children for me too, because children are not the possessions of their parents to mold and prod as they wish, they are independent individuals whose wellbeing is being entrusted to someone else until they can maintain it themselves. I'm of the unpopular opinion that parenthood is a privilege and duty, not a right — your foolishness does not come before the life of another person.

[Rojava Free State]

Teaching them as a parent is ok, teaching them as a teacher isnt. Any religious parent (or any parent for that matter) has the right to teach their kids what they want to teach them, its how parenting works. The belt was more traumatizing to me then hearing hell existed.

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

See, this is the problem. There's no such thing as "keeping thy religion to thyself." Religion is a contagious disease that needs to be cut off at the source.

Suppose you have two slanderers. One genuinely believes the misinformation they're peddling. One doesn't. By what standard do you treat them differently?

My, aren't you full of vitriol.

If I were full of H2SO4, I'd be dead. But one of the most useful chemicals in the chemical industry? I'm sure my corpse would be valuable, in which case I'd have been glad to donate it to anti-theist recipients. ^_^

[Telconi]

Teaching them as a parent is ok, teaching them as a teacher isnt. Any religious parent (or any parent for that matter) has the right to teach their kids what they want to teach them, its how parenting works. The belt was more traumatizing to me then hearing hell existed.

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

But what if I think these are harmful lessons to teach your kids?

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

First, it's the responsibility of all parents, religious and otherwise, to teach their children right from wrong, and that you get punished for doing bad things.

As for the religious (Christians, at least), focusing on the lake of fire and how the sinful are punished in it for eternity (which in and of itself is a bit wrong anyway) is perhaps the most, and pardon my language here, ass-backwards way of teaching our religion. Our teaching ought to focus on how God Himself sacrificed everything for our lives' sake, not the punishment that will be given to the wicked.

Furthermore, the "sinners swimming in a lake of fire" conceptualization of Hell is, well, wrong. As I understand it, Revelation describes the fire as being reserved for the devil, his angels, and the antichrist, not for your run-of-the-mill sinner. The punishment for sin that everyone would endure would it not for Christ is death, that is, total and complete separation from God. What exactly that means I cannot say because I ain't no theologian (ask the CDT if you want more).

If the Bible weren't such a deluge of contradictions, people would've been in no position to misrepresent it.

See, this is the problem. There's no such thing as "keeping thy religion to thyself." Religion is a contagious disease that needs to be cut off at the source.

Suppose you have two slanderers. One genuinely believes the misinformation they're peddling. One doesn't. By what standard do you treat them differently?

What makes your slander better than mine?

If you're going to call my post slander, care to specify what exactly you're accusing me of getting wrong?

[Narland]

According to this article, children are targeted by religious indoctrination because they are more vulnerable to believe what they are told. One of the things children are taught to believe by evangelical Christian groups is that anyone who does not believe in their God will be tortured for eternity in hell. The effects of this teaching can include that they are frightened into believing something they wouldn't believe otherwise. Some children can be traumatized by the idea of hell. The article describes religious trauma syndrome, which can be an effect of teaching children about hell.

However, this article claims that it would be worse for parents to not teach children about hell. They consider it the responsibility of parents to protect their children from hell by telling them how to be saved according to their interpretation of the Bible. They call it the God-given responsibility of parents to show their children God's love, which they believe includes teaching them about hell.

What do you think, NSG? Should children be taught about hell or is it wrong?

In my opinion, teaching children about hell is immoral because it will force them to believe in something without giving them a choice.

First question to ask oneself, "Is Hell real?" Whatever the answer, tell them the truth of what what I believe, "That Hell is X."

A part of the responsibility of parents is to teach their children what they, what other people believe and why to the best of their ability so that when they are adults they are open to all the viable options before them to make the best choices according to the best of their ability for being given all the facts pertinent to that decision. To ignore questions that are such a profoundly innate matter to the human condition (of which religion is inseparable entwined in the human psyche) is irresponsible. Regardless, whether the child is taught that there is a Hell or there is no Hell, they will eventually come to decide for themselves and much sooner and hopefully less closed-minded to others than if these questions/issues are denied them until "they grow up."

[Rojava Free State]

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

But what if I think these are harmful lessons to teach your kids?

Not blindly following an ancient archaic belief system is harmful? Why are people still afraid of shit that is likely not real? You may as well fear freddy krueger coming for your kids. Biblical God is nothing but a myth like Zeus or thor

[Salus Maior]

My, aren't you full of vitriol.

If I were full of H2SO4, I'd be dead. But one of the most useful chemicals in the chemical industry? I'm sure my corpse would be valuable, in which case I'd have been glad to donate it to anti-theist recipients. ^_^

I find it very disturbing that you would treat calling a great deal of sincere people "diseased" for having a different worldview than you with a "^_^".

[Salus Maior]

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

So you have very important personal values and ideas that you want to pass on to your children?

What do you know, so do I. Look at how much we're alike.

Not blindly following an ancient archaic belief system is harmful? Why are people still afraid of shit that is likely not real? You may as well fear freddy krueger coming for your kids. Biblical God is nothing but a myth like Zeus or thor

What's your obsession with the idea that Christians are afraid of God? I'm not, and nobody I know who believes in God has that kind of relationship with Him.

[Alvecia]

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

So you have very important personal values and ideas that you want to pass on to your children?

What do you know, so do I. Look at how much we're alike.

The values and ideas do matter though.

Most would agree that bringing your kid up and instilling in them the idea that they are a worthless piece of shit would mostly likely consitute child abuse in severe cases.

[Salus Maior]

The values and ideas do matter though.

Most would agree that bringing your kid up and instilling in them the idea that they are a worthless piece of shit would mostly likely consitute child abuse in severe cases.

I'm not planning on doing that. As would anyone who cares for their children.

And the reason I'm focusing on that, is that the people here who are criticizing religious passing on their belief to their children because they're not "giving them a choice".

So, where's the choice in Rojava's statement? He doesn't seem to want to let his children see any positives to religion or government, that's infringing on his children's choice to form their own ideas, at least according to the liberals here.

[Holy Tedalonia]

Teaching them as a parent is ok, teaching them as a teacher isnt. Any religious parent (or any parent for that matter) has the right to teach their kids what they want to teach them, its how parenting works. The belt was more traumatizing to me then hearing hell existed.

One reason I can't wait to have kids is so I can raise an army of like-minded individuals who think for themselves and view authority ranging from the government to religion with contempt

I'm letting my kids know from day one that they owe no more respect to christianity than they do to Christian weston Chandler

Brainwashing them with ideology is considerably harmful, you would be as bad as the radical christian parents that you hold contempt for. Your suggestion lacks the open mindedness that the modern era has sought to preserve.

[Jean-Paul Sartre]

I didn’t know that child abuse was a debate now.