My purpose in these posts is to bring a variety of Christian witnesses and writers in reflecting on life, encounters, and various situations, in a desire to enhance our understanding of what it means to be a missionary disciple of Jesus Christ at the service of the common good and directly or indirectly give glory to God and extend the Lord's work of salvation to all of humanity. G.S.
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"The Hell There Is. An Exploration of an Often Rejected Doctrine of the Church." By Msgr. Charles Pope, TAN Books, Gastonia, North Carolina, 2025.
PLEASE NOTE: I've added below a summary quote from the author.
P.P.S. I've made edits and additions following some suggestions.
The Last Judgement, 1865-1866, wood engraving by Gustave Dore
Before launching into this topic, we must acknowledge....
There are huge disparities among human beings in terms of survival. Huge swaths of people suffer the violent excesses of armed groups - military forces of nations, their own nations or aggressor nations, drug cartels, ideological extremists, or simply criminals - while whole populations are dying of famine, absence of clean water, infections or other diseases. Even in nations enjoying development and affluence, there are extremely rich and extremely poor, with few if any connections between them. In many societies, a middle class is often shrinking or may have never existed at all.
That is only on the material or survival plane. On the moral plane, there are people with highly developed consciences; who are well aware of their neighbours and their living conditions, and do all they can to assist anyone in need. This tends to happen more regularly among those who are poor than among those who are wealthy. While the wealthy can reach out to help others, their philanthropy tends to come out of their abundance or excess. The poor on the other hand, will often share what little they have for themselves and their family with others in even more urgent need than themselves.
On yet a third plane, the above conditions may occur independently of whether people have any faith or practice any religion. As Jesus pointed out in a parable, religious authorities can easily pass by a victim of violence; whereas a member of a hated minority may very well display greater humanity and compassion for such a victim. In a more extreme case, a manifestly atheistic person may show greater humanity and compassion than an obviously religous person. Similar paradoxes may be found among rich versus poor people, powerful versus vulnerable persons, developed versus more primitive populations.
On a fourth plane, there are the "movers and groovers", those who have and enjoy a disproportionate access and level of control over the life, natural resources, and riches of Planet Earth; which, in principle, are there for the use and enjoyment of all. This is called "the universal destination of goods" or also "the common good". One's circumstances of birth, location, social adhesion, and other variables increase or decrease one's access to the wealth of "our common home", a phrase coined by the late Pope Francis in his Encyclical "Laudato Si" published in 2015, These terms hearken to the Roman Catholic Church's "social doctrine" to which our current Pope Leo XIV refers in his recent encyclical "Magnifica Humanitas".
In this post, we are exploring another variable, a fifth, the afterlife: whether or not human beings are giving any consideration to what will happen to them after they die, that is, at the end of their mortal existence on this Earth. Manifestly, some give great importance to life after death; while others, not at all, with countless variations in between these extremes. Supposing there are consequences after we die; then, those who care nothing about it will still have to endure those consequences. Denying them will not help them at all. Among those who take great stock in the afterlife; what they actually do or don't do may or may not help them either.
Let's be honest here... you have either heard the following or you have thought it, at one time or another, right? "Why bother praying, or going to Church, or paying any attention to God at all? Everyone's going to heaven anyway, right?" True confession: I have leaned strongly in that direction at one time or another, and more than once; especially in adolescence.
These days, I'm having to face it: for decades I found myself surrounded by this very way of thinking. It became clear that we had, as a society, gone through a gate of some kind, or passed a boundary; when I noticed at funerals how just about everyone was thinking their beloved departed was now in a better place, now in heaven with their parents, siblings, and grandparents, and friends, and, yes, with God. These assumptions are actually presumptions: in effect, such beliefs pass judgement on God - as if He has nothing to say about our eternal destiny, or as if Jesus' warnings don't count - and they appear in poetic form on bookmark memory cards printed by funeral directors on the back of a photo of the dearly departed.
Is hell eternal torment or eternal annihilation?
Then, on vacation, a few bricks hit my glass wall. First, last year, I came across the book "Hell A Final Word: The Surprising Truths I Found in the Bible" by Edward William Fudge (2012). Among other questions, he searched the Bible and Protestant Bible commentators to find a consensus on whether after death and judgement unrepentant sinners are annihilated and "destroyed forever", or whether they are punished and "tormented forever". The author had a view, but he honestly admitted that opinions on the issue are apparently divided among interpretations of the Sacred Scriptures by scholars in the Reformed perspective.
What has God said to us about it?
This summer, another book came to my attention, "The Hell There Is: An Exploration of an Often-Rejected Doctrine of the Church" written by Msgr. Charles Pope, published in 2025. Here, this author addresses the world outlook called "universalism", whereby people believe that God is too good to send anyone to hell; such that they believe hell is empty except perhaps for Hitler and a few other megalomaniacal mass murderers.
Pope successfully and eloquently explains that this view denies Jesus' clear and repeated warnings about hell and eternal damnation, and the ways in which people who either rebel blatantly against God, or else, are so attached to favourite sins that they in effect turn away from God. Believing such things about God is in effect creating according to our preferences a "designer god" other than our Creator; as He has made Himself known through the Sacred Scriptures. Such views are in effect idolatry.
He further explains that God only created hell when Lucifer and his rebel angels turned away from their Creator. They being "pure spirits" and not enfleshed as we are, but rather immortal beings; their choice to turn away from God was immediately final and irrevocable, because they do not change. Since they wanted nothing to do with God and his plan for creation and humanity, and because God still loved them as his creatures; He who created them provided a new "space" for them where - for all eternity - their wish would be honoured and they could be "far away from God". This, by definition, is hell.
Unlike the immortal angels, we can change and repent while alive on Earth
We human beings, Pope further explains, are enfleshed. While we are an immortal soul, we are also mortal in the flesh. This means that our choices in time are not yet final or irrevocable; we continue to have both the freedom and opportunity to repent. Still, it is risky to wait, because with time and practice, our sinful ways become more entrenched and repentance becomes more difficult; even unlikely.
In principle, we can choose daily to turn away from anything that would turn us away from God and his heaven and put us in the direction of hell. It is at the death of our mortal body, once our soul loses this "tool" or "arena" for repentance, that our "dying wish" or choice either for God or for our favourite sins will be finalized and become irrevocable. It is like a clay pot taken from the potter's wheel and put in the kiln; where it is baked at high temperature and can no longer be corrected or changed. Unlike Earth, though, in hell there is no hint of enjoyment, however imperfect the pleasure was here.
In between hell and heaven, some may linger in "Purgatory"
Should we be repentant but still attached to sins, bad habits, or addictions, and struggle with letting them go, and our clear desire is to obey and love God; then our Catholic Tradition teaches that, in his mercy, God will provide us the opportunity to be "purged" or purified of all that cannot be admitted into God's Presence in heaven. That opportunity is called "Purgatory". We will suffer by not yet being able to be with God, but it will be with the hope of being with Him once we have been purged of our mortal attachments.
However, it could be presumptive on our part to put off our conversion through repentance and place instead too much reliance on Purgatory, which may become an excuse to remain "comfy" in our sinful attachments and put off making the effort to seek and to obey God's will and deliberately seek to become "more perfect" as Jesus commands us to do. The author makes the point that lingering too long in sin, thereby entrenching a strong habit, may make it unlikely for a soul to ever repent, which sets its course on hell rather than heaven.
Along these same lines, those who until the very end of their life remain selfish, self-obsessed, incapable and unwilling to care for or love others or make room for others or for God's will: Jesus made it clear in a number of parables that God will not oppose or obstruct their life choice. Those who in this life had such disdain for God will in the end have such horror of God that his judgement will corroborate their joining Satan and his demons in hell... as far away from God as they can get. Hell, understandably, is final and without any hope.
Now, after all these years, I finally understand why in the Western World's more developed and affluent societies, so many people no longer go to worship God in church on Sunday, no longer pray, no longer care about spiritual things, and completely ignore God. They have no use or patience with others who are different or have nothing to offer them; they don't want to be bothered. Since they don't believe hell is real, and are oblivious to their risk of ending up in that solitary misery with demons for eternity; they don't see their need to be saved. They don't see their need for God's mercy and forgiveness; nor their need to change and repent. They want neither to change nor to be told what to do. Tragically, because God loves them and respects their freely made and consistent choice, He will grant their final wish.
God, our loving Father, is willing and ready, even eager to extend his mercy to them and forgive them, restoring his friendship with them. The tragedy is that they don't care, don't want, don't ask. God will leave them here, perhaps undistinguishable among human society, as weeds remained among the wheat until the harvest, in Jesus' parable. Then, God's angels will come and root them out and cast them into the eternal lake of fire with the devil and his demons for all eternity. They didn't want God on Earth; God will not impose Himself on them in eternity, but because He still loves them, He will honour their final wish and choice.
Please feel free to pass this on to family, friends, neighbours, co-workers, fellow students... to all and to anyone... so that the Holy Spirit might use these words to wake up those who are asleep on the assembly line leading to a perilous drop into the abyss of hell.
Lord, have mercy on us and on all of humanity.
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In chapter 9, the author recalls "Hell Exists Because God Respects Human Freedom"; "Not All Want What God Offers"; "God Is Not Angry"; "Are We Free and Knowledgeable Enough to Choose Hell?" (The author believes "Yes, we are."); "Hell Is for the Unrepentant"; "A Sin Against the Holy Spirit": Despair, Presumption, Impugning the Known Truth; Obstinacy in Sin, and Final Impenitence. As you can see, these are all different ways of trying to control our own destiny instead of making plenty of room for God to manifest his merciful love and power to save.
In his Epilogue, he sums up all that he has found:
"In times like these, when the doctrine of hell is all but excluded from the minds of most, even among many pious Catholics, what are we to do? Strongly connected to the rejection of the biblical teachings on hell is the trivializing and 'taming' of God. He is, for too many, merely kind rather than immensely holy and glorious beyond telling. There is little notion that we must be utterly transformed and perfected to attain the glory that is our future and destiny if we are faithful unto the end. As noted previously, Scripture says, "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb 10:31). And again, it says we must "Strive for the holiness, without which no one will see the Lord" (Heb 12:14)."
"A proper balance must be restored to us, which trusts God's mercy but acknowledges how very much we need it; a balance which knows and experiences God's love but which also holds Him in awe and deep reverence. This virtuous balance is what Scripture calls "the fear of the Lord." The fear of the Lord holds God in awe and reverently loves Him. It dreads offending Him and anything that might separate us from Him. Ideally, it is rooted in deep gratitude and love, which fears to offend Him because of His goodness to us. In those who are less spiritually mature, it may well include the servile fear of punishment. But at its best, it manifests as an excited and joyful reverence in God's presence, amazed at His glory and humbly aware of our need for His grace and mercy."
"To fear the Lord is also to accept His teaching without reserve, even if it puzzles us or causes alarm. The Lord Jesus loves us more than we can ever know and is rich in mercy, but He expects to be taken seriously. The gift of the fear of the Lord must therefore be sought by us and cherished. Without it we too easily trivialize the Lord and accept him only on our terms. It is true, Jesus is the Lover of our souls, He has borne our sins, and opened to us the ocean of His mercy. But this same Jesus spoke to us very plainly of the reality of Hell. He also teaches us that we are very fickle and perverse of heart. Take Him seriously in these matters! In holy fear and deep revernce listen to what He is saying and be urgent about the salvation of souls, starting with your own. A Day of Judgement is coming for all of us, and the choice is ours: "And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light" (Jn 3:19)."
"Be urgent and choose wisely, fellow sinner. Listen to Jesus and come to the light. Respectful of our freedom, He knocks at our door and waits joyfully and expectantly for us to open. You are free to choose, but you are not free not to choose."
"The Hell There Is. An Exploration of an Often Rejected Doctrine of the Church." By Msgr. Charles Pope, TAN Books, Gastonia, North Carolina, 2025.
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My purpose in these posts is to bring a variety of Christian witnesses and writers in reflecting on life, encounters, and various situations, in a desire to enhance our understanding of what it means to be a missionary disciple of Jesus Christ at the service of the common good and directly or indirectly give glory to God and extend the Lord's work of salvation to all of humanity. G.S.
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© 2004-2026 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2004-2026 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
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