Paul J. Bonham
Dr. Tiffany Adams
EN 211
13 November 2015
The Collective Inferno: A Look into Dante and Others’ Views on Hell Though for some a subject far too heavy to be spoken of but in hushed tones, Hell has been the topic of much debate and speculation by theologians and philosophers, both Christian and otherwise. They have pondered such questions as whether or not hell is a real place, and if so whether it is divided into different sections or if it is one homogenous lake of fire. Even for those who may not believe in Hell, the idea of a place of eternal torment as punishment for ones’ sins is a fascinating one. It causes one to contemplate the nature of sin and humanity, whether some sins are worse than others, and if so, does God punish some more than others. It may be natural for one to feel that some sins are more wicked than others. Thus, it follows reason that some sins require greater punishment. A child who impulsively shoves his sibling may need a quick spanking or time out, while the First Son was condemned to wander the earth in exile. If man was indeed made in God’s image then man must still have some semblance of God’s morality. Turner and Ressler comment on scriptural mentions of Hell and sin:
Biblically, there seems to be definite teaching that there are different levels of Hell--at least in the sense that there are various degrees of punishment. The Bible does not specifically mention higher or lower levels of Hell in the location sense, but it does allude to degrees of punishment and sins. As said above, the Word of God does point to there being distinctions in sin and punishment: “. . . for this reason he who delivered me to you has the greater sin.” John 19:11. Jesus is specifically saying that because Judas was a friend and disciple of Christ, his betrayal is a greater sin than Pontius Pilate’s arrest. Dante’s view of sin and damnation match up well with this idea. His Inferno is concentric, with sins of incontinence coming first, as they are viewed to be natural desires. They become sin only when one neglects to control them, and are therefore less offending and warrant a lighter punishment. Later in Dante’s construction of Hell there are the sins of violence and fraud; behaviors known only to man. Alighieri’s view of sin and morality follows the Aristotelian model, so this specific ideology regarding guilt and the like was common not just in renaissance Italy, but across Europe through time. In spite of all this, there exist those who say God does not view sin or mankind in this way. They claim that all sin is equal and that the only deciding factor of one’s final destination is one’s acceptance or rejection of Christ. To start, a commonly used verse of such proponents is James 2:10, “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.” This could be taken to mean that if a man violates just one of God’s laws then he is as guilty as one who has violated all of them. That would not only mean that all sin is equal, but that one sin is equal to hundreds. The above interpretation cannot be what God was implying; Jesus Himself states that some sin is greater than others and that there will be varying degrees of punishment in Hell. Perhaps what one should take from James 2:10 is not that all sin is equal, but that all of mankind is essentially equally undeserving of God’s grace and eternal paradise in Heaven. He possibly does not was us worrying about small differences in guilt, as seen in Matthew 7:3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
Another topic for debate is the location of Hell itself; is it in the center of the earth? Some other planet? Outside our known universe entirely? Many verses refer to Hell as being below us or in the great deep. “The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.” (Proverbs 15:24 KJV) “Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.” (Isaiah 14:15 KJV) This certainly suggests that Hell is below us in a literal sense. However, in the original Hebrew writings, the usage of “hell” in these verses refers to “sheol,” or the grave. “The Greek word for hell, genna, occurs only 11 times in the Bible, none of which refer to a place under the Earth. In fact, all the references to under the Earth refer to either sheol (Hebrew) or its Greek equivalent (Hades).”(Deem) Perhaps, then, damnation does not take place in the center of the earth. Either way, such was the belief of many in the Christian and political world throughout Europe, as seen in the Inferno.
Whether or not certain sins are more grievous than others, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Eternal torment of any degree is undesirable, and can be avoided through repentance and acceptance of Christ’s grace. However, it is a worth topic of study, and helps us as we are to find meaning in God’s word, and the writings of Classical authors such as Dante. Lastly, it aids in refining our meaning of sin and helping us to improve our morality, a daunting task for believers and skeptics alike.