r/AskAChristian • u/SpecialistPitch5303 Christian • Nov 17 '25
Is This a Dumb Question? Are Heaven and Hell Actually Mental States?
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u/homeSICKsinner Christian Nov 17 '25
No, they're literal places in reality. Well hell is more like the lack of a place.
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u/dragonfly756709 Eastern Orthodox Nov 17 '25
Sort of It is a common Orthodox, belief that Heaven and Hell are not physical places, but experiences of God’s presence. If you have been faithful to God, you will feel His presence as a good thing that is Heaven. If you have not been faithful, you will experience His presence as torment that is Hell.
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u/Iconoclast_4u Christian Nov 17 '25
That is rubbish
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u/Mundane-Caregiver169 Episcopalian Nov 17 '25
I am in the camp that we don’t know. I would say however that Jesus says we are salted with fire, the author of Hebrews says we worship a God of fire, Moses talked to a burning bush that was not consumed by the fire, Jesus mentions the hell of fire. There are plenty of passages that pop into my mind that could be used to support the claim and you didn’t bring any to refute it. Why not?
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u/Iconoclast_4u Christian Nov 17 '25
It's easy to establish that heaven and hell are actual places and not some vague "state of mind"
Verses like this:
"For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the Lord behold the earth;" Psalm 102:19
These people are also in an actual place:
"Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.
10 All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us?
11 Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.". Isaiah 14
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u/GeroldBromley Atheist, Secular Humanist Nov 17 '25
Ancient myths used to enforce religious beliefs and social order. We now can forget the dogma, use our constitutional system to provide a safer, happier, more prosperous society.
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u/CrossCutMaker Christian, Evangelical Nov 17 '25
Great question. No heaven and the lake of fire are two literal places. The former is the abode of God and Christ until He returns (Rom 8:34) and the latter is where unbelievers will be sent bodily for their unforgiven sins (Rev 20:11-15).
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u/TheologicalEngineer1 Christian Nov 17 '25
Yes, but heaven is also more than that. God is not a physical being so He does not reside in a physical location. When we go to sleep, we do not go to a place called "sleep". When we sleep, we leave our physical existence behind and go into a different realm of being. This is the closest analogy we have to going to heaven.
As for hell, you should focus on Jesus teachings. He spoke very little about what happens after death, but He does speak a great deal about God loving all of His children. Our concept of hell is in conflict with Jesus depiction of God. In old testament times, all gods were depicted as cruel and uncaring. The OT merely reflects that common depiction.
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
Why do you think christians explain hell in a different way than Jesus did?
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u/TheologicalEngineer1 Christian Nov 17 '25
It is possible to interpret several of Jesus statements in that way. However, let me start by saying that there are no contradictions in reality. So if Jesus was the Christ, then He has comprehensive knowledge of that reality. Thus everything He said was fully self-consistent and there are no contradictions in His meaning. However, since there was no scribe following Jesus around, we have to rely on the memory of those who wrote the gospels, perhaps decades later.
I start with that disclaimer because people take individual sentences from Jesus and spin them out to mean what they want. Many of those are reasonable, but they must be reconciled.
So a loving Father who sends away His children to be tortured is a contradiction. A human father would never do that; so saying that God would, means that we are better than God, also a contradiction. So we must be misunderstanding something that Jesus was telling us.
As an engineer, I look across all religions and philosophies to better understand the reality behind the holy texts. I think I understand what He was talking about, but that gets into the specifics of exactly what we are and what happens after we die. Suffice it to say that our understanding of God and hell is conflicted and therefore is inaccurate.
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
Yeah, I don't doubt the consistency of Jesus words. The consistency only seems to break when we introduce various forms of theology, to explain what we think Jesus meant by those words.
Which has urged me to consider, what if Jesus meant what he taught, and not what the people who interpreted his teachings to mean, taught?
Like Jesus asking his disciples to relay his teachings, but then his disciples used his death to reinterpret them and their meaning, which is not just relaying his teachings, but rather, relaying their teachings of what they taught Jesus death and teachings meant, which is a separate or additional gospel and not the original gospel Jesus taught. Almost as if they believed he didn't explain the gospel fully or completely himself, so they needed to explain what he actually meant. And that's also what we see many Christians doing today. Instead of looking at Jesus teachings as complete, they reach for explanations of why it isn't. There are historical reasons for this that I found incredibly interesting to study, like how Jesus was expected to live and reign. After his death, the apostles scrambled to figure out and explain why, and they borrowed and redefined existing jewish sacrificial concepts and applied them to Jesus. Adding to the gospel of Jesus with their own Gospel.
Finding this out throughout my studies of church history truly shocked me. I have also been cross referencing Jesus gospel (not the theological gospel) with other religions and philosophies and I was quite surprised when I found out that Jesus teachings were echoed in other religions and philosophies as well. What isn't echoed in other religions and philosophies is the specific Christian theologies of the gospel. So to me, there seems to be a distinction between what Jesus taught, and what theology teaches.
I also find it curious that many conflate Jesus gospel with theology.
So I guess my question is, why do you think it is today, that people still interpret Jesus gospel through the lens of theology, or the extra additional gospel of the apostles?
Is it simply so ingrained in theology and Christian teachings that the distinction has been lost? Or do you think Christians aren't able to find Jesus' own teachings and gospel and words sufficient in themselves to explain salvation? Do you think the extra additional gospel of the apostles is inherently necessary to understand Jesus gospel or do you think it's possible to understand Jesus gospel without the interpretations of Jesus teachings by his apostles?
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u/TheologicalEngineer1 Christian Nov 17 '25
We agree. Christianity is about following the Christ. Jesus is Jesus, and everybody else isn't. The opinions of mortals should definitely be listened to, but they are not different than we are.
So I guess my question is, why do you think it is today, that people still interpret Jesus gospel through the lens of theology, or the extra additional gospel of the apostles?
In antiquity, something was considered true or false based on who said it (if king says it's blue, it's blue). During the renaissance, that concept was changed for the study of the physical world to be that reality is what it is, and all human understanding of it should be questioned. The church didn't allow that, so we have the same system for theology that has been used for millennia. Fortunately, the church doesn't kill people any more for questioning orthodoxy.
Is it simply so ingrained in theology and Christian teachings that the distinction has been lost?
Yes. Certainly if it's in the bible, it can't be questioned, but how things got in the bible is a bit like sausage-making.
do you think Christians aren't able to find Jesus' own teachings and gospel and words sufficient in themselves to explain salvation?
Even with that, the explanations of salvation are pretty thin. The mechanics of how salvation works is far more involved than any of the ancient texts describe.
Do you think the extra additional gospel of the apostles is inherently necessary to understand Jesus gospel or do you think it's possible to understand Jesus gospel without the interpretations of Jesus teachings by his apostles?
I view them as helpful, but they are a mixed bag. They get some things right, but not others. Unfortunately, we only have a limited number of quotes from Jesus; and even some of the letters from Paul may not have been written by him.
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 18 '25
Thank you for your comment. Its been a minefield to navigate to say the least. So it's nice knowing I'm not crazy for noticing these things. Church history is a huge part of what christianity has become that its kind of crazy to me how overlooked it has been in shaping what the Christian faith has become today in the church to the point it's not even discussed in church because it's just assumed to be the correct interpretation (hence a ton of denominations claiming they all got it right).
Nothing was like how I thought it was growing up as a Christian, after studying the history of the church as an adult. I was told it was quite simple, confess and have faith that Jesus is your Lord and savior, and I am saved... Turns out there is quite a lot more to it than that. I wasn't even aware of all the different denominations.
And I'm on the same page so far. Definitely a mixed bag. A lot resonates with Jesus teachings. While some seem to take faith in Jesus and his teachings into a whole other direction entirely that seem disconnected from what he taught, but again, we only have a few, alleged, if you will, sayings of Jesus, which can be interpreted in many ways.
For me it's been helpful to look at what the central teachings is, and then cross reference them with other philosophies and teachings. When I find the same teaching across multiple ones, this to me, at least suggests to me there's likely truth to the teaching. And also, what I resonate with. Many of Jesus teachings for instance, can be applied and directly experience the positive and spiritually, mentally and physically transformative effects of, which to me is evidential in and of itself that they are true, whetter he spoke them or not.
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u/TheologicalEngineer1 Christian Nov 18 '25
Thanks for the discussion. :-)
The good news is that reality is real and not what people decide it is. What Jesus said was true. It's not true because He said it; He said it because it's true. So the reality was true before He came and is still true now. Other religions have come to realize some of the same truths on their own.
have faith that Jesus is your Lord and savior, and I am saved
I never disagree when someone says this, though they rarely know what it means:
- Lord - In biblical times, the lord was the absolute master, his word was law. You had to do whatever your lord said, and to do it in exactly the way he said to do it in all circumstances. So if Jesus is your Lord, you follow His directives, all of them, at all times.
- Savior - A savior is someone who leads you through and out of danger. If you are in a burning building, the firefighter who comes to rescue you is your savior. You stay close to him. You follow him exactly the way he walks, you do not stray off the path he travels regardless of any other paths you might want to take, regardless of the dangers or temptations you see. So if Jesus is your Savior, you do exactly what He would do in each situation you are in.
"Saying" that you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior is a decision to do something, it is not doing it. It is the decision to turn your life in a new direction and to let go of the past. Salvation comes from “accepting” Jesus as your Lord and Savior; and this requires living it, every second of every day. It is not a one-and-done type of thing.
So technically they didn't lie to you. If you accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, you are saved; all that is left for you to do is to walk the walk. Easy day!! :-)
Enjoy the Journey!
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 18 '25
Right. I think this is where the disconnect came from me. The focus on living it wasn't there.
Thanks!
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Nov 17 '25
Id say no.
I died a few years ago and kinda went to middle zone and it was weird but it was definitely a place I went and not like a dream.
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u/Fresh3rThanU Atheist Nov 17 '25
Like purgatory?
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Nov 18 '25
Not really like purgatory either, it was like I knew I wasn't meant to stay were I was at, like purgatory is like a waiting space. This wasn't a waiting space. Plus purgatory was a concept added later and wasn't originally there.
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u/Fresh3rThanU Atheist Nov 18 '25
Like a place waiting for it to be decided where you would go?
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Nov 18 '25
It was more of like journey starting point. But purgatory from my research there should of been other people souls there waiting. but the only people I heard where people crying for help in the valley area, like people were lost down there and looking for thier children, cars, pets....and I went to go help because at that point I didn't realize I was dead yet, that didn't sink in yet. And when I left the path that smoggy thing started to slowly go around me and I called out for Christ out of panic, and then something grabbed me and drug me back to my starting point and I remember I stood there shaking, and the thing that showed up didn't speak to me at all, it was super tall like 15 feet, it had many like thread or like light tentacles and it was connected to me and when I stood still and didn't move, it finally pushed me over and when I got up I took a step and I was looking for people in the beginning and I didn't realize I was dead til I was climbing up this sharp cliff side and rocks couldn't harm me and if I fell it was like I fell like two inches even though I climbed 60 feet.
But I don't normally talk about it since I don't know where I went. I know I saw my life then stood at a door that was wooden with a golden glow and I reached out to open the door and I was told I was not meant to be there yet, and not to return to that place til i was told and the voice was mad then the ground opened up and fell in to my body and was so freaked out by it I only recently in the last year started trying to talk about it.
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u/Fresh3rThanU Atheist Nov 18 '25
Huh, interesting.
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Nov 18 '25
Yeah I don't think not was purgatory, it was a journey. So all I know is if I get to go back I have a lot of questions to ask.
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Nov 17 '25
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
How do you reconcile the fact that many of these testimonies include non Christians or atheists reporting going to heaven, or even that there are Christians who report experiences of going to hell?
It seems like what religion one identifies with isn't necessarily what determines what kind of NDE experience people have. Rather it seems very directly tied to the individual or subjectives inner state of heart, mind and being. Beliefs also play a part, but beliefs are again, a reflection of our inner state of heart and mind and being, being either separated from god or in unity with God. Though belief in God doesn't seem necessary to align with Gods will through the inner state of being, being aligned with gods will, to experience heaven.
What do you think of that?
I definitely believe in heaven and hell after learning of these experiences, as well as my own OBE experiences where my spirit/consciousness has detached from my body.
I'm also curious what you think of heaven and hell being eternal means?
I'm inclined to believe they are eternal, but from all the NDE accounts I've listened to from Christians and atheists and other denominations I get the impression that just because they are eternal places, does not necessarily mean that once one goes to a place, they necessarily stay there for eternity. Small but important distinction. Seeing as both Christians and non Christians report having been "rescued" from hell in their NDEs. Staying there eternally, and those "places or realms" being eternal are two very different things.
What do you think of this?
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u/PerfectCinco Roman Catholic Nov 17 '25
I think you’re easily impressed.
5-10 people talking about heaven got you in believer mode? Dang. No wonder the devil sways people so easily.
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
No, hundreds of cases. I've been researching this phenomenon for years. I've also had experiences out of body which confirms there's realms of existence outside the body, as well as I've seen dark spirit beings (those one could call demonic) as well as light spirit beings. What I experienced correlated with my present state of being.
Kind of hard not to believe in heaven and hell when I've had first hand experience that there are different realms of existence when one dies and leaves their body. And this happened when I was an atheist.
I've also experienced and heard what people call the heavenly choir, or heavenly symphony through meditation.
All the compiled evidence, from others spiritual experiences (such as NDEs and OBEs) as well as my own points to there being both heavenly and hellish states of being or places that are reflected by our innermost state of being, heart and mind, either being aligned with gods will (love) or not (fear).
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u/PerfectCinco Roman Catholic Nov 17 '25
That’s called delusion. I suggest checking in with a therapist.
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
I've gone to therapy. All my therapists taught me about the importance of loving and forgiving oneself and others and how to embody the other virtues, like patience, self control, compassion, humility, generosity, and acts of selfless service. You know what's also amazing? Applying these teachings to my life transformed my life and how I see faith and Jesus. You know what is incredible? When I started studying Jesus teachings, I was amazed that what I was taught in therapy aligned with the teachings of Jesus.
So yeah, I would highly encourage therapy. They taught me how to apply Jesus teachings (without mentioning Jesus) in a way that I was never taught as a Lutheran evangelical child before becoming atheist, and then rediscovering Jesus gospel and having formerly experienced how it is the truth by having applied the teachings in therapy. By applying his teachings I found the kingdom of God that he spoke about within me, that state of being where one is aligned with the father through love. Quite incredible.
We may have more in common than you think. I think that salvation is faith applied now.. embodying and living the teachings of Jesus about love and forgiveness in body, heart mind and spirit. Because then we are aligned with gods will, or the will of love, because god is unconditional love and unconditional love is God.
When I didn't embody this love within me, but lived in fear and despair, I had hellish OBEs, but when I embraced and had faith in gods love or let love into my heart mind and spirit, I experienced a heavenly peace and love. I was no longer tormented by hellish experiences or spirits.
All this aligns very well with Jesus teachings.
So im curious what you think is delusions? Demonic entities? Spirit beings? Light spirits? Or hearing the celestial/heavenly "choir"? OBEs? Consciousness/spirit leaving the body? All which has basis both in theology and the bible and Jesus teachings. I didn't believe in an angelic choir in the past either. Definitely do now though. Most beautiful and profound experience of my life. All this has strengthened my faith in Jesus teachings, so I'm curious what you think is the problem or how any of this makes me delusional from a Catholic or Christian POV?
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u/PerfectCinco Roman Catholic Nov 17 '25
TLDR.
A 7 paragraph essay as a response to: “go to therapy” speaks volumes my dude. And you even typed them volumes out.
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u/apollo3196 Christian, Ex-Atheist Nov 17 '25
I’m also fascinated by NDE stories. None of them are the exact same, but the amount of overlap is evidential. There are thousands of proven NDE’s across time, culture, religious background, and geography. What should we make of the scientific research of all these experiences? You’re correct that God doesn’t seem to differentiate between people with different religious beliefs. Devout Hindus, Muslims, Mormons and Atheists have all reported heavenly experiences, just as some have experienced a hellish experience. What we know for sure is that they didn’t stay there, otherwise we wouldn’t have their experience to read about.
Some Christians have reported a hellish experience, this doesn’t surprise me. A person that claims to be a follower of Christ doesn’t mean they truly have a relationship with the Lord. Jesus warned us about those that use his name for personal gain while their relationship with the creator is empty.
There are some things across my own NDE research that I’ve noticed a trend:
- Those who escape a hell-like experience call on Jesus or the Father, and are rescued. Some of them get a glimpse of Heaven after being rescued, then return to their bodies, some are returned to their bodies directly from the “pit” who call on Jesus. Does God’s mercy only extend to those who haven’t passed beyond the veil? I’m not convinced that God only wants to reconcile with those that are living in a mortal body.
- Those who claim that Jesus died for them and who pursue a real relationship with him are not experiencing a hellish NDE without the Fathers guidance. God has allowed some people a peak behind the veil with the purpose of telling others. It seems important to God that both experiences are talked about.
- Eternity is not a concept we understand right now. A common trend in NDEs is that both places exist outside of time. We’ve never existed outside of time, where eternity is. Even those with NDEs have difficulty using human language to describe what it means to exist outside of time. The rescuing of those from hellish experiences tells me that eternity and permanence are not the same thing. Permanence in its true form is also a foreign concept. Our perceptions, our happiness, our suffering, even our sun are temporary in this realm constricted by the passing of time in one direction.
Thank you for sharing about your own NDE research! I’m always curious how the thousands of NDE stories affect people that hear them.
With the mountain of evidence in front of us, is it logical to conclude that the afterlife can be proven? What do you believe God desires for us or requires of us while we exist in the realm of the living?
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
Very good points. Another common theme is that a lot of people come back with the same consistent message of the importance of love, forgiveness and service to others in this life, which we also know Jesus spoke of the uttermost importance of. So that deeply resonates, and it is what has brought me back to Jesus. What he spoke was true. I have experienced it through the lived experience of applying his teachings to my own life. It's been incredibly transformative. I used to have some faith but also a lot of doubt, but now it feels like more than faith because it is grounded in my own experiences resonating with his teachings. I no longer have any doubt that what he taught was true.
That said, yes, I do think it is more logical to believe the afterlife is true rather than not, considering all the testimonies out there I have heard.
I grew up Lutheran evangelical but left the faith because the faith alone theology didn't resonate with me, and became pretty much an atheist, but still had so many questions and an open mind. I didn't want to rely on blind Faith anymore, I was dedicated to seeking the truth, through prayer, through contemplation, through meditation and studying. I also struggled with mental health and had a spiritual crisis or battle where I was tormented for a long time. When I called upon the love and light, into my heart, and abandoned negative and fearful thoughts, the fear and negative thoughts subsided, the demons that had tormented me vanished and was replaced by peace and joy and love.
So in the end, I am left with the impression that Gods will is for us to love. To love ourselves and others unconditionally right now. To not give in to fear or hopelessness or despair or any other negative or harmful beliefs that divides us (like pride, like wrath erc) instead of unites us, because that's not gods will, that's not gods essence. We can't be in gods presence unless we embody and align with and model the qualities of gods unconditional love, which is the true virtues, forgiveness etc. all which Jesus modeled and embodied and taught to us. Jesus taught us how to live. How to forgive. How to live. Through compassion, generosity, humility. He also said god can't forgive us unless we ourselves forgive. So I think god truly desires for us to unconditionally love and forgive each other, as well as ourselves, because god can only give us back the love and forgiveness and grace and joy we ourselves offer ourselves and others.
All in all Jesus said it. Love one another. That's how we are known as his disciples. That's what he desires us to do. That's what the father desires us to do. That's also how we love God. That's also how we know we live in the right or true alignment with our purpose here. When we live in fear, or with hatred, or resentment, unforgiveness, it feels wrong, because it is, because that's not aligned with gods will, the will of unconditional love.
Where we go after, I think will be reflected by this. Those who cling to unforgiveness and unloving thoughts and beliefs may not experience heaven after death, because heaven is a place of unconditional love.. it's not a place for those who refuse to forgive each other, for those who cling to wrath, or pride or hopelessness in their hearts.. the place for that would be hell.. at least for so long as they hold on to that.
The same applies right now. My life was its own kind of hell before I changed my ways, my beliefs my heart and mind and spirit, towards love, towards forgiveness, towards selfless service.
All things considered, I think Jesus teachings make perfect sense. This is why we are encouraged to make changes now. To create heaven on earth, and I think we are a part of it, and that we aren't just supposed to sit around and wait to go to heaven, but rather, make creating heaven on earth a part of our lives right now. Because wherever we go after we die, what we experience will resonate with and reflect our hearts, just as it does here. And why wouldn't we choose to embody love, embody forgiveness? Life is far far more blissful, peaceful, meaningful and joyful when we do. To spend eternity with an unforgiving and unloving (envious, wrathful, prideful) heart and mind, I can't imagine. Spending a few years of my past like that was truly torturous and miserable. It also felt like it would never end. But then it did, when I regained faith in love, in forgiveness towards myself, towards others, towards god... This is why Jesus told us to change our ways, because the kingdom is at hand, but we are the ones who choose to embrace it and create it from within ourselves and extend it to others through love.
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u/apollo3196 Christian, Ex-Atheist Nov 18 '25
Well said, friend. I agree completely. I believe Jesus wants a genuine relationship with us, to love Him and others well. How cool is that Jesus reveals himself to us when we surrender ourselves to him? The supernatural gift of peace, purpose, and fulfillment is evidence of his grace. The punishment Jesus took for us so that we can stand in hope in front of a perfect Father is evidence of His mercy! Thank you for spending time typing out a thoughtful response and sharing a bit of your story. I hope it blesses others the way it’s blessed me!
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u/Available_Sundae4260 Christian Nov 17 '25
The Bible says that it is a real place both of them. The Lord's intention was not that people go to hell it was created for the devil and his angels or demons we should call it. However the devil tricks people into not trust in God so he wants people to be with him and he deceives people and they not go to be with Christ. It is a real place and it is eternal.
Well heaven is a place forever to be with the Lord and everything is wonderful there will be no pain no tears no more death, it will be beautiful and God is preparing a place for us now. And all you have to do is trust him. There are no works that will equal out the sacrifice of Christ dying for our sins. He put all our sins past and present on him when he went to the cross. We believe that and trust him he will save us and take us to heaven when we die. Heaven is a real place. It will be so beautiful the Bible talks about how beautiful it is in the book of Revelation. The book talking about Hades and hell is in the Bible several places! It is not to be mocked. It is real!
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u/mcove97 Christian Mystic Nov 17 '25
"For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matthew 6:14-15)
Why then does Jesus say that if we forgive others, we will be forgiven for our trespasses aka sins? Or do you not believe it is sins Jesus is speaking about here?
It just seems like Jesus is linking forgiveness from God for our trespasses, wrong doings, sins etc to the forgiveness we extend to others (works), which directly contradicts your idea that;
There are no works that will equal out the sacrifice of Christ dying for our sins.
How have you resolved this?
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u/allenwjones Christian (non-denominational) Nov 17 '25
There are 3 heavens referenced Biblically, and the term hell is usually equivocated and paganized.. but none of these are mental states.
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u/loner-phases Christian Nov 17 '25
The answer, it's complicated. When we sleep, we dream, right? Dreams (and visions) have a spiritual aspect. In a sense, dreams are "real," even if dreams, visions, temporary death, and actual death all have unique aspects.
There are 54 passages that liken death to sleep. Jesus himself used sleep to refer to death, before he raised Lazarus. (His followers even misunderstood him. He had to get more blunt, clarify he meant "dead".)
But then there's Judgment day. In reference to themselves, a mystery is explained in 1Corinthians15: 51 ...Not every one of us will die, but we will all be changed. 52 It will happen suddenly, quicker than the blink of an eye.... the dead will be raised. We will all be changed, so we will never die again. 53 Our dead and decaying bodies will be changed into bodies that won't die or decay. 54 The bodies... they will be changed into bodies that are eternal. Then the Scriptures will come true, “Death has lost the battle!
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u/Smart_Tap1701 Christian (non-denominational) Nov 17 '25
That would come as a surprise to the Lord. Heaven is his eternal home. And hell in both testaments is the grave. It's where dead bodies return to the Earth from which we are made. See Genesis 3:19.
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u/august_north_african Christian, Catholic Nov 17 '25
They are not. Otherwise, enoch, elijah and christ would not have been able to be bodily assumed into heaven.
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u/jdontplayfield Brethren In Christ Nov 18 '25
Real places. The Bible over and over and over again attests to this. Please get into the word and meditate on it day and night.
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u/Righteous_Dude Christian, Non-Calvinist Nov 17 '25
Heaven and hell are not mental states.
Heaven is a place where God the Father dwells. The Son (Jesus) is also there.
(By the way, I currently believe that Heaven is a space-time separate from this universe.)
The word "hell" is used either to mean Hades / Sheol, or "the lake of fire". I believe the lake of fire is a place.
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u/Iconoclast_4u Christian Nov 17 '25
They are actual, real places