My latest posts on Jack Hyles, Jack Schaap, and the IFB church movement have had a wide circulation on the internet. With wide circulation comes an increase in nasty comments and emails. I fully expected this but I am still shocked and amused at the emails Jesus Hyles, Schaap loving Christians send me. Their emails remind me of the bankruptcy of the IFB movement and their inability to embrace or accept any form of criticism. (when you are certain you are right it is hard to accept anything that says you are not right)
I received an email from a woman in Florida. From the email, I assume she is older. (she references a picture in the post from the early 1970’s) Without further adieu, I present to you reason number 3,241 why I am glad not to be a Christian any more:
Hi, I want to thank you for the picture of Dr. Hyles on your article. I am going to copy and print it for my husband who was in Hammond at the time of this photo. He dearly missed by us and we both think he was honor to be in his ministry for seven years. By the way, I am glad that you are an atheist and out of all church. Maybe you can join Madame Murray O Haire in Hell one day and you both can have a heyday criticizing each other. Good luck with the hereafter, there is one but you are going to in the dark place where no one can see your ugly face again. So glad for that place called HELL.
*all spelling and grammar errors belong to the email writer
BTW, I have also been encouraged by the emails from Christians who appreciate the attention I am giving the IFB church movement. A reminder that I must never assume that all Christians are the same. I may disagree with every aspect of their belief system but they are kind people who sincerely want to be the “good” Christian that is hard to find these days. Some may object and say, but Bruce you think the supernatural Jesus is a myth. How can you accept people who believe in things that are a myth?
Simple. As I type this post, I am listening to Southern Gospel music on Spotify. (drives my wife crazy, btw) I don’t believe the “message” of the songs but there is something about this kind of music that appeals to me at a visceral level. I suspect if atheists start doing 4 part harmony Stamps-Baxter music, I will love it too.
I find some sort of emotional benefit from listening to this “style” of music. I view the religious beliefs of others in the same way. If they get some benefit from believing in God and worshiping God,even of I think that God does not exist, who am I to condemn and ridicule them. There are atheists and agnostics who still attend church because they get an emotional, psychological, or social benefit from it. Each to their own, I say.
Bruce, may I say again how awesome you are and how courageous!
Thanks, Calulu!
“Dances with Dirt in Hell (Michigan)” is so exclusive, the race fills up by invitation only from previous years participants. I am hoping to be involved this year, sounds like a lot of fun. I, too, am glad there is a place called Hell.
Or…do you think she was talking about something different?
Enjoy your time in Hell.
I suspect she might have a different idea about Hell. 
You are THE BEST, Bruce – a real MENSCH!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mensch
Thanks! I had to look up what mensch meant before I decided if you were insulting or complimenting me.
Hell is such a pitiful concept and I still believe a loving god could never invent a place like eternal hell such as is preached by so many Christians. Love and eternal torture just don’t go together.
Sad and scary to see people enjoying the concept.
Exactly so, excellent point.
Even worse, some of the early church fathers wrote that some of the ‘entertainment’ in heaven was to watch the suffering in Hell.
Fascinating, given that Augustine was so guilt-ridden about his love of gladiatorial combat and Christians vs. lions weekend entertainment.
Yes, but listening to the screams of the damned while at the banquet and sitting on the right hand of Jesus is going to be so much fun when we get to heaven! Not.
Yeah, it seems perverse, doesn’t it?
Hi Bruce,
This email from this woman from Florida is simply apalling!
Shalom,
John Arthur
I, an agnostic, attended church this past Sunday. I went all alone and just sat and enjoyed the organ music. I even joined in singing some of the hymns. I wondered how I could still sorta enjoy singing them when I don’t really believe what they say. Yet, it came to me that I can have my own version of Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, “raised from the dead,” “coming again,” etc. I was reminded of John Shelby Spong’s type of belief in those things, NOT the way I was raised.
It was kinda nice also, because I didn’t go there to connect with anybody. I didn’t feel bad that no one came over to talk with me during the refreshments. For the first time ever, I really had no need for any of that. I had ridden my bike there, so I was hot and really enjoyed the comfort of listening to the message and the music and sitting in the a/c and watching them walk out with the candle thing (Methodist.) If somebody had asked re my beliefs, I’d probably just say, “I don’t know.” So it was an honest outing vs. all the years of confusion and frustration and all the years of trying to fit in.
The older I get, the more firmly I believe that anyone who really cheers on the concept of Hell is just not thinking it through. Yes, the idea of some sort of ultimate metaphysical justice is appealing; I get that. But the idea of an eternal Hell doesn’t seem just in any way. And mercy, I think, is every bit as important as justice.
I’m one of two admins for a Facebook group designed to help Christian parents deal with having atheist (or agnostic, etc.) children. And I just finished reading a post from one of those parents, who is deeply scared and saddened – absolutely heartbroken – by the idea that her unbelieving son might end up in Hell. I can only imagine how she’d react to hearing one of her fellow Christians gloating about people ending up there.
It takes a very ugly turn of mind to write something like that.
When I read her words I wonder, what personal benefit has she gained by being a follower of Jesus?
A real problem on the web is this sort of rhetorical excess. People don’t seem to be able to make a comment without damning half the universe, wishing their enemies in Hell. I recommend that anyone about to post a hostile comment or email to an adversary first go to Wikipedia and read the entry on Godwin’s Law:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law
And likely in Christian circles, Satan is the obvious analogue to Hitler.
Hi Bruce,
I wonder what attitude this woman would take if any of her loved ones suffered severe burns and were in a burns units at a major hospital. I hope that she would be moved by compassion.
If God exists, then why would he torture someone in hell forever? It is neither compassionate nor just. How can any finite being be guilty of an infinite sin? If God exists and is love, would he not want to relieve people of suffering and distress? Surely he wouldn’t delight in their suffering.
This lady seems so hostile to your exposure of Baptist pastors for their abusive sexual misdemeanours, she cannot see how unChrist like such behaviour is, Just because Schapp’s sermons may have “blessed” her husband, it is no excuse for this pastor to have treated his wife with a lack of respect and dignity and to have abused his position of power with a much younger woman. He showed lack of respect for the young person as well ,and not only his wife.
He also tarnished the reputation of the local church he pastored and gave a bad witness to the Jesus he claims to follow. Doesn’t this lady understand all this? She should be thanking you for your posts exposing this behaviour, not railing against you by wishing you to suffer in the nonexistent hell.
Keep up the good work, Bruce!
Shalom,
John Arthur
I think her husband sat under Jack Hyles in the 1970′s. The level of scandal with Jack Hyles makes Jack Schaap look like a saint. I am astonished, with all the evidence now available, that people still consider Hyles a “blessing.”
>I don’t believe the “message” of the songs but there is something about this kind of music >that appeals to me at a visceral level. I suspect if atheists start doing 4 part harmony >Stamps-Baxter music, I will love it too.
I’d love some atheist Christmas music.
Me too.
At the rate things are going in the world, God doesn’t need to make a hell. We’re doing extremely well creating hell on our own.
If you ask me, hell is where everyone gets to do what he/she wants, and where they and everyone else pays for the consequences of it.
Bruce, I think your answer to that miserable woman’s e-mail should be : “I would much rather be in hell with Madalyn Murray O’Hair than in heaven with you and your, oh so loving and forgiving, God” . But then the sarcasm would probably be lost on her.
Her use of O’Hair dated her. I told Polly, most people under 40 have no idea who Madalyn Murray O’Hair is. If heaven is filled like people who sent me the email…I prefer hell.
I still never understood why Christians hated Madalyn Murray O’Hair so. Even when I was in the IFB school and church I could not understand the heated vitriol against the woman, because she was hardly Satan or anything. “If God be for us, who can be against us” was what I was taught, and when I heard these same people who taught this to me crying out against O’Hair it just made me confused. She was only a woman, I thought.
NOW I understand why they hated her. She was helping people question religiosity. She was exposing it.
GREAT post, once again, Bruce!
When I see such a comment by a supposed Christian, I’m glad I no longer attend church. Bruce, keep up the good work!
Thanks, Becky.
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Im so sorry that people write hateful emails…I go to an IFB church that is very loving. But I am a Christian first and foremost and try to love all people, Jesus Christ loved everyone and proved it at Calvary. We all sin and our sin is what put Him there. God had precious thoughts of us (Psalm139)…but he hates sin! His Word is true!! If wr look to others we can get discouraged because we all are made of flesh and will do wrong…look to Him and you will never be let down. Jesus loves you all!!
I sat under a (so-called) pastor who kept a perpetual goofy grin on his demented face regardless of the topic. I was always astounded at the presence of that grin even when the topic was sobering stuff on hell, condemnation, judgment, eternal damnation, etc. Bizarre as it may seem, it occurs to me that he actually enjoyed the prospect that lesser mortals than himself were going to hell. Perish the thought (even as he perished the sinner).