My understanding is that it is not in the Bible. However it features strongly in the Qu'ran where it appears to be explicitly created by Allah (the Merciful?) to forever punish those who fail to exercise their free will to worship Him.
There seem to be three possibilities for the origin.
1. The Catholics get it from the Qu'ran.
2. Early Catholics created it and Mohammed liked the idea.
3. Those who wrote the Bible neglected to include it when transcribing the rest of the old oral myths the books are based on.
Old_Geezer - “... Ever experienced rotting in the ground?...”
No. No one has. Because in order to do so you have to be dead. And if you're dead then all cognitive activity has ceased. Hence, you can't experience 'death' per say. It's really quite simple.
Actually it's you that hopes. I don't hope. When I die, I will simply cease to exist as a conscious entity. Your above statement is quite apposite given that we are discussing the possibility of Hell. Why do you think that, 'I hope'? Are you attempting the threaten me with an afterlife?
birdie, even if you didn't cease to exist, wouldn't rotting and putrefying in the ground be infinitely prefereable to an everlasting "Hell" of flames and damnation desinggd to scare people into cowering belief and acquiescence?
Since you can't experience rotting nor putrefying in the ground, I'm not at liberty to say whether or not it's preferable to something else that you can't experience!
However, I don't agree with anything that is designed to scare people into cowering belief and acquiescence. That is why I am an atheist and proud to be so.
Duncer
Haven't a clue what I'm doing up at this time of night, but then again, I never have a clue what I'm doing at any time of the day or night. On the 'hellish' theme I hope The Blues can overcome those foreign devils (0-3), you never know.....and St.Johnstone had Tuffey on the bench (0-2), hell mend them.
Duncer
Alan Mannus - I read that both goals he lost were deflections (Tuffey would have saved them) [Partick Thistle prejudice]. Really good of you to describe him as 'all round nice guy', I take it that you know him. As to the 'we were lucky to get nil', I think you've paid too many visits to Firhill, sounds like our sort of banter....and as for the Hampden Olympic games....I'll need to take that up with my carer....good 'talking' to you - Wharton.