Would Existence of Hell Be an Evil?

Abstract

In the traditional sense, the existence of postmortem life in form of heaven and hell, seen as reward or punishment, seems to be a necessary condition of divine justice. Contemporary analytic theology and philosophy of religion question this account of posthumous retribution. A particular target of criticism is the doctrine of “eternal hell”, since for many people eternal torments appear to be incompatible with divine goodness. This article examines the arguments of the known analytic theologian Thomas Talbott against the compatibility of “eternal hell” with God’s unconditional love for all men. Talbott’s arguments are based on the concept of love, according to which love is deemed of as an individual attitude, while the understanding of love as a substance does not lead to a contradiction between the existence of eternal hell and the unconditional divine love for all people. The argument of David Lewis asserting the amorality of God’s creating the world that includes an eternal hell is also examined. It is shown that the response to this argument, given by the contemporary Thomist John Lamont, convincingly demonstrates that it is based on premises which supporters of the traditional doctrine of eternal hell are not obliged to accept.