Argument
From the eleventh century to the fourteenth century Christian beliefs regarding hell
developed extensively and evolved. Throughout this period of time many people wrote extensively
regarding the beliefs and differences of Christians and Jews alike. These writings provide an
excessive about of material available to be used to determine what Christians believed, how they
applied what they believed, and the extent of the controversy between the religions of the era.
Based on articles which have analyzed writings from the medieval period in question, I surmise
that Christian beliefs about hell developed in part from the doctrine of original sin, was used as a
fear tactic against believers, and created controversy in comparison to Jewish thinking regarding
hell.
Hell and Original Sin
In order to fully understand how the doctrine of original sin could impact the Christian
belief regarding hell, one would first need to have a basic understanding of what this doctrine
taught. Original sin was a position developed by Augustine of Hippo which stated that people,
“inherited the guilt of original sin through the lust that accompanied their parents’ sexual
intercourse” (Jordan, 434). As this belief developed more, Christians understood that all souls
were contaminated by the sin of Adam and Eve and consequently went to hell after they died, even
the righteous. Furthermore, this belief stated that the righteous were held in hell or in purgatory,
until the second coming of Christ, at which time they would ascend to heaven with him
(Rembaum, 357).
In addition, the necessity of penance and the idea of purgatory developed from this
doctrine as well. I base this conclusion on Bernstein’s “Esoteric Theology: William of Auvergne
on the Fires of Hell and Purgatory.” Bernstein explains that William of Auvergne wrote
substantially on the topics of hell and purgatory. William regarded hell as a place where one would
be tormented without interruption and any wrongs against God would be absolutely avenged.
Additionally, purgatory was considered a place where people, who died, while they were in the
mist of penance, would go to complete their atonement. Once they had endured the pains of
purgatory sufficiently they would be released. (Bernstein, 510-511)
Since the doctrine of original sin is what maintains that all humans are sinful, it also implies
that all humans are in need of redemption. This need for redemption, according to Christian
belief, was fulfilled in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. However, according to medieval beliefs, as I
understand them, even with the acceptance of Christ as this redeemer, penance was necessary
because sin was part of each human. If one did not repent sufficiently, or at all, then hell or
purgatory was inevitable. Consequently, the Christian proposal of hell, purgatory, and penance
hinged on the belief of the doctrine of original sin because it is this doctrine that says all humans
have a sinful nature and most pay for it in some way.
Hell as a Scare Tactic
As for the scare tactic aspect of hell, Bernstein explains that William of Auvergne’s writings
show that William “considered the fear of infernal punishment to be of great social utility because
it deters sinners from evil” (Bernstein, 510). Moreover, he held that the pains of purgatory had a
deterrent effect; in that, the unrepentant would want to atone sooner and finish their penance
before they died in order that they would not have to face the pain associated with purgatory.
William also maintained the belief that the fire thought to torment in hell was not a physical reality,
but said fire took place in the imagination or a dream type state (Bernstein, 515). In other words,
God only needed for people to perceive of the pain in order them to feel it. However, William
only wanted students of theology to understand purgatory and hell in that manner. Where lay
people were concerned, he believed that if they thought the fire was only perceived of, then the
fear of hell and purgatory would not be sufficient to deter people from sin (Bernstein, 515). Also
according to Bernstein, other writers of the medieval period such as Origens, Jerome, Ambrose
and Augustine agreed that the torments of hell and purgatory would be perception like in essence
(Bernstein 517). Augustine was congruent with William seeing as he taught that the fires of hell
were not material, but he also said that the “lake of fire and brimstone will be a corporeal fire and
will torture the bodies of the damned…” (Bernstein, 520).
It stands to reason, that if the philosophers and theologians of the times believed one thing,
but wanted lay people to believe something else then control was at the root of the motive for the
discrepancies. William and Augustine refused to commit to what they really believed, to the
general public, in an effort to have power over how people lived their lives by using fear as a
weapon of control. I realize another argument could be that uneducated people could not
understand the intricacy of such a belief, and should be protected from themselves; however, in
reality if pertinent information is withheld from the masses, regardless the reason, one is just
contributing to their ignorance.
Jews Disagree
As one can imagine, controversy and theological disagreement existed between Christians
and Jews not only in the times of Christ, but in the medieval times as well. While there were and
are many disagreements between the religions, I will look at only one particular issue as it relates to
the topic at hand. In the eleventh century Anselm wrote Cur Deus homo; this writing explains
Anselm’s idea that God is reasonable and orderly (Brown, 334) and that God’s order is one of
“balance and symmetry, accompanied by an unwillingness to leave any pattern imperfect or
ultimately incomplete” (Brown 335). Thus, Anselm’s reason for an eternal punishment, in very
simple terms, rests on his case that any sin against God is extremely evil and has an infinite reach
and must be punished with an extreme punishment also of infinite proportion to keep the balance
and beauty of God’s perfection (Brown, 340). He believed this type of punishment was just
because if God allowed sin to go unpunished than that too would be unjust and there must be a
balance to maintain perfection of God’s creation (Brown, 340-341).
Based on Rembaum’s writings, Jews were familiar with Anselm’s stance and took exception
to it. They argued that “a merciful and gracious God does not require an infinite punishment or
atonement” (Rembaum, 373). Another Jewish dispute to Anselm’s belief declared that, God knew
that man would sin, yet God still created man with a free will. Because God knew man would sin,
He also fashioned the remedy for that sin through repentance and finite punishment. The
repentance and the finite punishment that Adam endured were assigned by, the infinite being,
God. As a result, God’s remedies are also infinite and effectively supply penance for the
transgressions against him. Given that it is appropriate that punishment be made to fit the crime,
man needed only finite penalty because man is a finite being (Rembaum, 374).
Based on writings from the Jews, it is apparent that they were aware of Christian beliefs and
writings from the times and felt it necessary to attempt to debunk what they believed to be
erroneous doctrine. While, I only considered this one argument for sake of space; Jewish authors
did write extensively against, what they believed to be, error and misinterpretation on the part of
the Christians. They even used New Testament scripture in an effort to prove their point
(Rembaum). The Jewish belief of the time maintained that a just God would not create an eternal
hell.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is evident from writings from the medieval period that even foundational
doctrines, such as that of original sin and what role hell plays in the life of humans, developed over
time, but not without much controversy and evolution. It seems that the church used their idea of
hell and purgatory to instill fear in the people in an effort to force them to live what the church
considered to be a holy life. I have to say these articles have made me really consider my personal
beliefs about hell and whether a gracious and merciful God would create a place for eternal
torment and if he did how does that align with my knowledge of him as a loving and forgiving God.