Just some? :-) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lowell R. Matthews" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "List Sandbox" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "List Rolemaster Chat" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 1:51 PM Subject: [Sndbox] Next stop, the Pearly Gates ... or hell?
> [Obviously, some people have deluded themselves....] > > http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-10heavenorhell,0,211 2543.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines > > Next stop, the Pearly Gates ... or hell? > > Nearly two-thirds think they're going to heaven, while few > believe they're hell-bound, survey finds > > By K. Connie Kang > Los Angeles Times > Posted October 24 2003, 10:57 AM EDT > > LOS ANGELES -- An overwhelming majority of Americans > continue to believe that there is life after death and that > heaven and hell exist, according to a new study. What's > more, nearly two-thirds think they are heaven-bound. > > On the other hand, only one-half of 1% said they were > hell-bound, according to a national poll by the Oxnard-based > Barna Research Group, an independent marketing research firm > that has tracked trends related to beliefs, values and > behaviors since 1984. > > "We're optimists at heart," Robert Johnston, a professor of > theology and culture at Fuller Theological Seminary in > Pasadena, said of the survey's results. "If you really > believe in hell, you wouldn't want to be there. By > definition, hell is the denial of goodness." The survey, > released this week, found that 76% of Americans believe in > heaven and 71% in hell - the same as a decade ago, and that > 64% believe they're heaven-bound. > > Among those who believe in heaven, nearly half (46%) > described it as a "state of eternal existence in God's > presence," and almost a third (30%) said heaven was "an > actual place of rest and reward where souls go after death." > One in seven said heaven is just "symbolic" (14%), 5% said > there was no afterlife and 5% said they weren't sure. > > Researchers found two popular perspectives of hell in the > study. Nearly four out of 10 (39%) believe hell is "a state > of eternal separation from God's presence," while nearly > one-third (32%) believe it is "an actual place of torment > and suffering where people's souls go after death." About > one in 8 believe hell is just a symbol of an "unknown bad > outcome after death" (13%). > > The poll interviewed 1,000 adults during September in every > state except Hawaii and Alaska. The margin of sampling error > is plus or minus 3 percentage points. > > Millions of Americans mix secular and various religious > views to create their personal belief systems, said David > Kinnaman, vice president of Barna Research Group. > > "Americans don't mind embracing contradictions," he said. > "It's hyper individualism. They're cutting and pasting > religious views from a variety of different sources - > television, movies, conversations with their friends. Rather > than simply embrace one particular viewpoint, and then > trying to follow all the specific precepts or teachings of > that particular viewpoint, what Americans are saying is, > 'Listen, I can probably put together a philosophy of life > for myself that is just as accurate, just as helpful as any > particular faith might provide.'" > > Pollster George Barna, a former minister who founded the > research group, noted that one out of 10 born-again > Christians - those who believe entry into heaven is solely > based on confession of sins and faith in Jesus Christ - also > believe in reincarnation, which violates Christian tenets. > Nearly one in three claim it is possible to communicate with > the dead, and half believe a person can earn salvation based > on good deeds even without accepting Christ as the way to > eternal life. > > Many who describe themselves as either atheistic or agnostic > also harbor contradictions in their thinking, Barna said. He > said that half the atheists and agnostics surveyed believed > that everyone had a soul, that heaven and hell existed and > that there was life after death. One in eight atheists and > agonistics believe that accepting Jesus Christ as savior > probably makes life after death possible. > > Therefore, labels - be they "born again" or "atheist" - > might not give as much insight into a person's beliefs as > one might assume, he said. > > "Postmodernism is actually a move toward spirituality, not > away from it," Johnston, the theologian, said, adding that > embracing postmodernity means living with contradictions. > "So, at the same time we are mired in the muck of life, we > also hold evermore preciously to spiritual sustenance." > > Copyright � 2003, South Florida Sun-Sentinel > > > > > > ________________________________ > > Changes to your subscription (unsubs, nomail, digest) can be made by going to http://sandboxmail.net/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net > > ________________________________ Changes to your subscription (unsubs, nomail, digest) can be made by going to http://sandboxmail.net/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net ________________________________ Changes to your subscription (unsubs, nomail, digest) can be made by going to http://sandboxmail.net/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net
