Some have wondered how the doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul (the belief that when a man dies he goes immediately to heaven) and the doctrine of the eternal torment of the wicked (that the fires of hell never go out) ever became a part of the Christian Church, especially in view of all that the Bible teaches concerning the sleep of the dead, and the utter destruction of the wicked. We now wish to trace the history of how the Christian Church apostatized from the truth on these doctrines.
The doctrine of man's naturally immortality had its origin in the old serpent among the beautiful trees of the garden of Eden. The tempter suggested to Eve: "You will not surely die" (Genesis 3:4).
It can found in the Oriental religions of the past in pantheism, pre-existence of the soul, and reincarnation. Next, it was revealed in the Egyptian version of the immortality of the soul. Then came the delusion of the Persian dualism (eternal existence of good and evil -- neither good nor evil could defeat each other; thus both must always exist). From there it entered into the pagan Greek religions.
It found its greatest period of acceptance and expansion during the fourth century B.C. under the pagan Greek philosopher Plato. During these years, the Bible record stood almost alone in presenting man as a candidate for immortality, but not possessing it naturally.
The Old Testament closed with the book of Malachi about 425 B.C. Between the writing of the Old and New Testaments, Judaism became penetrated by the pagan teaching of the immortality of the soul. Two schools of thought developed in Judaism:
Therefore, Judaism stood divided on this issue when Jesus came. He reaffirmed the Old Testament teaching that death is a sleep and man will receive immortality at the second coming. This was amplified and expanded by most of the New Testament writers. Thus the early Christian Church was brought back to the original teaching of the Old Testament. For over 150 years the early Christian Church held to the true Biblical picture of death as a sleep and the annihilation of the wicked. Notice the testimony of Justin Martyr (died, A.D. 165), one of the leaders of the Christian Church in the early centuries:
"If you have fallen in with some who are called Christians, but who do not admit this (truth) (of the resurrection), and venture to blaspheme the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; who say there is no resurrection of the dead and that their souls, when they die, are taken to heaven; do not imagine that they are Christians." Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter 80, in "Ante Nicene Fathers," Vol. 1. p. 294.
So strong was the feeling of the early church that they would not even call a person a Christian who believed that the soul went to heaven at death.
Strange as it may seem, it was shortly after Justin Martyr that the pagan concept of the immortality of the soul was first introduced into the Christian Church.
It was Athenagoras, about 188 A.D., who became the first Christian Father to use the term "immortal soul." He contended that the soul is immortal and imperishable. Thus, within 25 years of the death of Justin Martyr, who would not even regard a person as a Christian who believed in an immortal soul, we find another church father making the bold pagan suggestion that the soul of man is immortal and cannot die.
A few years later, Tertullian, who died in A.D. 240, further developed the doctrine of the immortality of the soul into a system, adding the dreadful corollary of eternal torment. His argument was that since all souls are immortal, the punishment of the wicked must be eternal. He stressed a sacred fire that never consumes, but renews as it burns, eternally killing, but never terminating. This is simply the old pagan doctrine of Persian dualism, stated now in Christian terminology, but still with the inevitable conclusion that even God cannot put an end to sin and sinners. He must consign them to a place of eternal burning to be punished because they are indestructible.
Thus, the God of the Christians became no better than the pagan gods of Greece and Rome. Before this, the uniqueness of Christianity stood on the fact that their God could conquer evil; He could make an utter end; He could do what the pagan gods were unable to do -- He could put an absolute end to sin and sinners. Now Tertullian dragged Christianity down to a par with paganism -- God could not conquer evil. He must consign sinners to an eternal hell.
The doctrine of natural immortality and eternal torment was further popularized by Jerome and Augustine. In fact Augustine added such great prestige to the doctrine that it became the predominant faith of the church for over 1000 years.
When the Reformation began, some of the Reformers, such as Martin Luther, recognized the origin of the teaching of natural immortality, but through the influence of John Calvin and others, the bulk of the protestant reformers continued to hold to the pagan teaching of the immortality of the soul and eternal torment of the wicked.
In summation, let us quote from the Methodist-Congregationalist clergyman, Amos Phelps (1805-1874):
"This doctrine [of natural immortality] can be traced through the muddy channels of a corrupted Christianity, a perverted Judaism, and pagan philosophy, and a superstitious idolatry, to the great instigator of mischief in the garden of Eden. The Protestants borrowed it from the Catholics, the Catholics from the Pharisees, the Pharisees from the pagans, and the pagans from the old serpent who first preached the doctrine amid the lowly bowels of Paradise to an audience all too willing to hear and heed the new and fascinating theology: "ye shall not surely die.""
Much of the material here has been gleaned from the two volume work: "The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers," by LeRoy E. Froom.
This page maintained by Allen Roy. Last update on 09/13/98