Spiritual

Abuse

IS

Child

Abuse!
Jesus said, “Let the little children come
unto me, and do not forbid them for of such
is the kingdom of heaven” (Mt. 19:14).
 Millions of Christian parents lovingly guard their children against pornographic
Internet sites, violence on TV, scary movies, etc., but they, with the best of intentions,
take their children to churches which expose them to spiritually abusive preaching and
teaching about God tormenting "unsaved" children [those who have reached, “the age of
accountability”], as well as adults, in hell fire forever! Teaching children that hell is
literal and eternal fire is CHILD ABUSE! As I stated in my book, “Christianity Without
Insanity,” it is SPIRITUAL PORNOGRAPHY! It is also spiritual insanity.

Severity and Long-Term Consequences of Spiritual Abuse

The tragedy of spiritual abuse of children is vividly illustrated with the real-life
story of a man I will call Jerry. This Christian man, a professor at an Evangelical
college, has daily lived in fear for 55 years that he will be tormented in literal fire
in hell forever! After reading my book, CWI, he emailed me, and then we talked
several times by phone. In essence, I have given him free psychotherapy long
distance, since he lives in another state. He shared with me that he was
frightened, through fear of eternal torment in hell, into accepting Christ as his
Savior as a child, but he has still lived in fear that God will condemn him to hell
forever, since his church teaches, as the vast majority of churches do, that
Christians can lose their salvation for sins of what they do and/or don’t do. Jerry
related that for most of 55 years he has had Panic Disorder, so much so he has
been on anti-anxiety medication in order to function emotionally and physically.

In my book, “Spiritual Terrorism,” in chapter six, “The Ultimate Dilemma,” I listed all
13 symptoms of Panic Disorder in, The Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental
Disorders-IV. Some of the most debilitating ones are: racing heart, sense of choking,
smothering sensations, shaking, fear of going crazy, fear of dying, etc. Without
medication to control symptoms, a person may well have to be admitted to a psychiatric
hospital. In CWI, in chapter two, “Holistic Health,” I rewrote Psalm 23, “The Lord Is My
Shepherd,” from the perspective of victims of panic attacks. I titled it, “Panic Is My
Shepherd.” As a Mental-Health Counselor, in private practice, patients have told me how
very realistic and helpful this paraphrase of the 23rd Psalm has been for them. Jerry is a
good example of how bad Panic Disorder can be, but, after several phone sessions, he is
now doing much better. He is having panic attacks less frequently and they are much less
severe. As Jerry has greater tranquility of mind, due to no longer living in fear of eternal
torment in hell, the prognosis is his symptoms will continue to diminish, then disappear.

Preventing Spiritual Abuse of Children

My son and daughter-in-law are devoted-loving parents. She and my son discipline
their children appropriately—judiciously and proportionally. They connect the discipline
with the misbehavior by calling it a “consequence.” At times, I have heard my
grandchildren say to each other, “If you do that or don’t stop doing that, you’re going to
have a consequence!” This means apologizing, making amends, having a time out, etc.
 A Four-Year-Old’s Questions About God and Heaven

“Soul Surfer” is a video about a teen girl, a surfboarder, getting her arm bitten
off by a shark. This is a very inspiring story in that, with excellent medical care
and a strong faith, she recovered and was able to return to surfing, which she
loved to do, even with only one arm. Several weeks after my son’s family had
watched this movie, my four-year-old grandson asked his mother, “Will there be
sharks in heaven?” She thoughtfully answered, “Yes, but they will no longer bite
people.” In essence, this was an extrapolation of the classic image of universal
peace—a lion lying peacefully by a lamb. At a very young age, children may be
thinking deep thoughts and asking profound questions in the spiritual realm.

Later, my daughter-in-law called to say that my grandson had a question for

me, since I am considered the expert in the family on God and the Bible. He
asked, “Is God high in the sky?” I replied, “Yes, God is high in the sky, but not
just in the sky.” I asked him if he could say the really big word, “om-ni-pres-ent,”
and he was able to pronounce it. I very briefly explained to him that this big word,
he will learn more about as he grows older, means God is everywhere.

Will Everyone Be In Heaven?

A couple of months after asking me about God’s location, this grandson asked
his mother a profound question, “Will everyone be in heaven?” Readers, if you
believe in the doctrine of eternal torment in hell fire, how would you answer this
question? If you would not answer it, not wanting to traumatize a child, that would
send the message that this is not a safe topic—don’t ask such questions. If you
would say, “I don’t know,” that would introduce doubt about God’s unconditional
everlasting love and infinite mercy. If you would say, “No, not everyone is going
to be in heaven,” I am quite sure the next question would be, “Who isn’t going to
be in heaven?” Doubtlessly, such an intelligent child would have follow-up
questions, such as: “Why won’t they be in heaven?” “Where will they be?”
“In hell?” “What’s hell?” “Fire!” “Forever!”

Thus, children, asking good questions, can easily and unintentionally be spiritually
abused, at a very young age [as Jerry was at ten and I was starting at age eight], the toxic
effects of which may last for the rest of their lives. Reactions to toxic religion varies
from compliant children who try to diligently “toe the religious line,” to those who
withdraw into a shell living [or just existing] in fear of God and hell, and strong-willed
ones who say, “to heck with religion” and go have a “good time” sowing “wild oats.”

My daughter-in-law is very alert and vigilant to protect her children against various
forms of potential abuse, such as: physical, mental, emotional, sexual, or spiritual abuse.
Her wise answer, from her heart as a loving mother and from reading, CWI, though their
church does not teach this, was “Yes, everyone will be in heaven, after those who have
hurt others have had a consequence.” Wow! This question was answered in such a simple
but profound way that even a four-year-old child could understand it!

This loving, Biblically correct answer, and follow-up spiritual nurture, will enable
children to grow up having reverence for, due to a sense of awe [meaning of Biblical
fear] about, God with zero morbid fear of God. This healthy conception of God will also
motivate children to love, worship, and serve God altruistically, not out of fear of God
and hell, nor expectation of reward—just doing the right thing for the right reason.

The word “fire” is used metaphorically in The Holy Bible and the sacred writings of
other religions to symbolize purification. The best example is the metaphor of God being
a “consuming fire” (Deut. 4:24; Heb. 12:29). Jewish believers will be purified by the
Messiah’s refining fire (Mal. 3:3). Penitents will be purified by fire at the Judgment Seat
of Christ (I Cor. 3:15). All impenitents will be purified, per Jesus’ mixed metaphor,
“salted with fire,” in [Greek] Gehenna/Hell [KJV] (Mk. 9:49). The best translation of
Jesus’ mixed metaphor of being “salted with fire” is in The Good News Bible: Today’s
English Version, which says, “Everyone will be purified by fire.”

Another metaphor for disinfecting and healing from sin is the lake of fire and
brimstone [KJV]—burning sulfur [NIV] (Rev. 20:10). Sulfur, long before and after
Christ, had multiple beneficial uses. Sulfur was a multi-purpose medication. It could be
taken internally for various illnesses. Externally, a sulfur paste would cure body sores.
Long before canning and freezing, people used burning sulfur to preserve their produce.
Sulfur was burned in religious rituals to symbolize prayers for purification. If someone
died in a home of infectious disease sulfur was burned to disinfect it. Sulfur was also
burned to disinfest homes of lice, mice, and other vermin.

Since sulfur was the wonder drug in the ancient world that penicillin is today, a
modern medicinal analogy would be a fiery lake of penicillin to cure sin infection. A
chemist, with a doctorate in chemistry, stated that, theoretically, a sulfur compound could
be made which would cure any bodily infection. Logically, spiritually speaking, could
not God, who is omniscient, make a sulfur compound [i.e., “the lake of burning sulfur”]
that would cure any sin infection? This common-sense view means Jesus can draw all to
Himself (John 12:32), all can live in Christ and God can become all in all (I Cor. 15:22,
28)—thus all shall worship God eternally (Rev. 5:13)!

Biblically, hell is the cosmic recycling center, the fiery presence of God transforming
sinners into saints. The nonsensical doctrine of eternal conscious torment is preached in
graphic detail by some but preached much more tactfully by others—not as hell being
literal fire to torture sinners forever, but—“just” as “eternal separation from God.” This
more nuanced preaching of hell is still a direct contradiction to the teaching of The Holy
Bible. Why? The Psalmist exclaimed to God, “If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If
I descend down to Sheol, Hebrew for the grave or place of departed spirits [“hell,” KJV],
you are there” (139:7-9). Consequently, there is no place on land or sea where one can go
from God’s presence.
 Yes, indeed, sin can temporarily separate sinners from fellowship with God (Isaiah
59:2). But no person can be separated from God’s presence for even a moment,
much less for eternity, due to the fact God is omnipresent!

Boyd C. Purcell, Ph.D.

Master of Arts Degree in Counseling
Master of Divinity Degree in Biblical Studies
Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Integration of Psychology and Theology
Chaplain, Mental-Health Counselor, Ordained Minister, College Professor
Board Certified Chaplain; National Board Certified Counselor;
Licensed Professional Counselor
Author of:
Book, Spiritual Terrorism:
Spiritual Abuse from the Womb to the Tomb
Book, Christianity Without Insanity:
For Optimal Mental/Emotional/Physical Health
Outreach Booklet, SALTED WITH FIRE:
Five Liberating Truths—Religions in a Nutshell
Brochure, The Three Most Liberating Truths of the Christian Faith
Most-Concise Summary of Christian Universalism [Bible Study Key/Bookmarker],
The Gospel in a Nutshell: Salvation of ALL Simple as ABCs
Website: ChristianityWithoutInsanity.com
Email: [email protected]
Copyright 3-7-2014

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