I'm a big fan of This American Life. I listened to episode #304 -Heretics today on my ride home.
Carlton Pearson's church, Higher Dimensions, was once one of the biggest in the city, drawing crowds of 5,000 people every Sunday. But several years ago, scandal engulfed the Reverend. He didn't have an affair. He didn't embezzle lots of money. His sin was something that to a lot of people is far worse ... he stopped believing in hell. (2 minutes)
I found it powerful and insightfull. Carlton Pearson stops believing in hell, fundamentalist turn on him like a pack of dogs, "Heresy" on the lips of every flea-bitten one, and then run him off. This was a man at the top of his evangelical game. He has a moment, a divine moment mind you, when he realizes that his religion is built on condemning billions of people to hell. He proposes an inclusive alternative called The Gosepl of Inclusion - and then he is cast out of the church as a heretic.
Carlton Pearson preaches at New Demensions. The story is well made (it is TAL after all). I highly recommend it.
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Being an ex-Pentecostal (and a TAL regular) I especially enjoyed "Heretics". One of my Pentecostal friends once regarded Pearson as one of his favorite ministers until he overheard me telling someone else about Pearson's doctrine. I think my old friend gets off on the Hell doctrine: hell and judgement are two of his favorite topics.
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