Samantha Rinne
Resident Genderfluid Writer/Artist
So, alot of people expect Heaven to look like white fluffy clouds, togas on everyone, and people playing harps all day.
Likewise, Hell is depicted as some burning place. Often with demons using pitchforks. But why pitchforks? Why fire?
Well... the backstory has to do with the prohibition against human sacrifice (especially child sacrifice). Outside of Judaism, many were followers to Baal or Molech, who demanded infants be burned, especially using a patented cowman shaped stove. The stove had hands, you see, so as it heated up then baby could be placed on these not scalding hot hands and instantly get incinerated. No mess, no fuss. Have an unwanted baby as a result of the last fertility ritual? You too can be rid of it. Yours for only 19.95.
Yeah, basically that was it. These bodies got burned up and tossed into the same pile as a pile of human excrement outside the place. It was basically a huge steaming compost pile. The pitchforks are not to poke people, but to turn human bodies like compost. It's to show what it's like to be outside the town, outside Israel. This place was called Gehenna. The word Hell (Norse) or Hades (Greek) were more synonymous with Sheol, a more generic afterlife.
That is to say, to the Jewish and early Christian mindset, this sort of place makes a large amount of sense. But to us, 2000 years later? I'm not sure that I'm even afraid of fire. So removing all these trappings (including tbh the word Hell), what would it look like to you? Would it still have flames? Or would you imagine a DMV or something instead?
Likewise, Hell is depicted as some burning place. Often with demons using pitchforks. But why pitchforks? Why fire?
Well... the backstory has to do with the prohibition against human sacrifice (especially child sacrifice). Outside of Judaism, many were followers to Baal or Molech, who demanded infants be burned, especially using a patented cowman shaped stove. The stove had hands, you see, so as it heated up then baby could be placed on these not scalding hot hands and instantly get incinerated. No mess, no fuss. Have an unwanted baby as a result of the last fertility ritual? You too can be rid of it. Yours for only 19.95.
Yeah, basically that was it. These bodies got burned up and tossed into the same pile as a pile of human excrement outside the place. It was basically a huge steaming compost pile. The pitchforks are not to poke people, but to turn human bodies like compost. It's to show what it's like to be outside the town, outside Israel. This place was called Gehenna. The word Hell (Norse) or Hades (Greek) were more synonymous with Sheol, a more generic afterlife.
That is to say, to the Jewish and early Christian mindset, this sort of place makes a large amount of sense. But to us, 2000 years later? I'm not sure that I'm even afraid of fire. So removing all these trappings (including tbh the word Hell), what would it look like to you? Would it still have flames? Or would you imagine a DMV or something instead?