N.T. Wright addresses questions about hell, acknowledging its personal weight for many concerned about non-Christian loved ones. He begins by deconstructing the traditional Western understanding of hell, tracing its development through medieval influences like Dante and Michelangelo, as well as the re-emergence of pagan ideas from figures like Plato. He emphasizes that the concept of a soul separate from the body is more Platonic than Christian, and that the common “heaven or hell” dichotomy is not how the New Testament presents the afterlife.
Wright highlights the importance of language and translation, noting that words, especially across languages, carry different connotations and cultural baggage. He uses the example of the Greek Orthodox understanding of eschatology to illustrate this point. He stresses that the New Testament focuses on the relationship between heaven and earth, not heaven and hell, with the ultimate goal being a new creation, a new heavens and a new earth. He cites Ephesians 1 to support this, where God’s plan is to unite all things in Christ, both in heaven and on earth.
He then discusses C.S. Lewis’s “The Great Divorce,” which portrays hell as a thin, insubstantial place of denial – denial of goodness, creation, and self. It’s a state of inward focus and rejection of God, contrasting with the vibrant, substantial reality of a renewed earth in heaven. Wright cautions against viewing heaven and hell as equally opposite destinations, especially the medieval notion of the blessed rejoicing in the suffering of the damned.
He concludes by stating that while justice and mercy will ultimately prevail, and it’s right to celebrate God’s victory over corruption, there should also be grief for those who, despite being made in God’s image, reject their creator and choose a path of denial and nothingness. This rejection, rather than simply a destination, is presented as the core tragedy.
