What happened to the hundreds of millions of Native Americans and Chinese people that never heard of Jesus or the Gospel and didn't accept his sacrifice for the first 1,500 years of Christianity? Did they go to heaven after they died? Well in that case I guess you don't need to believe in Jesus to get to heaven.
Let's flip the script and ponder this. There's the official narrative and then there might be something deeper to the coming of the "Christ of God." The purpose of the Church is two-pronged. The first purpose is to destroy the strangehold that demons had over the world. Souls will come before Him regardless and He can judge them justly. The second purpose, on the other hand, is also to prevent the coming of something worse into the world.
this is a Christian critique of secularism believe it or not
I'm not religious but isn't the official explanation that all the good people that died before Christianity were let into heaven during the Harrowing of Hell?
The Bible explains it as Jesus having gone down to the abode of the dead during the three days he was dead, and preached to them. So they had their opportunity.
He was only down there 2 days. What about the next 1,500 years of people on the other side of the planet that never heard of him?
They go to Limbo, not Hell. It's also why the Spanish were so obsessed with baptizing and "saving" as many Amerindians as they could
>He was only down there 2 days. What about the next 1,500 years of people on the other side of the planet that never heard of him?
I imagine he has a big auditorium where they could all hear him. They all heard him preach. The biblical answer. They have had their time to repent.
Actually I misread that, sorry. But for them, that falls on God's laws all being written on every man's heart. So if somebody follows those laws written on his heart, then more information will be given to him. That may come in the form of a preacher or something else. Or even an angelic visit. But every man has God's laws written on his heart. And every man should follow those. That's enough.
Jesus was even asked once how one can know that you know him. His answer was "If you keep my commandments". So there you go. One only has to follow what's written on their hearts by God.
That reminds me of a story from a Native American. The preacher tells him of God and Jesus and the guy responds
>So if i don't accept him i got to this hell place?
Preacher replies
>Yep
So he then asks
>and If i never hear of of him i get to go to heaven?
>correct says the preacher
So the native finally says
>then why did you tell me?
since the Logos is part of every person (we are made in his image), if they heeded their God given conscience they are "a law unto themselves"
Romans 2
11 For there is no respect of persons with God.
12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
the whole chapter begins with a long winded explanation as to why you should not pretend to judge the salvation or even merit of others
basically Jesus can forgive and deliver you to salvation even if you have never heard about him if he wants to, and it reads right here that a major factor is obedience to your own conscience
They get resurrected on the Last Judgement. Those who are judged to be righteous will join Jesus in fighting the forces of Satan at Armageddon.
i ain't letting another dude enter me, that's fricking gay
The popes already clarified this as soon as we've encountered the natives. Atheist smartasses late to the party by hundreds of years, typical.
No they did not.
They got dealt with justly.
"Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.
For the work of a man shall he render unto him, and cause every man to find according to his ways.
Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment."
- Job 34:10-12
I thought Jesus's sacrifice paid for all sins.
>Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved.
Related to this, why didn't God just miraculously appear in the sky and announce Christ's death and resurrection simultaneously to the whole world if he wanted everyone to know about it, instead of relying on human apostles to slowly spread the word and take centuries or even over a millennium to reach certain places? Surely God would have had the power to do so if he really wanted everyone to have knowledge of and faith in Christ. Even today there are uncontacted tribes with no knowledge of Jesus because human missionaries haven't reached them yet, it seems strange God would rely on humans to spread the Good News if he really wants everyone to know and believe.
Because.... well... because....... God works in mysterious ways or something, ok?! See? I replied to you this means Christianity wins again! Apologetics FTW! Theologians we win again!
> What happened to the hundreds of millions of Native Americans
Well they had no sense of possession like that of land. At least, not until they met with the colonials.
Something tells me they were already in a new world in a manner of speaking.
If you ever find yourself in a good place - just keep it to yourself.
Possessives are possessed.
Who knew?