Christian theological question

[winwun]

This is a serious question, and I would appreciate substantive answers, and if you do not believe in christianity, then you cannot understand my concern and should therefore, not reply.

The scriptures assure us that little children, before reaching the age of reason, are accepted into heaven without their having sought and received redemption.

I have a friend who is in the "onset" stage of alzheimers, and while not attempting to understand what is in his heart, he appears to have led a dissolute life, devoid of any belief in any God whatsoever, and to see his mind wander from what once very intelligent and perceptive thought patterns is disturbing.

Since his mind is regressing, as it were, to that of a child, does this mean that God will accept him "as a child", or is he doomed, because "he had his chance and blew it" ?

[sudikics]

It's best to not tell people whether or not they can reply on a forum which you joined hours ago.

If he led a life without God, but was still a good person, why shouldn't he go to heaven? And if he doesn't why would anyone want to go to a place where the only way to get in is to kiss some ungrateful asshole's ass for your entire life?

Now some questions for you: do you believe that the Scripture is the literal word of God, and 100% accurate? Also, why do you think that non-Christians are incapable of understanding your concern? I perfectly understand your question, and your concern. This is an emotional and spiritual dilemma for you.

Of course, it's easier to just think that no one goes anywhere after they die, but that's just me.

But how did your friend get Alzheimer's? Did some all-loving God decide that he needed to be punished for his life actions? Is it considered a blessing when a disease with no cure kills off your brain cells? What about treatments: when a doctor prescribes medicines which help with the symptoms of Alzheimer's, do you thank God, or do you thank the medical profession and the scientific method for developing the treatment?

/my two cents

[Al Farabi]

This is a serious question, and I would appreciate substantive answers, and if you do not believe in christianity, then you cannot understand my concern and should therefore, not reply.

The scriptures assure us that little children, before reaching the age of reason, are accepted into heaven without their having sought and received redemption.

I have a friend who is in the "onset" stage of alzheimers, and while not attempting to understand what is in his heart, he appears to have led a dissolute life, devoid of any belief in any God whatsoever, and to see his mind wander from what once very intelligent and perceptive thought patterns is disturbing.

Since his mind is regressing, as it were, to that of a child, does this mean that God will accept him "as a child", or is he doomed, because "he had his chance and blew it" ?

Well the rule on children is based on the idea that they have not had time to act yet, for good or bad, of their own free will. The age of reason implies that a person is in full control of their will, and therefore responsible for their actions. Therefore, he is certainly responsible for the actions he took during his life, and falling ill later would have no effect on that.

That said, Dante holds (and most churches hold with it) that, if he was virtuous, he will not (unfortunately) go to heaven proper, but will end up in the graden of eden...earthly paradise. So that's pretty sweet.

All that aside, this isn't really the place to ask technical theological questions. Everyone else is gonna hammer you, as you can see above me.

[tagnostic]

hehehe not everyone,

the question is do you believe your "God" is inherently benevolent?
if the answer is yes then why go through the farce of suffering through
a reality that he/it could prevent (by definition, omnipotence).
or is he malevolent, in which case why worship him,
or is he just an omnipotent beaureaucrat who just wants you to
dot the i's and cross the t's in which case you come to the question
of once saved always saved or can you fall from grace, return to above
3) possibilities, the bottom line is you have chosen a belief system but
are now questioning it's validity in practical application and are turning to
outside sources for validation of your belief system, the way you posed the
question is a clear indication that you don't want intelligent response, just
confirmation from like believers.
i don't think you will find that here...
jmho

[Sister Faith]

while not attempting to understand what is in his heart, he appears to have led a dissolute life, devoid of any belief in any God

How arrogantly fundamentalist of you. How can you make such assumptions when you admittedly haven't even asked him?

"While not even trying to understand what is in his heart" (your words), you just assumed he had no spiritual beliefs based on what appeared to you as a "dissolute life".

Perhaps he is one of those rare people who believe that their relationship with their god is theirs alone to conduct. Who does not feel the need to preach or to publicly proclaim his beliefs/non-beliefs, which in this day and age can be downright detrimental to one's physical well-being.

When you get around to actually talking to him about it, may I suggest you keep in mind that no matter what kind of life he has led, his soul is not yours to save or to judge. :icon_evil:

[Chritter]

his soul is not yours to save or to judge. :icon_evil:

Amen, Sister.