How does a fear of hell affect a person?
The fear of hell is a real, phycological condition called “hadephobia” (sometimes also called stygiophobia) that has almost paralyzed some people with many seeking therapy to assist their thinking about this subject. This fear falls under the RTS (religious trauma syndrome) and can perhaps even be considered spiritual abuse, depending on how it is used. This page seeks to provide resources to help anyone who may be struggling with this very real anxiety. It is my hope that Christianity does not scare people into the faith with the threat of hell, although many do appear to use hell as a weapon for proselytizing
Kristi Burke provides a tremendous introductory video on the fear of hell and provides excellent examples of what precisely the fear of hell is, where it comes from, and steps to overcome this often paralyzing fear. She is able to deliver this message with humility and a lack of judgment towards whatever you believe. Whether you are atheist, agnostic, or Christian, this video should be viewed with the understanding of what hell belief can do to a person’s pysche.
Articles about the fear of hell
Healing Hell Trauma
A good, long article that takes a serious look at what the fear of hell can do to a person and how to seek healing if you are struggling with this fear yourself. This is a blog written by Andrew Jasko, M.Div., MA in Counseling and Psychology so he does have some experience with this subject. You can click on the picture above or click HERE.
Fear of Hell Thearpy
This is an actual psychology counseling service. I am not necessarily recommending them (I know nothing about them) but they do have some good information on how the belief in hell could potentially affect a person. You can click on the picture above or clicked HERE.
Hadephobia-
Another psychology service that has some real good information regarding Hadephobia. It does list symptoms and treatments and has a lot of good information. You can click on the picture above of click HERE.
Hadephobia--What is it?
A Christian organization that knows and understands Hadephobia but promotes a belief in the traditional view of hell nonetheless. Their solution is to become a Christian which should alleviate any fear of eternal torment. They do, however, promote counseling if the person still has a fear of hell. You can click on the picture above or click HERE.
A Christian View of Hadephobia
Another Christian organization that understands the fear of hell but still promotes the traditional interpretation of it. Similar to the previous article, they postulate a conversion to Christianity to ease the fear of hell. This is a good article to see what the general conservative Christian thinks about the fear of hell. You can click the picture above or click HERE.
Hell Anxiety as Non-Pathological Fear
(Google Scholar Article)
“While religiosity decreases the fear of Hell directly, it is associated with a belief in Hell, which positively influences the fear of Hell.”
Terrific academic, peer-reviewed journal study about the fear of hell. The results are interesting due to high religiosity *not* being a reason for hell anxiety. However, the fear of hell is real nonetheless, despite the reasons why one has that fear. It can be found HERE or clicking the picture above.
Personal Blog Post
A personal blog post about a woman whose fear of hell led her back to her church. She gives a personal journey on how the terror caused her to seek her church out again. Written from a Catholic perspective, it is interesting to see how the fear of hell works for some people. You can click the picture above or you can click HERE.
Afterlives of the Afterlife (Google Scholar Article)
Terrific scholarly article from Mark Finney who gives a great history of the afterlife from both Jewish and Christian perspectives. Though not specifically about hadephobia, there is a great section at the end of the article about this fear: “At the very least, profound relection and debate on how and why the picture of the afterlife placed upon the lips of Jesus in the Gospels places him in tension with the Hebrew Bible is worthy of serious discussion.” Great read but you must log in with your Google account. It can be found HERE.
The Emotional Toll of Hell
Great article about how belief in the traditional view of hell affects one’s emotions. It also shows how a literal belief in hell lowers a person’s happiness and satisfaction in life. This is another peer-reviewed article but not on Google Scholar.
Videos About the Fear of Hell
Real Life Scenario of the Fear of Hell
I do not want to get into the habit of posting Tik Tok videos here, but this one was so important I could not NOT share it. it shows the real effects of what “hell belief” will do to not only an individual but their family as well. This is something that does not get talked about enough in Christianity. We need more discussions about situations such as this one.
How I Overcame the Fear of Hell
Interesting perspective from an atheist point of view and how the fear of hell can still affect people even after the reject Christianity. It demonstrates just how real the fear can be, even if one stops believing in its reality.
How to Get Over the Fear of Hell
From an atheist’s perspective, who used to be a Christian, he understands how people can fear hell and attempts to help those struggling with it to overcome the fear. Though, he can sometimes be slightly hostile towards Christianity, he nevertheless gives good advice.
Catholic Answers on Fear of Hell
Catholic Answers YouTube channel tackles this question and affirms that fear of hell is a “doctrinally sound position” to be in. They mention how Jesus uses the fear of hell for people to believe so it is ok to believe out of fear.
My Islamic Hell--Overcoming the fear of hell
One of the most important videos on the fear of hell. He is a former Muslim who speaks openly and freely about the fear of hell in Islam. Though a different religion, it is absolutely relevant to Christianity as well.
10 Ways to get over your fear of Hell
10 helpful and useful tips for overcoming the fear of hell. This guy is speaking from experience and speaks with meekness and humility. One of the most important videos on the fear of hell on YouTube.
