Heaven, Hell, and Making All Things New with Ravel Podcast

Reclaiming the Garden

In this episode, we take on a topic so big (heaven, hell, the final destiny of creation), we had to bring in the perspectives of our friends from Ravel Podcast–Emily Rettinghouse, Josh Lieuallen, and Stephen Henning. We break down what we were taught about the afterlife (kind of having amnesia in heaven about your friends and family who were in hell? And heaven being a neverending church service? Yikes!) in our respective faith backgrounds. We then discuss how our views have changed over time, our questions and doubts about why a loving God would punish people forever and about whether there even is an afterlife. All of us land in different places in what we believe now and how that affects how we live (Emily is clergy and she is very refreshing in how openness that she isn’t sure if heaven or hell exist), but all of us are connected to the idea of new creation, not just in some distant future–Jesus’ teachings about the Kingdom of Heaven invite us into the restoration of ourselves, our communities, and the earth, right here and now (and that unfortunately, some people choose to create hell on earth instead). And for some of us, that hope of new creation goes beyond death and into a vision where one day, all life on this earth will be restored, and instead of an endless worship service, maybe heaven is an adventure where we imagine and create with God and each other.

You can follow Ravel Podcast on Instagram and Twitter @ravelpod, and make sure to give their episodes a listen wherever you’re listening to ours! You can follow the individual folks here: @stephenghenning on Insta and Twitter, @joshlieuallen on Twitter, and @RevRettinghouse on Twitter.

We have merch! Get your Bible Dyke Energy Tee or mug here: https://reclaiming-the-garden.creator-spring.com/

Our social media: @reclaimingthegarden on Insta, @RtGardenPodcast on Twitter, and Reclaiming the Garden on Facebook. Our personal accounts: @thatpunchabletheaternerd, @April_TheWriter (April is on Twitter and Insta). Also, our podcast account follows a bunch of awesome folks + podcasts in the exvangelical/deconstruction world and progressive Christian world, so if you’re looking for more resources, that’s a great place to start!