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July 27th, 2013
08:33 AM ET
Why millennials are leaving the church
(CNN) - At 32, I barely qualify as a millennial. I wrote my first essay with a pen and paper, but by the time I graduated from college, I owned a cell phone and used Google as a verb. I still remember the home phone numbers of my old high school friends, but don’t ask me to recite my husband’s without checking my contacts first. I own mix tapes that include selections from Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but I’ve never planned a trip without Travelocity. Despite having one foot in Generation X, I tend to identify most strongly with the attitudes and the ethos of the millennial generation, and because of this, I’m often asked to speak to my fellow evangelical leaders about why millennials are leaving the church. Armed with the latest surveys, along with personal testimonies from friends and readers, I explain how young adults perceive evangelical Christianity to be too political, too exclusive, old-fashioned, unconcerned with social justice and hostile to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. I point to research that shows young evangelicals often feel they have to choose between their intellectual integrity and their faith, between science and Christianity, between compassion and holiness. I talk about how the evangelical obsession with sex can make Christian living seem like little more than sticking to a list of rules, and how millennials long for faith communities in which they are safe asking tough questions and wrestling with doubt. Invariably, after I’ve finished my presentation and opened the floor to questions, a pastor raises his hand and says, “So what you’re saying is we need hipper worship bands. …” And I proceed to bang my head against the podium. Time and again, the assumption among Christian leaders, and evangelical leaders in particular, is that the key to drawing twenty-somethings back to church is simply to make a few style updates - edgier music, more casual services, a coffee shop in the fellowship hall, a pastor who wears skinny jeans, an updated Web site that includes online giving. But here’s the thing: Having been advertised to our whole lives, we millennials have highly sensitive BS meters, and we’re not easily impressed with consumerism or performances. In fact, I would argue that church-as-performance is just one more thing driving us away from the church, and evangelicalism in particular. Many of us, myself included, are finding ourselves increasingly drawn to high church traditions - Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, the Episcopal Church, etc. - precisely because the ancient forms of liturgy seem so unpretentious, so unconcerned with being “cool,” and we find that refreshingly authentic. What millennials really want from the church is not a change in style but a change in substance. We want an end to the culture wars. We want a truce between science and faith. We want to be known for what we stand for, not what we are against. We want to ask questions that don’t have predetermined answers. We want churches that emphasize an allegiance to the kingdom of God over an allegiance to a single political party or a single nation. We want our LGBT friends to feel truly welcome in our faith communities. We want to be challenged to live lives of holiness, not only when it comes to sex, but also when it comes to living simply, caring for the poor and oppressed, pursuing reconciliation, engaging in creation care and becoming peacemakers. You can’t hand us a latte and then go about business as usual and expect us to stick around. We’re not leaving the church because we don’t find the cool factor there; we’re leaving the church because we don’t find Jesus there. Like every generation before ours and every generation after, deep down, we long for Jesus. Now these trends are obviously true not only for millennials but also for many folks from other generations. Whenever I write about this topic, I hear from forty-somethings and grandmothers, Generation Xers and retirees, who send me messages in all caps that read “ME TOO!” So I don’t want to portray the divide as wider than it is. But I would encourage church leaders eager to win millennials back to sit down and really talk with them about what they’re looking for and what they would like to contribute to a faith community. Their answers might surprise you. Rachel Held Evans is the author of "Evolving in Monkey Town" and "A Year of Biblical Womanhood." She blogs at rachelheldevans.com. The views expressed in this column belong to Rachel Held Evans. soundoff (9,864 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Opinion by Rachel Held Evans, Special to CNN
Buck Rogers
Evolution is an assumption, not a fact. Fossils were created by the Flood as well as post-flood super-volcanic eruptions. Fact – earth is a geological wreck. In addition, mankind spread from Mesopotamia via Noah's offspring to re-populate Earth.
Christ not only believed in the Creation story, He compared His return, when He will raise the dead (i.e. reap the earth), to the Great Flood as well as the destruction os Sodom and Gomorrah. Heaven, Hell and judgment are real, but they are post-resurrection/future events.
Hopeless case here, best to leave him alone.
hey ill be your friend.
Entertainingly incorrect.
If you ever want to know the truth, it's out there, there's a million websites that will give you the real facts. In the meanwhile, that is so far off that it's only ever going to convince people who believe the same as you do and are as ignorant about evolution and nature and fossils as you are.
@SusanStoHelit,
Science is as real as a God is. And in fact there can be neither without the other. Allow me to say this is response to your web-site truths. Around 90% of what you read on the world wide web, is conjecture mix with b.s. And Wikipedia is right behind that.
Now, is it done on purpose to slant some argument, yes and no. Ignorance and fear however trump that.
Problem #1,000,000,000 something, is now we have those like the religious pharisees of both ancient and modern times trying to reinvent a God in their image or fit their agenda. The author of this article fits that scenario.
The majority of people born reach a level of understanding when it pertains to what is right and wrong. Naturally, it's hard wired so to speak. And science through evolution is the check and balance that calls into question certain beliefs and even ideology. And it doesn't question the existence of a God if you wonder what I'm talking about.
Harry Cline
"Science is as real as a God is. And in fact there can be neither without the other. "
First of all, science has reproduceable results and the existence of God doesn't.
Secondly, you have no idea what the word "fact" means. Opinion and wishful thinking is not the same as a "fact".
I don't wonder.
@Observer,
Science is no more fact then the existence of a God is. We create the test in the lab and attach numbers to it. Our hypothesis/theories are at best only an 'educated guess.
And by the way this God may in fact be named Harry or even thrid rock from the sun.
.....and yet Earth is literally peppered with super-volcanic craters, massive magma intrusions, lava flows etc. and not to mention that the vast majority of surface strata were indeed laid down via water. Ignorant? Nay, the truth revels massive, massive destruction and hence marine fossils in the Himalayas. Evolution is a sham.
Reblogged this on exploringhiskingdom and commented:
I think the insights are right on. The closer we stay to Jesus the better off we are. What do you think?
ay
I am getting to know Jesus Christ, not just know about Him. It is good.
I have great churches in my community. Being in a community is very helpful for me.
supernatural seal of the holy spirit that bears the truth of God's word on a person's heart.
Jesus Christ has a plan for the world who seek God most high. if this wasnt true with islaam,then the Angel of the Lord would not have blessed ishmael. idk about mohammud, but i doubt his commentators who wrote the Quran using the "we "form.
ok.............if you read isaiah, ezekiel and all the major and minor prophets, you will see that Israel was dispersed in captivity. The seed of Abraham and spiritual Israel, who God promises to redeem, are not in the British zone of Israel. Isreal and the brothers of Isaac, his nephews, the circu.mcized of the blessing, are a vast peoplpe throught the middle east.
I think people who are muslim are 66 steps ahead of atheists.
Jehovah is faithful to forgive.
I bet atheists are just bewildered when the ponder christianity and islaam
lol
You're right there. We're definitely bewildered by you religies.
Athy,
I suggested on an earlier page (maybe you missed it) that you should can that "religies" deal. It makes you sound like lol?? and his/her "socies"...
Is it too deep for you?
@ Hey there
leave Athy alone. don't tell em what to do!
Athy,
Do you think that lol?? sounds "deep" with his "socies" bit?
Just trying to help, but never mind...
Romans 5:8
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Why join one religion over another? Is it because one is better than another? This falls right into the pattern of being separate and apart from others, and feeling superior than another. All ego traits that likes division instead of unity. We are formed in the image of God, each an image of god in disguise and when one identifys with the concepts,beliefs of their religion they can easily become judgemental with what others may believe that are different. Again becoming unloving because they see themselves as separte. Jesus said "Father may they be one, as we are one" Oneness is the space for Love. Religion can be a wall, or an open door to spirituality. You can tell if it is an open door if you know who you are, and treat each other as if that other person were you.
'A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.' – C.S. Lewis
There's no logical reason to think that if some sort of god exists it is necessarily interested in us. I mean, you can stroke your ego with pride to assume that any god who does exist would somehow automatically be very invested in your life, but that's just presumptuous with no reason. Given the scale of our universe, it seems likely that god wouldn't be interested in humans at all, and his design would be so far beyond our imagining, so why care about humans?
I've noticed that at the root of Christianity and Christian arguments there is always pride.
“The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator. Science brings men nearer to God.”
–Louis Pasteur, the founder of microbiology and immunology.
Cpt Obvious, we are created in God's image. and the point of the bible is you need to stop looking at other people
God loves YOU capt obvious. and that is why He walked throught the pit with Abraham. becuase He is absolutely going to intervene in your life with abundant love!
The fault in your argument is your assumption that believing someone cares about you equals pride. Joy and peace should be the primary characteristics of a Christian, but few of us have that much faith. We're all works in progress.
"Given the scale of our universe, it seems likely that god wouldn't be interested in humans at all, and his design would be so far beyond our imagining, so why care about humans? "
Atoms and sub-atomic particles are much smaller than humans, so why would God be interested in, or care about them. Suppose, since they are so tiny in perspective of the universe, we removed all sub-atomic particles from the universe. What would the universe look like?
"his design would be so far beyond our imagining..."
How do you imagine God? Do you box God into the limits of your imagination? Is God so large, and we so small that you can't imagine a relationship between us, like trying to imagine us having a relationship with pet germs?
Suppose God can transcend time and space. Could spend a year of his life riding an electron around one orbit of the nucleus of an atom. Or, he could he create things and place them where he wants them in a fraction of a second? Could he create laws that keep things in order, such as the scientific laws of relativity and thurmal dynamics? Could he be big enough to create this huge universe, and, at the same time, but small enough to stand beside us and have a relationship with us?
So, how big is God? What is the alternative if he doesn't exist?
For me, the choice is between the God of the Bible, the gods of other religions and evolutionism. I rule out evolution because in order for it to get where it supposedly is, one must believe that we are the existance of beating the trillions-to-one odds, billions of times and in violation of most, if not all, proven scientific laws. (I'm not trying to insult your intelligence, we may just have to agree to disagree here. That's what this thread is all about.)
The gods of other religions try to make man live up to gods standard. We have to prove to them that we are worthy to be accepted. Not many, if any, man can live up to these gods standards without taking from others to do so. (Talk about being proud and superior to one another...)
The God of the Bible is different. He tells and show us that we cannot live up to his standard. There is nothing we can do to earn his love or the right to go to heaven. He is honest with us and tells us we have failed his test to be accepted into his kingdom. He is righteous and just and cannot fellowship with unrighteousness. So, we must do the impossible and become righteous, or we will be forever outcast from him.
He knows we can't become righteous. So, he limited himself, while being fully God and fully man, he lived among us and suffered in every way we suffer. He saw the most hated and dispised sinners and said "I love you." He, the righteous and just God who cannot have unrighteousness in his presence, became our unrighteousness for us. He felt the betrayal of Judas, whom HE LOVED and yet still loved him. His father turned his back on him, I believe from the moment Judas kissed him, the same moment I believe he became our sin for us. And God the Father did not look again on Jesus until it was finished.
Now, Jesus, who defeated death, can pardon any of us who accept the gift of His righteousness so we can spend eternity in the presence of a pure, righteous and just God.
Even after accepting God's gift, I cannot live up to his standards. I have failed many times, but the same gift still applies. Jesus' blood covers those sins too.
I am no better than you in any way. In what can I have pride?
"I am such a spectacular Christian, and live so perfectly that God had to come down and clean up this big mess I made!"
Would you get "Employee of the Year" if your boss had to keep cleaning up your mistakes?
God made the move, God cleaned up my unrighteousness, and at great cost. I could not possibly live up to his standards.
Do I judge you by your lifestyle, or because you don't believe? NO! While they were still beating him, while he was hanging on the most cruel form of torture the Romans could muster up, Jesus loved the people who sent him to the cross. He loved the soldiers who beat him to within a single whip stroke of his life. He loved those who stood around and mocked him. He loved, and still loves the most ruthless, most vile, most insensative, thieves, murderers, rapists, people who live today. He even loves those who falsly teach and push others around in His name.
If they will accept His gift, believe in Him, then, they, even those who murder and molest babies, will be cleansed from their sins and can live together with Him for eternity.
You may think you haven't done anything worth dying for, and in man's eyse you are probably right. But the truth is, we have all sinned and it only takes "little white" sin to clothe us in unrighteousness. But even your sin is minimal, the fine is greater than you can pay yourself. It has been paid, if you want to receive the receipt. Just ask Jesus for it.
You may choose not to. You may choose to bash everything I said here and try to discredit me or contradict what the Bible teaches.
And, that's ok with me. Jesus still loves you and His offer is still open as long as you have breath! And, if you are to die, not accepting His gift, it will be a sad day in Heaven. Not a day of rejoicing. Heaven rejoices over a person becoming a believer, not over a sinner dying. I'm not here to judge you whether you believe or not or what lifestyle you are living.
I am here to say, Jesus loves you anyway and he offers you a free pardon, if only you will accept it. Not only for you, but for anyone reading this reply.
Wow. Deep, man. Too deep for me.
The person who wrote the blog wants to be all things to all people at all times. When you do this you wind up being nothing to anyone at anytime. Christianity is exclusive. Jesus said "I am the Way, the Truth, an the Life. No man comes to the Father except through Me."
Jesus most likely never said that. Can you prove he did without using the babble?
athy you silly head. are you causing a ruckus?
You can find that quote in John 14:6 although I don't think it proves that Christianity is exclusive
Better response would be, if Christ said that, are you sure what he meant by it? There are many possible interpretations; the evangelical one is not exclusive. Another might be, "What I'm saying to you about loving your brother, forgiving and accepting one another, working on correcting your own faults before telling others how bad they are, respecting those who respect you, not being manipulative or cruel, show mercy and forgiveness, and the like – if you want to come closer to God, practice those things first rather than trying to impose your will on others."
What qualifies you to speak on the author's motives? Arrogance?
i think i have head that word exclusive before though.
wow. does it make sense?
Drunk again?? Put the bottle down, step away from the computer, crawl to bed like a good drunkard.
We no longer need the church to bully us, we now have corporations to bully us.
Religion is both false and immoral.
And so is evolution. Jesus didn't promote religion either.
Evolution is fact and amoral.
I have a spiritual gift that is supernatural.
Evolution is an assumption, not a fact. Fossils were created by the Flood as well as post-flood super-volcanic eruptions. Fact – earth is a geological wreck. In addition, mankind spread from Mesopotamia via Noah's offspring to re-populate Earth.
Christ not only believed in the Creation story, He compared His return, when He will raise the dead (i.e. reap the earth), to the Great Flood as well as the destruction os Sodom and Gomorrah. Heaven, Hell and judgment are real, but they are post-resurrection/future events.
buck what you just said is rediculously relevant and insightful. wowsers!
Austin- I am happy that you fulfilled. But it is a bit sad that you need a supernatural belief to attain it.
just forgive the human element and get over yourself.
every one who seeks God should want to be part of that community in their own neighborhood. people try. people keep going.
Spoken like a true devil and not a shred of evidence to back it up...
If anyone here is sick and tired of all the silliness and nonsense in religion today and want a real church, I invite you to check out mormon.org where you can talk (not to a paid professional), but to ordinary members who volunteer their time for free because they just believe in serving and want to answer your questions. In fact, none of the clergy in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are paid. We just love you and Jesus Christ and want your life to be better! Catch the wave! Join us!
.
Sorry Jonah old boy,
The LDS are soon (even now) going to experience your own post modern treatment of baloney.
Your history is about to see the bright light of day and the devious founders of your false religion are about to be exposed and it will come from within your own organization.
The sad thing is that statistically 50% of LDS when they lose faith, lose it altogether and refuse any further consideration of God or Jesus at all.
I pray you will not become one of the abandoned 50%.
James 4:4 ►
You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
1 John 2:15 ►
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.
Amen, Austin. You hit the nail on the head. Keep the faith...
Before I sign off, I'll leave you guys with two quotes which best describe the entire situation:
"I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." – Ghandi
"You can safely assume you've created God out of your own image when it turns out He hates all the same people you do." – Anne Lamont
“The first gulp from the glass of natural sciences will turn you into an atheist, but at the bottom of the glass God is waiting for you.”
–Werner Heisenberg
Not proved.
And if you sign off by quoting something that's of the devil, then what does that make you?...
And you believe that a supernatural being, "The Devil", is responsible for anything and everything you fear. So much for free will or personal responsibility.
JustTheFacts
"And if you sign off by quoting something that's of the devil, then what does that make you?..."
Are you really saying that Ghandi came from the devil? Are you really that incredibly IGNORANT?
We can't sit down and "really talk with you" unless you show up.
Hi Lois! I'm a millennial and I'd love to sit down with a church and "really talk." Sometimes it can be hard to "church shop," though– many of us are graduating college now and moving to new cities to start out on our own. Although it's nothing new, it can be embarrassing and lonely to start going to church on your own (many of us are far from family and without friends that share our faith). It can also be very overwhelming– how to pick? Where to go? There's lots churches can do to let us know you're out there and that you have a safe and welcoming community to join.
Does your church go out of its way to seek and cultivate a young congregation? Do you actively make contact with your local universities (such as at back to school fairs or community events)? The church I went to during college had a booth at the back to school fair and gave out magnets with the church info and cookies. I was reluctant to go at first but found that magnet at a time I really needed it and had a safe place to go– I attended that church until I graduated and had to move four years later. When you see younger people enter your church for the first time, do you go out of your way to introduce yourself and ask them to sit with you? Or do you smile when they raise their hand for visitors to be announced but forget about them halfway through the sermon? Just something to think about.
We can't sit down "and really talk with you" unless you show up>
It is far easier to wear a cross than to carry one.
To quote Him than to follow Him.
To deny our sins than deny ourselves.
To know about Him than to know Him.
It's even easier to do neither.
So true.... Not to mention that the time is coming when Christians (or true Christ followers) will be killed "for the word of God and for our testimony" (testimony in Christ that is). Before this happens, there will be a "great falling away" from the faith because false science (evolution) along with false doctrines (esp dualism) will fall, thus leaving the truth – Christ and His coming Kingdom which is "not of this world". Nor is He returning to "Sodom and Egypt" or old Jerusalem. Earth will be physically dissolved before He "creates all things new". And then the second resurrection.......
Buck, you're a great promoter of atheism. Keep up the good work. Love it!
So simply proving evolution as fact would destroy your entire god-belief structure? lol. Don't get a job working with genetics or biological processes.
“There are good reasons to believe in God, including the existence of mathematical principles and order in creation. They are positive reasons, based on knowledge, rather than default assumptions based on a temporary lack of knowledge.”
–Geneticist Francis Collins
“Little science takes you away from God but more of it takes you to Him.”
–Louis Pasteur, the founder of microbiology and immunology.
My favorite evolutionary diagrams are the comical monkey-to-man ones.... Which cartoon diagram is your favorite?
My generation is leaving the church because many of us accept reality. In the words of the ever so awesome Stephen Hawking: "I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark."
stephen hawking quotable? funny
People in general are leaving the church because of how ridiculous it all seems. They may identify themselves as a certain faith, but a reasonable amount of logical thought will lead to the same conclusion: no religion is correct and there is no way to prove anything. People aren't so easily manipulated by fear of hell, terrorism however.... At any rate, people are just thinking it through on the whole and requiring evidence for a belief. A very smart step forward.
That is their problem – they're doing too much "thinking" and not enough listening. Until you are saved, you don't have any truth, Lucifer has full control of your thoughts and he's playing you like a harp. Truth cometh only from the preacher...
Christians and members of other false religions. You are worshiping the wrong God. When you die, you will face the "Feather of Ma'at"..If you have lived your life to her conformations, you will be rewarded in the afterlife. If you do not, you will be condemned for all eternity. Now that you know the truth, you have been properly warned.
Live your life to the conformation of Goddess Maat.
Just as well. So called 'religion' in this country has been co-opted into a toxic brew of politics, propaganda, and money raising. It divides people, more than it brings people together. Time to dump it. Young people today see right through it.
@scallywag,
Religion has been the greatest curse to have ever afflicted mankind. Just don't ever make the mistake and try to equate a God with a religion. Now grant it that is how most of us heard about a God. But after the age of accountability reason and logic take over.
Now that doesn't mean there was not divine intervention through man with guidelines, but just like everything else in the world that mankind has touch, God got pimp for various agenda. and for lack of better terminology got lost in translation.
The god hypothesis is an interesting one, but facts about his nature and will do not emerge from a diligent study of the natural world. Chemistry, yes. Maths, yes. Biology, yes, but no god.
I agree totally with many things mentioned in this article. For me as a 40+ with kids I simply cannot check my brain at the door of the church. Additionally more and more I see pastors mixing religion with politics which is something I am not seeking. Considering evidence and observation are the ways in which we learn things to be true in the real world, I find it ironical that for the ultimate truth we are to ask no questions, observe no evidence and make only an emotional connection. In the DFW area of Texas most churches are now competing like businesses and simply scale into mega churches with a hip presentation.
Read a survey the other day that said 76% of Americans called themselves Christians.
Another question? How important is your religion in your life? The answer? 9 % This has changed in the last 10 to 20 years.
@hubert39,
I've seen similar reports. And even the author of this article misses what those in the reports miss, and that is, stop mixing religion and theology with a God.
Religion and theology where created by mankind, it is not of God ! Once again we did not need religion to question our existence here, we would have evolved as we have to wonder if we where the by-product of puff the magic out of salamander or by 'intelligent design'.
Nature is pretty intelligent. We were created by nature. So, I have no problem with the term "intelligent design"..Too bad like most things in Christianity, such as holidays and pedophilia, Christians think its their own.
>Religion and theology where created by mankind, it is not of God!
If you think that a rabbi who was killed 2,000 years ago is actually God, you're well down the religious and theology path. Heck, even calling the supreme force "God" puts you well into the theology of theism instead of pantheism or panetheism.
This whole "reject religion, accept Jesus" meme is simply another religious dogma. And it's a particularly insiduous and dangerous dogma because it insists that it ISN'T dogma! It's meant to deceive from the outset.
I know this sounds crazy, but you know what would make millennials happy? Stop with the b-s like this. Admit you're a religion, and try to be one of those religions that plays well with others! This means not forcing your piety on others, including fellow believers. it means accepting a wide variety of faith traditions with respect. Including Hindus and Muslims; (I'll give you a hint, if you think they're all going to hell because they don't belong to your religion then you've already lost.) That would be a half-way decent start.
The most passionate love story in the Bible is between two men.
Just sayin...
Is that why the pages of your bible are stuck together?
Going to deny David and Jonathan's great love and passion for each other?
There are so many aspects to that story which blow the passion level out of the water. From when they're weeping and kissing each other professing how their love for each other is greater that of any woman to where David disrobes, get fully nude and give Jonathan his clothes as a sign of devotion.
Yup. And yet the Christians want to condemn gay people?
It's definitely the most hot and heavy love story in the Bible.
"Your love is greater than that of any woman" as they held each other, wept and kissed.
The story is between King David and Jonathan. It is one of the best stories in the Tanakh.
And yet today, right wing Christians would being telling God's most beloved he was going to burn forever.