Fidel Castro and Hell

When communist dictator Fidel Castro was asked in an interview if he believed in Heaven and Hell, he replied, “The conclusion I have is that Hell cannot exist. And Heaven would be a surprise for all of us.” It's amazing how much faith “unbelievers” have. “Hell cannot exist” is the strongest of beliefs. He didn’t say that he didn't think Hell existed, and neither did he say that he didn’t believe it exists. He said that it cannot exist, which sounds as though he had been to the afterlife and came back with the absolute conclusion that Hell is not there. That's faith.

Other than dying and coming back, there are only two ways he could come to that conclusion. Either he believes that there is no God (which is intellectual suicide), or the god he believes in has less of a sense of justice than humanity. Those who believe that way do so because of an ignorance of God’s righteousness. It is one of perfect holiness, where lust is considered to be adultery and hatred is seen as murder. Such thoughts change the equation. If God is that holy, then there definitely is a Hell, and we are all in big trouble.

If, in the last 30 years 300,000 people in the United States were never brought to justice for murder (as statistics say), then how can there not be a Hell? There must be divine justice for those who have taken another person’s life. In the light of man’s wickedness, Castro’s “Heaven would be a surprise for all of us” makes sense. We deserve Hell for our sins, so Heaven could only come by the mercy and grace of God.