But hell is, at least for the most part, a Christian invention. The early Christian literature described hell in detail, particularly the Apocalypse of Peter (AP).
The AP was probably written in the first half of the second century and was considered to be scripture by Clement of Alexandria. It consists mostly of visions of heaven and hell, with hell described every bit as vividly as it is in the Quran. (In fact, the Quran's hell may be derived from the traditions stemming from the AP.)
Here's what it's like in hell according to the AP.
- Blasphemers are hung by the tongue over a lake of fire.
- Women who adorned themselves for adultery were hung by their hair over a bubbling mire, with the men who sinned with them hung by their feet with their heads in the mire.
- Women who had abortions were immersed in a lake of gore and forced to watch their aborted children cry.
- Homosexuals, male and female, were thrown off a cliff and forced to climb back up, repeatedly forever.
So I really don't know which is worse, the Muslim or the Christian hell. But here is a famous painting by Hieronymus Bosch to help you decide.
