What a great topic for discussion this is. Having been associated with conventional religion for 45 years of my life, I know how hell has been used as a control by religions. How do you keep people coming to church? How do you force them to "donate" more money? How do you make them feel guilty for their lifestyle choices? It's simple... they will go to hell if they sin. Guess who it is determines what sin is!

The application of erroneous and partial truth is digging the graves of conventional religion. Religion has had to evolve (change its sin list) in order to attempt to hold on to its dwindling memberships. Remember when it was a sin to eat meat on Friday? I am not going to go into all the changes that have taken place in this area, because that is not what I am writing about, but it is necessary to point out that such things happen because it points out the fallibility of religious doctrine and practice. That is exactly what I am saying here is what the churches have done to the doctrines of heaven and hell.

Spiritism/Spiritualism teaches us that, as prescribed by the doctrines of conventional religion, this is not the case. That is to say, there is no place where we sit around beneath the throne of a being of glory and sing praises eternally. There are no angels with wings who bring us grapes and see to our every need. Jesus will not be there to welcome us to the throne of the Father and St. Peter will not be at the gates of heaven checking our passports. Neither will there be a horned or tailed being with a pitchfork laughing as he puts us on the eternal spit and roasts us over the fires of an eternal hell. These concepts have mistakenly been portrayed simply for the purposes of controlling the ignorant masses of society.

What there is in reality is, compensation and retribution. This is one of the many laws of spirituality that are unchangable. What it means is, we will all receive as we have given. We will get what we deserve. The logic behind this is simple. The spirit world consists of multiple levels, or spheres as they are often referred to, where like minded individuals dwell. These levels can be compared to our schools. We do not put persons who are 5-6 years old in with teenagers. There is an order of progression for learning and advancing. These levels are described to us as starting out as very dark, where the basest of spirits with no concern for others, only self, exist. As they learn (progress in understanding) they are then elevated to a not so dark region or sphere. Many of these regions are "lower than the earth level" and are where the worthless of earth would go because of their action while here. There is a progression of gray areas until you advance into the areas where there is brighter and more colorful than earth. These areas are the places most people go to when they have finished their time on earth, providing they have been loving and sought to help others and not wallowed in self. I would guess that such persons as Hitler and his like minded group would share some of the basest and darkest regions of the spirit world. The difference here is not a vision of punishment, only a vision of going where one has put oneself. And, having the knowledge that even Hitler does not have to stay in his self imposed darkness throughout all of eternity. He will learn. He will realize his error. He will change. He will advance.

Spirit makes every effort to help every soul to become enlightened and to learn and to progress. Spirit is right now making every effort it can in the ways open to it to help each and everyone of us become more enlightened and progress. Progress is defined as putting a little bit more of self aside and giving service to others. That is not in big ways either, that is in any way the opportunity presents itself. Sometimes just a kind word or a thought when we have nothing else to give. It is NOT becoming immune to the needs of the hungry or the cold or the weak or the sick. I remember hearing the story of the man who went to India and was filled with compassion and the desire to help the poor and the needy who lined the streets, for the first month, then he became hardened to these everyday sufferers and soon was stepping over them as if they were cracks in the sidewalk. We get what we give. If we give out misery, we will dwell in misery until such time as we are able to have a change of heart and learn to dwell in love.

So, what I have stated here is simple. Man created Heaven and Hell, they as such, do not exist. Every man individually does create his place in the spirit world by his actions while here on earth. But, these stations are not permanent and every soul will have the opportunity to learn and to grow spiritually and each area of growth will be more lovely and rewarding than the last. Love and Peace to all.

Silver Birch has this to say about it.They are differences in growth, but they cannot be measured in any physical sense. If I say to you what is the difference in measurement between a fool and a wise man, or what is the difference between a miser and a saint, there is no answer, is there? But there is a tremendous difference in the growth of their spirits. In our life you occupy just that sphere to which you have grown, that is, the sphere with which you harmonise because your mental, moral and spiritual growth determine it. The difference is purely the differece of the people who live there. The hight you are spiritually, the better you are, the kinder yuou are, the more charitable you are, the more unselfish you are, the higher is the level on which you live in your world. But because you arel all on the same physical level, it does not mean that you are on the same mental level or on the same spiritual level. Your bodies are on the same level, but once the body, the physical bod, has gone, you live at the level of your spiritual growth." "The Seed of Truth" pgs 41-42