The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-10-10
NEW YORK LAWYER TALKSA ABOUT HELL Is the State of Death in the
 Tomb DEFINES HIS BELIEF Address Delivered in Washington Under Auspices of International
 Bible Students Asso-
 citation
DEFINES HIS BELIEF

Washington, October 9.-(Special.) )- Hell Is a myth" according to J. F. Rutherford, a prominent lawyer of New this city Sunday night.
 "The millions of people who have died
 in the past have gone to he'll" he declared
 in his famous lecture on Where Are the Dead"
 This hell, however. to which Mir. Ruth erford kindly consigns those who have
 passed from earthly existence since the beginning of time. is not the old fash toned hell of which we have always been taught-the hell of birthstone and fire,
 but 1t Is the state of death In the tomb.
 Answering his own question, Where are the dead,' the speaker declared that they are dead. in a state of unconscious ness awaiting the call of God in the resur- rection.
 Referring to the characters of the Bible,
 that good old man Jacob," Job, David and Solomon of the Old Testament and St. Mark, St. Peter and St. Paul of the new one the lecturer endeavored to dis prove the teachings of both the Catholic
  hell and the immortality of the soul is concerned.
 ."rhe Catholic creed sets forth" said
 Mir. Rutherford, that the good at death
 go to heaven; those not so good go to pur-
 gatory, while the evil descend into a hell of fire and birthstone. Dante has pictured to us a purgatory where some men are rolling money bags up an incline, only to
 have them roll back upon them. Others are pictured as enveloped in flames. If
 these pictures be true, they leave an aw- ful impress upon the minds of children;
 if false. they are wrongful portrayals of
 Gods work
 'Protestants, on the other hand, teach
 of heaven for the good and a hell of conscious torture for the bad. The Psalms teach that man was created little lower
 than the angels.
 These angels are spirit beings; Satan is spirit being, but the Bible declares that he shall be destroyed. ISwould like to know, then, who is going to keep up these birthstone fires in our hell of con | scious torture.
 Says Hell Means Tomb Jacob, Job. David and Solomon" MT. Rutherford continued, fused the Greek and Hebrew words which have been translated into the English language as
 hell, but pointed to their uses to prove that the terms used signiied the state of death in the tomb, and not a place of torture.
 Death Is but sleep, from which God will waken all on the day of resurrec-
 tion," said the speaker. Scientists tell
 us that the body changes once in seven
 years. Men in age or disease become
 bent, and when life passes leave these.
 bodies. Some contend that on the day of resurrection the souls will be commanded to take up their former bodies. Which of the several bodies will ali individual take? Will man who has dwelt In heaven be forced to cramp his soul into the bent
 form which he left at death? No; I say
 that God created bodies out of the dust. He will again form new bodies for all at resurrection"
 Sees End of Evil with the resurrection is to come the establishment of an earthly kingdom not | ruled by Tafts, Roosevelts, or Wilson's" MT. Rutherford told the audience which gathered to hear him lecture in the even- ing at the old Masonic temple, on Tn the resurrection where will you be but by Abraham. Jacob. David. and the prophets?'' These men, he declared, could not enter heaven, because they died before Jesus gave His life to pur- chase the inheritance which Adam for | feited for the human race by disobeyiug | God. Those who since Christ's death have l lived lives of righteousness will enter heaven, while others. through a gradual ! resurrection, will be restored to their in heritance. Evil, however. will be for ever destroyed" the speaker announced. The resurrection, he declared, even if
 the dead are called from the tomb at the rate of 10000 day, will take TOO years | The impression. MT. Rutherford said. | that Christ made promise to the thief | on the cross that he should pass that day | into heaven was due to improper pune tuation of the Biblical text. The comma. he said, should not have been placed after | thee, since Christ meant that he made the | promise on that day to the effect that when He entered into His kingdom the thief should be with Him, and Christ will
 not enter His kingdom until the resurrec- | ton.
 | The meetings were under the auspices | of the local branch of the International | crt,.