Reply #106: You hit on a point...

[Danger Mouse]

I discussed in the 'Message to Atheists' threads...did you join that party by any chance? =)
Faith isn't an active 'choice.'
You don't say 'I choose to hate God.' Or 'I choose to follow Jesus.' or 'I choose to be atheist.'
You just ARE what you ARE. That's not to say that what you are can't change, cause people change all the time.
Like...if I suddenly stop liking ice cream, it's not because I choose to not like ice cream. It's because ice cream no longer appeals to me. I WAS an ice cream lover, but no longer.
But if one day, I pick up an ice cream cone, and it tastes good again, why, I like ice cream again now!
Faith isn't too different. Children who grow up into fundies aren't given a CHOICE...if they rebel against scripture, they face being ostracized by the community. Children who question are quickly silenced. They are not given the CHANCE to develop alternative views, because are forcibly pushed upon them the minute they exit the womb.
And as life goes on, it gets harder to shake them.
Saying that we go to Hell for not believing in Jesus implies that people make a conscious choice to 'reject' God. I'm sure that some do, but for many others, whether they have faith or not, it's simply not like that.
It's because that is the way they are.
How would you answer a Muslim who told you that you were going to Hell because you're a Christian and not a Muslim?
What makes you right, and not him?