Bishop Thomas John Paprocki | Diocese of Springfield

If God is the creator of all things, did God create hell? This question was posed by Drew in Springfield and addresses two core teachings of Catholic dogma and anthropology. According to Father Peter Harman, pastor of St. Anthony of Padua in Effingham, "We do indeed profess that God is the Creator of all things. We also hold to the belief that God created mankind in His own image and with free will." He further explains that while God desires everyone to be saved, individuals have the freedom to accept or reject this salvation.

Father Harman emphasizes that participation in heaven requires acceptance of God's invitation. "None of us can earn or deserve heaven; we can only accept God’s mercy through Christ’s perfect offering of our nature on the cross," he states. He notes that judgment involves a reckoning with one's actions and sins, which may require forgiveness.

The Church teaches about hell as a place of separation from God for those who choose it by refusing to believe or repent. Father Harman clarifies, "The question is not properly 'who created hell' as much as an acknowledgment that just as on earth, things that are sinful and evil are not created by God... but rather are allowed by God as the result of our being free."

He also highlights the Catholic teaching on purgatory, describing it as a process necessary for purification before entering heaven. "Purgatory is not proper punishment or God extracting justice upon us to make up for our sins," he says. Instead, it is a time for letting go of imperfections.

Father Peter Harman holds a Doctorate in Moral Theology from the Catholic University of America.