Bradley Jersak, Her Gates Will Never Be Shut

Bradley Jersak, Her Gates Will Never Be Shut: Hope, Hell, and the New Jerusalem (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock, 2009), 220 pages.

If you’ll pardon a somewhat tacky pun, the subject of Hell has been hot lately. First, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived by Rob Bell (March 2011) stirred up a national controversy, especially within Evangelicalism, by suggesting the possibility of universalism. Immediately came responses to Bell such as Mark Galli in God Wins: Heaven, Hell, and Why the Good News is Better than Love Wins (July 19, 2011). Even more quickly was Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle’s Erasing Hell: What God said about eternity and the things we made up (July 5, 2011). The writers of both of these books, as well as a host of blogs and other books, mention Rob Bell repeatedly (and sometimes heatedly). Jersak doesn’t mention him at all. Mainly, this absence is probably because Jersak was writing Her Gates before this frenzied fanfare got underway.¹ Accordingly, readers should remember the current context is not the pretext for Jersak’s work. But it could’ve been; it’s that similar in its concerns. Only Jersak would be closer to Bell than to Galli or Chan and Sprinkle. However, Rob Bell doesn’t reference Bradley Jersak either, even though he wrote afterwards; but, Bell’s book is more conversational, less scholarly and so isn’t cluttered up with a lot of explanatory footnotes or supporting references. So it’s best to interpret Jersak, an author and seminar speaker based in Abbotsford, British Columbia, on his own terms. Yet Jersak also identifies himself as an Evangelical, so the context is not unconnected. And this work is quite recent as well.

Anyone interested in studying about the fate of human beings from a Christian perspective will probably benefit from this book. It’s written in accessible language with a conversational and quite personal style, but Jersak also supplies careful documentation without sidetracking the reader too much with secondary issues. A few well-placed charts are helpful too. Her Gates is probably a rare offering in that moves along at a pace where both scholars and non-scholars may follow and keep up without either feeling shortchanged or overwhelmed. In other words, Her Gates may be described as deep but not dense. It’s probably perfect for most clergy and students. Pentecostals and Charismatics will likely appreciate Jersak’s creative use of dreams and visions as part of a meditative and reflective process that enhances the intellectual and literary aspects of such a study. I especially enjoyed the non-critical and (again, pardon the pun) non-judgmental tone that Jersak maintained toward those of differing views throughout the work. He really does seem to understand that equally good Christians may have profound differences on this topic. However, that is not to say that he doesn’t have his own very strong opinion as well.

Her Gates is laid out in three slightly unequal parts. Part 1 theoretically looks at the biblical possibility of ultimate judgment. I say “theoretically” because although Jersak does a well enough job explaining differing views, usually with tact and diplomacy, he cannot resist debunking the opposition and defending his own view as he goes along. So this is not a neutral, unbiased, impartial work at all. From the beginning, Jersak is out to persuade us that what he prefers to call “ultimate redemption” (rather than universalism) is a real possibility. And Part 2 takes that task up a little more directly by surveying (and defending) this position. Part 3 is an extended study of Revelation 21 and 22, which for Jersak really points to an open-ended (literally, thus the title, Her Gates Will Never Be Shut) possibility of all being eventually redeemed. The book closes with an Afterword by Nik Ansell on “Hell: The Nemesis of Hope” that basically presents the same position as Jersak.

For me, Jersak’s biblical exposition is both strength and weakness in Her Gates. He really tries to make his case biblically, and he often offers fresh and suggestive insights that are well worth the reading. In spite of his no doubt earnest and honest efforts otherwise, some may suspect that his theological biases all-too-clearly affect his hermeneutic and distort his conclusions. Of course, we’re all prone to that problem. However, in my opinion Jersak sometimes goes beyond acceptable limits to make Scripture agree with his own theological presuppositions regarding ultimate redemption.

A major example would be Jersak’s treatment of Revelation 21:25. This is a serious issue since this text is central to his main thesis (and title). Jersak surveys the Book of Revelation and especially the last two chapters, tentatively concluding that the open gates of 21:25 implies no one will ever be shut out of the New Jerusalem; that is, no one will be finally excluded from eternal salvation in the presence of the Lord. Yet Pentecostal exegetes such as Timothy P. Jenney point out that the context of Revelation 21:25 primarily express the purity of the population of the Holy City (see Full Life Bible Commentary to the New Testament, edited by French L. Arrington and Roger Stronstad). Accordingly, the idea of exclusion of impurity is explicit. In sum, the gates are always open but impure people still can’t pass through them. That doesn’t seem to bode well for universalism (or “ultimate redemption”).

Actually, Jersak identifies three perspectives on this topic. First, are those he calls the infernalists, that believe in some kind of permanent judgment (aka, everlasting torment in Hell); then, the universalists (proper), who believe in no ultimate judgment for anyone (aka, no Hell at all); and then, those who believe in ultimate redemption. This last group admits the possibility of ultimate judgment (Hell) but suggests it may not be permanent (aka, Hell as Purgatory—although carefully nuanced as corrective or therapeutic, not punitive or retributive). Thus, for Jersak, there would be at least a hopeful possibility that all may eventually be saved. With these defining differences in mind, universalism and so-called ultimate redemption are essentially alike in denying final damnation.

Notably, Pentecostal theologians have traditionally rejected universalism (e.g., Foundations of Pentecostal Theology, Guy P. Duffield and N.M. Van Cleave). Nevertheless, historian Grant Wacker suggests some early and important Pentecostals “may have privately embraced universalist views of some sort” (Heaven Below: Early Pentecostals and American Culture). Yet he also says that for most “Holy Spirit-filled saints” committed to “the evangelization of the lost…the damnation of the recalcitrant never moved very far from the center of their attention”. Many Pentecostals and Charismatics will perhaps be familiar with Carlton Pearson’s controversial teaching on “universal reconciliation,” “universal redemption,” or “universal salvation” (see his The Gospel of Inclusion: Beyond Religious Fundamentalism to True Love of God and Self). At the very least, the burden of proof would seem to rest with those wishing to convince Pentecostals of the validity of universalism as a viable option. Undoubtedly, the majority of Pentecostals will not accept the doctrine of universalism. That being said, Bradley Jersak’s Her Gates Will Never Be Shut will probably not resonate well with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians as a whole. At best, it might be profitable reading for those interested in an intelligent and irenic presentation of the ultimate redemption position for purposes of understanding and discussion.

In closing, I applaud Jersak for sensitively working through the controversial but timely topic of universalism/ultimate redemption—even if, at least in my opinion, it is not finally convincing. Of course, readers will decide for themselves regarding its persuasive merits or lack thereof. Everlasting punishment may be a difficult doctrine but it is also very important. I’m reminded of the words of C. S. Lewis on Hell. Lewis was an ardent admirer of the writings of George MacDonald, a kind of evangelical universalist (like Bradley Jersak, who references him). Lewis himself even admitted that, if possible, he would quite gladly remove the doctrine of Hell from Christianity. He confessed that he could not so, however, because of its “full support in Scripture”, particularly on the lips of our Lord, and the “support of reason”, particularly regarding human freewill (The Problem of Pain). Accordingly, we may be sensitive to the motives of those who wrestle with the morbid reality of everlasting punishment, but still we must ever endeavor to be fully faithful to the biblical witness. Perhaps some Pentecostal preachers might take the liberty to declare that instead of trying to get rid of Hell we would be better served to warn people to avoid it (Matt 23:33). If so, then such warnings should be delivered in firm, loving tones (Eph 4:15).

Reviewed by Tony Richie

Notes

¹ Readers will notice that Jersak prefers the technically accurate but somewhat odd feminine gender to the more usual neuter translation of the third person genitive of the pronoun auteés.