Wishing Celebrities Into Heaven

[John81]

Why is it that virtually every time a popular celebrity dies Christians of all stripes, along with many lost folks, come up with 101 reasons why they think the celebrity is in heaven? All the talk of how "good" the celebrity was, or how tragic their life was so they more or less "deserve" heaven, or that God "needs" them in heaven.

 

Then there is always the idea put forth that at the last moment of their life they got right with God. So many celebrities have a lifetime history of rejecting God, or toying with God, or of playing with various false religions, yet so many wish so hard that the celebrity suddenly had a clear, often special revelation, of Jesus and was saved before their last breath.

 

It's rather common to hear people declare that God might/prOBably/could have reached out to them in a special way so that inside their heads they got right with God at the last minute.

 

Of course there are also those who come out of the woodwork declaring the celebrity to have secretly or quietly "found Jesus" at some point in their lives. Somehow that's supposed to end all speculation and we are all to declare "they are in heaven now!". What about the lack of evidence of salvation from the point they supposedly "found Jesus" up to the time of their death?

 

Still, this wishful thinking is used even for those who die in sudden accidents, by their own over-indulgence with drugs/alcohol, or suicide. "Surely before that totally unexpected, instant death crash God must have especially reached into their minds so they were saved!" "Before they died of that overdose God surely touched their heart so they are in heaven now." "Right before murdering themselves God spoke directly to them so they got right with Jesus before going ahead with killing themselves."

 

Never mind so many of these celebrities have years worth of history with them mocking God, mocking Christianity, rejecting the Bible, embracing false religions, and a life noted for worldly living. With enough wishful thinking it seems many Christians and even lost folks think they can be sure virtually all celebrities go to heaven.

[ThePilgrim]

It is a well known fact to all Western man (at least those who are not athiest) believe that the good go to heaven when they die, therefore since nearly all believe themselves to be good they are going to heaven.

As far as people believing that celebrities automatically go to heaven that is easy to explain.  Celebrities lives really exist only in movies, TV, and tabloids and for the most part they are protrayed as good.  Therefore heaven could be the only outcome.  And besides if we have noticed any bad side to a celebrity we can't afford to be judgemental . . . . after all we do not wish to be judged ourselves, now do we?

[John81]

Reading through the comment section after some stories along these lines and it's amazing how many professing Christians get very hot and rough in their postings as they attempt to declare without a doubt Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jackson, ROBin Williams and several other dead celebrities are for certain in heaven.

[Miss Daisy]

not to mention martyred.

[John81]

Yes, not only do they wish these celebrities into heaven, but they make martyrs out of them, often building them up to the point of demi-gods.

 

While Pat ROBertson has a lot of prOBlems (more as the years go by) I do recall something he said many years ago that was right to the point. The subject of Elvis had come up and Pat commented on the fact Elvis had said many times he always wished he could have sang more Gospel music and that he really enjoyed singing Gospel. As Pat said, loving Gospel music is fine, wanting to sing more is fine, but neither of those gets one into heaven. If Elvis really felt a desire towards Gospel music, that could have been the Holy Ghost working in him but Elvis chose to ignore that drawing and continue to focus upon rock music and that sort of lifestyle.

 

Pat went even further and said with the evidence at hand from Elvis's own words and the life he lived, he didn't believe Elvis was in heaven.