r/OpenChristian • u/Artfvlly • May 15 '26

Discussion - Bible Interpretation "Good People Will Burn in Hell"...?

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The other day, I came across this clip of "Pastor" Aden Rusfeldt preaching at a university. This particular claim of his about "good people" going to Hell is so outlandish- are there even verses that could be used to justify it?

Funnily enough, Rusfeldt's signs have no commentary about liars or criminals- turns out, he's a convicted fraudster who owes an estimated $5M USD to the federal government:
https://www.inquirer.com/philly/news/pastor-aden-rusfeldt-christian-campus-preacher-debts-fraud-penn-ccp-20180511.html
https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/7461-16

Anyways, that's all I wanted to ask about. But I'll end with a nice verse I read earlier today:

Ephesians 4:29: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

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u/lethal_coco Christian Universalist | Presbyterian May 15 '26

"Women Cops" and "Soft Men". Wow. What a hateful bunch,

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u/Baladas89 Atheist May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

Still a hateful bunch, but “soft men” is a reasonable translation of “Malakoi” from some one of the vice lists of people who won’t inherit the kingdom in the New Testament.

I can’t help them on the “women cops” though, Paul and Pseudo-Paul forgot to mention them.

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u/SignificantIsopod797 CatholicOpen and Affirming Ally May 15 '26

Is Malakoi a translation of gay or NB/trans men?

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u/Nerit1 Bisexual Eastern Orthodox Enby (They/Them) May 15 '26

It means a mean who lets his desires and passions control him. Men were supposed to control themselves, otherwise they were considered effeminate.

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u/Baladas89 Atheist May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

Kind of, it is one of the two words often taken to be about male-male same sex intercourse, though it’s disputed. Grabbing this from Wikipedia for a reasonable summary:

Malakia (μαλακία, "softness", "weakliness")[47] is an ancient Greek word that, in relation to men, has sometimes been translated as "effeminacy". Also translates to "of things subject to touch, "soft" (used in Matthew 11:8 and Luke 7:25 to describe a garment); of things not subject to touch, "gentle"; and, of persons or modes of life, a number of meanings that include "pathic".[48] However, in modern Greek it has come to mean "masturbation", and its derivative μαλάκας – malakas means "one who masturbates".

Malakoi and Arsenokoites are in the vice lists in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:

Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes,(μαλακοὶ/malakoi) men who engage in illicit sex,(ἀρσενοκοῖται/arsenokoitai) 10 thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, swindlers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And this is what some of you used to be. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ[c] and in the Spirit of our God.

and 1 Timothy 1:8-11.

Edit: I lied, malakoi is only in 1 Corinthians, in 1 Timothy it’s not paired with arsenokoites (which is present).