Stephen Hawking never really was able to build a following of people who are ardently religious. He was an outspoken proponent of climate science, he believed in evolution — but his primary sin was declaring that advances in science give “a more convincing explanation” as to the origins of the universe than a belief in a creator.
Hawking outlived everyone’s expectations. His life defied all odds. But that isn’t stopping some people from speculating that he’s either “burning in hell” or at least is hearing God tell him ‘I told ya so.’
One example of this brand of post-death passive aggressiveness was highlighted by the Friendly Atheist’s Hement Mehta, who pointed to a tweet shared by Texas state Rep. Briscoe Cain (R).
“Stephen Hawking now knows the truth about how the universe was actually made,” Cain tweeted on Tuesday. “My condolences to his family.”
https://twitter.com/BriscoeCain/status/973779271230676994
The backlash to Cain’s tweet was so forceful that he was compelled to issue a followup statement.
“Losing a loved one is never easy and I am sympathetic for his family’s loss. My prayers are with them. Stephen Hawking was brilliant, many even called him one of the greatest public intellectuals of the last century,” he said in a comment to the Houston Chronicle, before adding, “but the fact remains that God exists.”
He continued:
“My tweet was to show the gravity of the Gospel and what happens when we pass, namely, that we all will one day meet our Creator face to face. Though Hawking has long been a vocal atheist who advocated against and openly mocked God, I hope nothing but the best for his family and pray that he came to know faith before he passed.”
In other words: sorry you died. Have fun in hell!
Here’s some more examples of Christian grace:
As a believer myself sadly I believe that Steven hawking is now in hell because he did not believe or accept you and there is no way back from the eternal torment he will now suffer
— Antony kenyon (@antonykenyon) March 14, 2018
https://twitter.com/BMasonJ14/status/973953392535056384
https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/973925977679122432
https://twitter.com/CryptoMob/status/973987575970050048
Trust and believe Stephen Hawking is no longer an atheist. May God forgive him. RIP Stephen Hawking.
— Carmine Sabia (@CarmineSabia) March 14, 2018
https://twitter.com/therealcornett/status/973918309501624322
https://twitter.com/jondiesel78/status/973785193948606464
https://twitter.com/youngdiciple712/status/973777038149672960
https://twitter.com/alexlayko/status/973941835142905856
Ironically, many of these haters think Donald Trump is going to heaven.
[Friendly Atheist] Featured image via Flickr