The idea that some are condemned to an eternity in hell seems incompatible with the belief in a a God who loves all.
My Lutheran pastor has implied that everyone will go to heaven. He said that salvation comes through undeserved grace, and that not even believing in the wrong religion can keep a person from receiving that grace.
Jesus died for everyone's sins, didn't he?
That's not the issue though.
The problem isn't about God's grace, it's that Jesus himself said some things that are really hard to reconcile with universalism. I'm thinking of Matthew 25:31-46 in particular (the sheep and the goats). It's really hard (I'd say impossible) to square that passage with universalism.
I agree with your reasoning and have come to similar conclusions (though it's very unfortunate, as it's something I really wish were true
).
But I grew up going to a PCUSA (and when I was little, UCC) church, and every pastor there was clear they believed in an empty hell or no hell at all. I remember during confirmation the pastor said that Jesus talked about hell to show that our actions do indeed have grave consequences (which fire was a symbol), but the ultimate theme is redemption....I think he also said something related to "progressive revelation," saying that as man's ideas of what are humane change, this is an indication of us getting closer to the 'universal' truth, so to speak, and scripture is simply a big step on that path, so the origin of their view comes from a framework which largely departs from orthodoxy.
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