I don't believe in a god, a heaven, or a hell. I'm not worried in the least about my ultimate fate when I die. I'll simply be gone, just like before I was born. I couldn't respect, let alone worship, a god who demands that I believe in him or pay the price for eternity. That's a very small and nasty god, in my view.

A god worth his salt would be far more concerned with how a person behaves than with what he believes. The torturers of the Inquisition (and countless others of similar ilk over time) fervently believed in god and Jesus. What kind of horrible god would welcome them to heaven while condemning an atheist who treats other people with compassion, generosity, and kindness? That's no god; that's a jerk.

I believe the concepts of hell and god's punishments were introduced by people for the purposes of power and control. Partially for positive societal control by threatening social disrupters with more severe penalties than those leaders could apply themselves, but then just for the power and control. "You'll go to hell for being sinful, but if you perform these rituals and drop some coin in the box, I'll help you get into heaven."

I don't need god's commands or the threat of hell to know how to be a good person. Color me a happy atheist.