I know you probably get this question a lot, but I have to ask it anyway: are you absolutely sure this is real? Are you sure you're not being deceived somehow, either interally or, worse, by some malevolent spirit posing as your lost loved one?

As you can probably guess I was raised a Christian, and while I'm escaping from it over time the idea of an eternal Hell still turns me into a shuddering wreck.

The stakes are incredibly high here. If you're wrong it means horrible things. Please, tell me how you know you're not wrong! I need to know this too!