A friend encouraged author Neil Cole to tour the Rodin museum while in France. Reflecting on Rodin's most famous work, Cole writes,

Rodin was a French impressionist sculptor. Though many do not realize his name, most are familiar with his work. He created the Thinker. What you may not realize is that the Thinker was really a study he had done to sit on the top of his greatest masterpiece—The Gates of Hell. For years we have been wondering what it is that the Thinker is thinking about. No, he's not wondering about where he left his clothes the night before. What the Thinker is contemplating is an eternity of judgment separated from God.

Cole's friend began to describe The Gates of Hell, which depicts innumerable beings writhing in agony on their way to judgment. As the vision of the work gripped Cole's friend, she said, "Oh, I could just stare at The Gates of Hell forever."

It was quiet for a moment as the significance of her words became clear. Cole writes, "All I could think of to say at that moment was, 'Oh, I hope not.'"