What is purgatory?

Answer 1

"All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification [Purgatory], so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven." -- Catechism of the Catholic Church 1030

Answer 2

It´s a condition of the soul after one dies. In this temporary state your soul is purified, since most people do not live perfect lives, yet "nothing impure will enter heaven". Even a protestant pastor named Jenkins said that purgatory is very logical , since the majority of us are not so perfect to go straight to heavn, yet not as bad as to go directly to hell.

The following verses back up this doctrine:
• Nb. 20:12 - Moses and Aaron, though forgiven, are still punished
• 2 Sam. 1:12 - They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the soldiers of the Lord of the clans of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword
• 2 Sam. 12:13-14 - David, though forgiven, is still punished
• 2 Mac. 12:42-46 - He prayed for the dead that they might be freed from their sin. The sacrifice for the dead atoned for dead to free them from sin
• Mt. 5:19 - “who breaks ...the least of these commandments ...will be called least in the kingdom of heaven” (venial sin does not cause eternal death)
• Mt. 5:26 - you will not be released until paid last penny
• Mt. 5:48 - be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect
• Mt. 12:32 - sin against Holy Spirit unforgiven in this age or next
• Mt. 12:36 - account for every idle word on judgment day
• Mt. 18:23-35 - In the kingdom of heaven you will remain in prison until your debt is paid
• Lk. 12:41-48 - There are different degrees of punishment after death
• Lk. 12:59; 1 Cor. 3:15; 1 Pet 1:7; Mt. 5:25-26 - temporary agony.
• 1 Cor. 3:11-16 - Fire will test each ones work. He will suffer loss but saved only as through fire
• 1 Cor. 15:29-30 - Paul mentions people baptizing for the dead
• Heb. 12:22-23 - All spirits of just man in heaven have been made perfect.
• Jas. 3:2 - we all fall short in many respects
• Jas. 1:14-15 - when sin reaches maturity gives birth to death- there is sin that is not grave
• 1 Pet 3:18-20; 4:6 - Jesus preached to the spirits in prison (purgatory?)
• 1 Jn. 5:16-17 - If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say that you should pray. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly. - There are mortal and venial sins and if you die with a venial sins you must be purified, because......
• Rev. 21:27 - nothing unclean shall enter heaven

Answer 3

An imaginary place where people are purified or something like that. Even the pope goes to purgatory for cleansing.

Answer 4

It is a place the Catholic's made up so ppl would pay the priest to pray their dead love ones out of purgatory and into heaven.

Answer 5

Good answer Jemayen! I would like to add to your answer. To those who don't believe in Purgatory but believe in heaven and hell, please tell me where all of the deceased souls went between the time of the fall of Adam and Eve and Jesus Christ?

Answer 6

NOUN:
pl. pur·ga·to·ries
Roman Catholic Church A state in which the souls of those who have died in grace must expiate their sins.
A place or condition of suffering, expiation, or remorse: a purgatory of drug abuse.
ADJECTIVE:

Tending to cleanse or purge.

Answer 7

An imaginary place like Heaven, Hell, Neverland, and a land called Honah Lee.

Answer 8

Somalia.

Answer 9

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, Purgatory is “a place or condition of temporal punishment for those who, departing this life in God's grace, are, not entirely free from venial faults, or have not fully paid the satisfaction due to their transgressions.” To summarize, in Catholic theology, Purgatory is a place that a Christian’s soul goes to after death to be cleansed of the sins that had not been fully satisfied during life. Is this doctrine of Purgatory in agreement with the Bible? Absolutely not!



Jesus died to pay the penalty for all of our sins (Romans 5:8). Isaiah 53:5 declares, “but He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” Jesus suffered for our sins so that we could be delivered from suffering. To say that we must also suffer for our sins is to say that Jesus’ suffering was insufficient. To say that we must atone for our sins by cleansing in Purgatory is to deny the sufficiency of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus (1 John 2:2). The idea that we have to suffer for our sins after death is contrary to everything the Bible says about salvation.



The primary Scriptural passage Catholics point to for evidence of Purgatory is 1 Corinthians 3:15, which says, “If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.” The passage (1 Corinthians 3:12-15) is using an illustration of things going through fire as a description of believers’ works being judged. If our works are of good quality “gold, sliver, costly stones,” they will pass through the fire unharmed, and we will be rewarded for them. If our works are of poor quality “wood, hay, and straw,” they will be consumed by the fire, and there will be no reward. The passage does not say that believers pass through the fire, but rather that a believer’s works pass through the fire. 1 Corinthians 3:15 refers to the believer “escaping through the flames,” not “being cleansed by the flames.”



Purgatory, like many other Catholic dogmas, is based on a misunderstanding of the nature of Christ’s sacrifice. Catholics view the Mass / Eucharist as a re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice because they fail to understand that Jesus’ once for all sacrifice was absolutely and perfectly sufficient (Hebrews 7:27). Catholics view meritorious works as contributing to salvation due to a failure to recognize that Jesus’ sacrificial payment has no need of additional “contribution” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Similarly, Purgatory is understood by Catholics as a place of cleansing in preparation for Heaven because they do not recognize that because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we are already cleansed, declared righteous, forgiven, redeemed, reconciled, and sanctified.



The very idea of Purgatory, and the doctrines that are often attached to it (prayer for the dead, indulgences, meritorious works on behalf of the dead, etc.) all fail to recognize that Jesus’ death was sufficient to pay the penalty for ALL of our sins. Jesus, who was God incarnate (John 1:1,14), paid an infinite price for our sin. Jesus died for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3). Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins (1 John 2:2). To limit Jesus’ sacrifice to atoning for original sin, or sins committed before salvation, is an attack on the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. If we must in any sense pay for, atone for, or suffer because of our sins – that indicates Jesus’ death was not a perfect, complete, and sufficient sacrifice.



For believers, after death is to be "away from the body and at home with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:23). Notice that this does not say "away from the body, in Purgatory with the cleansing fire." No, because of the perfection, completion, and sufficiency of Jesus' sacrifice, we are immediately in the Lord's presence after death, fully cleansed, free from sin, glorified, perfected, and ultimately sanctified