If Catholicism no longer recognizes the idea of Limbo or Purgatory ...?

Question

Then will this end all the Catholic traditions of praying for the dead? And the idea of indulgences -- that if a deceased loved one has passed on there are certain times when they will be admitted to Heaven if their family prays for them?

Answer 1

No.

+ Limbo +

The Church has pondered the suggestion of Limbo for a few hundred years and has decided that it is not a good idea. Limbo was never official doctrine.

Jesus said, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved." (Mark 16:15-16)

For centuries, people have wondered about children who died before they were baptized. The Bible does not explicitly state that they will go to heaven.

Limbo was suggested as the place where unbaptized babies went when they died. This idea was never official Church doctrine and has been rejected.

The Church now says that it is not sure what happens to unbaptized babies when they die but she entrusts them to the mercy of God.

http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2.htm#1261

+ Purgatory +

Catholics still believe in Purgatory.

Are you perfect now? Most people would say no.

Will you be perfect in heaven? Most people believe yes.

Purgatory (or purgation) is the process of God's love changing our imperfect selves into perfect beings.

Depending on the amount of change needed by different people this can be an easy or slightly harder process.

Everyone in purgatory is on their way to heaven.

I don't think Mother Teresa of Calcutta had a very hard time of it.

http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art12.htm#1030

+ Praying for the Dead +

Catholics do pray for the dead for the following reasons:

- We pray that the the dead person was right with God at the time of his (or her) death. God can do anything and is not constrained by a little thing like time.

- We pray that the dead person will not have a hard process of purgation.

+ Indulgences +

The concept is that a person can do acts of penance now on earth to make purgation easier.

Penance is internally turning one's heart toward God and away from sin in hope in divine mercy and externally by fasting, prayer, and almsgiving.

A corruption grew in the Church many years ago where rich people would give enough alms (money to the Church) to essentially buy an easy way to heaven. This was one of Martin Luther's protests (hence Protestants) and shortly thereafter the Catholic Church cleaned up this practice.

In 1567 Pope Pius V canceled all grants of indulgences involving any fees or other financial transactions.

But remember because everyone in purgatory is already on their way to heaven, indulgences do not get you into heaven. They just make purgation easier.

I guess if you did not believe in purgatory then there would be no reason to worry about indulgences.

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 2

I'm not exactly an expert, but here goes...

This is a statement describing purgatory from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the official summary of Catholic teaching from the Vatican:

"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, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven" (CCC 1030) (This refers to the paragraph number of the Catechism)

Like someone else said, Limbo was never an offical doctrine of the church, just a hypothesis, but Purgatory is not going anywhere. What the church teaches about purgatory is that it is a process of being purged from the sin that has entangled us on earth, and that it involves pain of some kind. (Scripture verses used to support this include 1 Corinthians 3:14–15: "If the work which any man has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.")

Limbo was an idea proposed by some theologians to explain where babies who had not been baptized go when they die. It was never an official teaching, but a hypothesis.

For more information on purgatory, see http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2005/0511sbs.asp

For a discussion on limbo, see
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0506867.htm

Answer 3

probably not... since they still believe in purgatory
sending limbo into limbo was a good idea and I applaud them for taking a step in the right direction

although I vote that purgatory goes next... I don't believe it is well supported in the scriptures

Answer 4

is there anyone from the vatican to answer this?
i really want to know...
i was under the impression that limbo = purgatory...

bcoz throughout my "catholic" childhood, i know of only heaven, purgatory and hell...
never heard of limbo (living dead), that only exist in other religions which hv limbo for spirits not ready for re-incarnation...

so what is this thing about the church abolishing limbo and purgatory still exist? i thought they mean to abolish purgatory?

can someone get the TRUTH from the "vault of hidden truth" (vatican)?

Answer 5

It comes from the Jewish concept in Gehenna, which you will discover defined in the internet Jewish Encyclopedia, yet certainly: the souls of the depraved are purged in hearth till the Resurrection (no longer the Christian one; the only foretold by making use of Ezekiel.) The extremely depraved will stay in torment continuously. some texts in scripture are in specific situations interpreted to assist the belief: the only maximum usually noted is a million Corinthians 3:eleven-14, the place Paul states that those whose artwork (of establishing upon the commencing place laid by making use of Christ) survives the attempt of hearth would be rewarded. this is often related to a million Peter a million:7, which seems to talk of religion subtle by making use of hearth. yet individually, i think of those 2 have been conversing of the persecution, or a minimum of of the rigors to which faith is subjected by making use of life. The section with reference to the reward of prayer for the ineffective is from Macabbees, which different Christians now no longer comprise in the bible, and from activity's sacrifice to purify his ineffective sons (activity a million:5) which instruments a precedent for moving advantage. As to the Catholic Bible -- it is not so distinctive. There are some extra beneficial books, this is all. The Catholic bible contains fragments of additives to Esther and Daniel, the books of Tobit and Judith, 4 understanding books (understanding of Solomon, Sirach, Baruch, and a letter of Jeremiah) and the 1st 2 books of Macabbees. Frankly, they are no longer necessary even to Catholics. The books of the hot testomony are precisely as in the bibles of different Christians. The Torah, Joshua, and Judges are the comparable; the books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles are the comparable; the Prophets, Judith and activity are the comparable; Psalms, Proverbs and Lamentations are all the comparable.

Answer 6

Jasmine,
God wants all of His children to, eventually, find their way to heaven.
My Dad called "this" Hell: what we go through on earth.
I can't say that he was wrong, especially after what transpired on Monday.
I personally, and not because of or despite of any precepts, pray for the souls of the departed. I think I do that to encourage them in their own work.
Oh, I am a Catholic. Just keep that between us. I've heard that Catholics aren't supposed to have minds of their own.

Answer 7

It's just ended Limbo. Purgatory is alive and well (for them, anyway)

Answer 8

"Limbo" was never a defined truth of Catholic faith, but was always just a theological hypothesis. Now limbo has been officially rejected of having any validity.

Purgatory is still part of the Catholic faith.

Answer 9

The idea of Purgatory hasn't gone anywhere, it's still here.

Answer 10

funny how these MEN can change their theology so flippantly. YES IT'S FLIPPANT!! darn it. Any group that can say you are going to suffer one day and the next not, is being flippant. Read the Bible for once, or better yet, let your people read it and decide for themselves. I know cathies that don't even own a bible let alone have read one.