Purgatory? There remains some kind of cleansing after this life. Nothing unclean will see Heaven?

Question

"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" (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1030).

Purgatory is simply the place where already saved souls are cleansed of the temporal effects of sin before they are allowed to see the holy face of Almighty God.

Revelation 21:27 tells us that "...nothing unclean will enter [Heaven]."


Purgatory is His way of ensuring that Revelation 21:27 is true and that nothing unclean will see Heaven. It is only through Christ's sacrifice that we are shown this mercy! It is Christ and Christ alone Who allows us access to the Father.

It's isn't in the Bible, but neither are the words "Trinity," "abortion," "lesbianism," and "cloning" (or "Rapture," for that matter), and it doesn't matter whether you call the process of purgation "purgatory" or the "Final Theosis": the concept of a "final cleansing" or "purgation" for those who require it is very evident in the Bible, in the writings of the early Church Fathers, and in the Old Testament religion whence Christianity sprang.

Daniel 12:2, Matthew 12:32, 1 Corinthians 3:13-15, 2 Timothy 1:16-18, Hebrews 12:14, Hebrews 12:22-23, 1 Peter 4:6 and Revelation 21:10, 27 all speak of Purgatory in their telling of the need for purification, prayers for the dead, Christ's preaching to the dead, or how nothing unclean will see God.

Archaeology also indicates the antiquity of the Christian belief in Purgatory/the Final Theosis: the tombs of the ancient Christians were inscribed with words of petition for peace and for rest, and at the anniversaries of deaths, the faithful gathered at the graves of the departed to make intercession for those who'd gone before.

Orthodox Jewish practices, which branched off from the Old Testament religion, to this day reflect belief in this "place" of final purification which they call Gehenom: when an Orthodox Jewish person dies, a ritual called the taharah is performed by the "Chevra kaddisha -- gmilat khessed shel emet," the "Holy Society" or "Burial Society" of Jews knowledgeable in these traditional duties. They cleanse and prepare the physical body and recite the required prayers (Chevra Kadisha) which ask God for forgiveness for any sins the departed may have committed, and beg Him to guard and grant eternal peace to the departed. For eleven months after the death of a loved one certain members of the family pray a prayer called the Mourner's Qaddish (or Kaddish) for their loved one's purification.

Even the The Talmud1 speaks of Purgatory:

Sabbath 33b:
"The judgment of the wicked in purgatory is twelve months."
Rosh HaShanah 16b-17a:
"It has been taught that the school of Shammai says: "There will be three groups on Judgment Day (yom haDin):
(1) one that is completely righteous,
(2) one that is completely wicked,
(3) and one that is in between."

Jews, Catholics, and Eastern Orthodox have always proclaimed the reality of the final purification for those who need it. It was not until the Protestant Reformers came in the 1500s that any Christians denied the idea of a final purgation before seeing the face of God.

Answer 1

You are correct as usual, Cashelmara. Purgatory is clearly implied both in Jesus' teaching and in the epistles of Paul.

Jesus taught that anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit "will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come" (Matt. 12:32). This implies that sins that fall short of this unforgivable sin will be forgiven after death. How? By paying the just penalty for these sins in purgatory.

Paul explains that when we are judged, each man’s work will be tried. And what happens if a righteous man’s work fails the test? "He will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire" (1 Cor 3:15).

How can we suffer loss after death, but still be saved? Paul can't be talking about hell because no one is saved there. He can't be talking about heaven because there is no suffering ("fire") there. Only purgatory explains this passage.

Only by recognizing a temporary cleansing after death--purgatory--can we understand how God can be perfectly just and perfectly merciful. His justice requires that every sin incurs a penalty, a time of suffering and purification in purgatory. In his perfect mercy, God's forgiveness restores his friendship, but forgiveness doesn't cancel the just penalty for violating God's laws.

Even in ordinary situations in this life, the same principle holds. If I attack a man and put out his eye, it may be that in the love of God, he forgives me. But if I genuinely repent of my attack, I would certainly not ask to forgo the legal penalty for it. Genuine repentance means I would plead guilty and ask for a just punishment for my crime.

Beyond justice, we need purgatory to purify our hearts. If I have lived selfishly and hurt others, even if I wisely repent and accept death with a heart full of love for God, my character has been sullied by years of bad attitudes and contempt. I am not ready to meet God, who is holy, holy, holy. I need cleansing and a total makeover of my character.

The bottom line on purgatory: Jesus taught it. Paul explained it. The Church has always defined it. Justice demands it. And sinners need it.

Cheers,
Bruce

Answer 2

Here's another way of looking at Purgatory. An analogy which may help you deal with what we mean by Purgatory is the realization that the "fire" of Purgatory is actually the Love of God. Indeed, properly understood, the "fire" of Purgatory, the "fire" of Hell, and the "fire" of Heaven (for the OT speaks of Heaven as a "fiery" place quite often) is all, in truth, the SAME fire, which is the burning and unquenchable Love of Almighty God. And, depending on the disposition of a soul at the time of death, when everything else except God is stripped away from them, the soul will either be tormented by this "Fire" (i.e., Hell because the soul wants nothing to do with God), or he will be purged of lingering sin by this "Fire" (Purgatory), or he will be able to unite with the "Fire" itself (Heaven), since both the soul and the Fire share a common Nature (2 Peter 1:4)--that is, the soul has already been transformed into an image of Christ (a saint) prior to death. So, all depends on the soul's disposition.

Or, look at it this way: If someone is asleep in a dark room, and someone suddenly throws open the curtains to reveal a bright, sunny day, and if the person has had a good night's sleep, and is ready to wake up, he will be able to open his eyes and greet the morning sun with no problem (i.e., Heaven). However, if the person is suffering from a horrible hang-over and has had little or no sleep at all, he will hide his face under the blankets and want nothing to do with the sun (i.e., Hell). However, if he is only a little hung-over, or still a little sleepy, he will be able to open his eyes somewhat—to tentatively look at the sunlight, as he struggles to acclimate to the morning sun (i.e., Purgatory). In essence, this is all Catholicism is saying about the Afterlife, when a Christian finally sees the ultimate Reality, which is God. If they think about it, a Protestant doesn't believe differently at all.

God Bless
Robin

Answer 3

Beside the evidence in scripture and tradition, reason alone would suggest and even demand the existence of a midway state between Heaven and Hell.
Since ``nothing defiled can enter Heaven`` it follows that a soul departing this life with either venial sin or with temporal punishment still to be suffered, could not enter Heaven.
It could not in justice be sent to Hell which is everlasting, as such a punishment would be out of all proportion to the offense commited.
It is entirely probable that vast numbers of people die with venial sin upon their souls, they are not worthy to enter Heaven,they cannot in justice be doomed to Hell.
There must be therefore another state where punishment is suited to the offence, such is the imperative dictate of reason.
That state which reason thus demands is Purgatory, where they are cleansed of their venial imperfections and rendered suitable to enter into the august presence of God and unspeakable happiness.

Answer 4

St. Paul writes:

For no other foundation can any one lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any one builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble — each man’s work will become manifest; for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 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 (1 Cor. 3:11-15).

The passage is quite clear: Gold and silver, when placed into a furnace, would be purified; wood and hay would be burned away. As this is done, Scripture says we will suffer loss, but be saved “as through fire.” The image of purgatory was becoming more vivid as I read. What else could St. Paul be referring to? He can’t be referring to hell, because it’s clear that the people who undergo this “purifying fire” will be saved, while those who are in hell are lost forever. And yet he can’t be referring to heaven, because he mentions the suffering of loss, while in heaven every tear will be wiped away ( Rev. 21:4).

Answer 5

The doctrine of purgatory is completely reconcilable with a loving God who is a consuming fire. As we are drawn up into His love, into His very divine life — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — we begin to burn with that same divine fire, and those impurities to which we have clung in this life must be burned away. This will inevitably involve suffering, as we let go of those imperfect things to which we are attached.

The hidden mystery behind the teaching of purgatory is our calling to live in God for all eternity, which requires us to give perfectly of ourselves (cf. Mt. 5:48). Even with deep faith, the Christian life is difficult. We are called to manifest heroic generosity, and yet generosity hurts in this life. No matter what we’re asked to give, we seem to run out — of time, of energy, of money. God calls us to acknowledge this weakness, this poverty, and to turn to Him and cry out for help that He might fill us with His grace.

In heaven, generosity will not hurt; the lack of generosity will hurt. That is because in heaven God will give Himself to us fully and completely, holding nothing back. Our ability to receive from Him will be completely contingent upon our ability, in turn, to immediately give back. Otherwise, the gift of God would destroy us. Like strapping a water balloon onto a fire hydrant nozzle, we would explode! It is only when we learn the habit of complete and total self-giving that we will be able to experience the joy of heaven.

Christians are called to accept the finished work of Jesus Christ, and to allow that work to be applied to our lives by the work of the Holy Spirit, so that those who are justified will be sanctified. For us it is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.



“Purgatory” comes from the Latin word purgatorium. In Scripture, we do find references to an afterlife that is neither the hell of the damned nor heaven. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word sheol is used to describe this condition; in the New Testament, the Greek term is hades. I had always thought that hades was hell, but Scripture teaches very clearly that hades is not hell; it is distinct from gehenna, or the lake of fire which is the hell of the damned. In fact, the Book of Revelation describes how, at the end of time, death and hades are thrown into hell (gehenna). This is the second death, the lake of fire. Scripture teaches that at the end of time, there is no more death; and once the purification of all souls has taken place, there is no more need for hades. This same concept of sheol (in Hebrew), hades (in Greek), and purgatorium (in Latin) is purgatory as we have come to know it today .

Answer 6

"The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from ALL iniquity."

The concept of Purgatory stems from an insufficient view of Christ's Atonement.

Answer 7

somehow you always out do yourself :-)

nicely done, hopefully not to many are still confused between the theology of "limbo" and the doctrine of purgatory. god bless and thank you once again.

Answer 8

You hit it on the head.: any clinging to sin and its residue and the eyes of the soul are still blinded to the fullness of heaven's Light.

Answer 9

girls love drama its there why to make them get noticed the important thing is that your not involved in any of the drama just help everyone be friends again..

Answer 10

What a long question. And here's a very short answer: the blood of Christ is what cleanses. Repentance of sin and faith in Him? You are now white as snow.