Does Purgatory exist?

Question

Just curious to know

Answer 1

Yes. It has been taught for 2000 years and the early Christians held this teaching to be true.

Just saw Father K's post above - I can't add any more Scripture verses than he provided. That's a great place to start and it shows that the people on here who quickly answered "it's not in the bible" are merely echoing back what they heard in Sunday school and have never taken the time to objectively study the Catholic catechism.

You can also find many references to Purgatory in the writings of the early Christian fathers. Check at www.catholic.com and just type in Purgatory.

How can a dogma be true for 1500 years and then a few reformers come on the scene and suddenly claim "it's not in the Bible?"

Just another example of the pitfalls of bible fundamentalism and private interpretation of scripture.

Pax Vobiscum+

Answer 2

A lot of people are saying that it doesn't exist because it's not in the Bible -- but that's not true.

Purgatory does exist, and yes, it is mentioned in the Bible. It's not called "purgatory" by name, but it is in there.

Jesus speaks of staying in prison "until you pay the last penny."

2 Maccabees says that it's a holy thought to pray for the dead so that they can be loosed from their sins -- a clear reference to purgatory.

And 1 Peter speaks of Jesus, after His death and before His resurrection, preaching to "the spirits in prison." This prison is not hell (no preaching can help there), nor is it Heaven (no preaching is needed there).

It is clearly speaking of a third spiritual state -- if it's not purgatory, it's very much like purgatory.

..

Answer 3

If you believe in the "gates of heaven" or the "gates of hell", then it would seem there is a place somewhere in between, kind of like a waiting room or lobby.

The concept of purgatory is based on Biblical passages such as "nothing unclean will enter heaven". Sure, sins are forgiven, but they cling to the soul like stains on your clothes. The idea of purgatory is a "cleansing fire" which in one way or another, makes one pure enough for the eternal fellowship with God & company.

Edit: looks like Father K nailed it, for all those "it's not in the Bible" folks

Answer 4

Why would it not?

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]."

That there are temporal effects of sin is obvious when one considers that even those who have been baptized, who have a deep and intimate relationshp with Jesus, who are the "elect" or "the saved/being saved," or what have you, are subject to pain, work, death and sickness.

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."

The completely righteous will be recorded and sealed at once for eternal life. The completely wicked will be recorded and doomed at once to Gehinnom, as it says: "And many who sleep in the dust of the earth shall rise up, some to eternal life and some to shame and eternal rejection" [Daniel 12:2]. Those in between will go down to Gehinnom and cry out and rise up, as it says: "And I will bring the third part through the fire and refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name and I will answer them" [Zechariah 13:9]

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 5

I hope to go straight to heaven; collect $200.00; and buy up Boardwalk.

The past 4 Pope's ( Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul, Pope John Paul II, and Pope Benedict ) have urged it's people to place less emphasis on Purgatory. All have neither *Infallibly* acknowledged, nor dismissed the existence of Purgatory. So, the "Apostolic" authoratative word is now neutral; but leading it's faithful through Heaven & Hell

Answer 6

do you believe Scriptures when they tell you you will be tested, you still stand before God in judgement, that some sins are forgiven in this life & other in the next?!

if so - then you understand the concept or purgatory :)

FR K gave you the full scriptures & details!!

Answer 7

Yes, because people with Venial sins can't go to Hell (only Mortal sins will send one there), but They need to make up for it before entering Heaven.

Mary, when talking to the children at Fatima mentioned Purgatory.

Answer 8

Yes, before we enter into full communion with God, every trace of sin within us must be eliminated and every imperfection in our soul must be corrected

In Sacred Scripture, we can grasp certain elements that help us to understand the meaning of this doctrine, even if it is not formally described. They express the belief that we cannot approach God without undergoing some kind of purification.

According to Old Testament religious law, what is destined for God must be perfect. As a result, physical integrity is also specifically required for the realities which come into contact with God at the sacrificial level such as, for example, sacrificial animals (cf. Lv 22: 22) or at the institutional level, as in the case of priests or ministers of worship (cf. Lv 21: 17-23). Total dedication to the God of the Covenant, along the lines of the great teachings found in Deuteronomy (cf. 6: 5), and which must correspond to this physical integrity, is required of individuals and society as a whole (cf. 1 Kgs 8: 61). It is a matter of loving God with all one's being, with purity of heart and the witness of deeds (cf. ibid., 10: 12f.)

The need for integrity obviously becomes necessary after death, for entering into perfect and complete communion with God. Those who do not possess this integrity must undergo purification. This is suggested by a text of St Paul. The Apostle speaks of the value of each person's work which will be revealed on the day of judgement and says: "If the work which any man has built on the foundation [which is Christ] 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: 14-15).

3. At times, to reach a state of perfect integrity a person's intercession or mediation is needed. For example, Moses obtains pardon for the people with a prayer in which he recalls the saving work done by God in the past, and prays for God's fidelity to the oath made to his ancestors (cf. Ex 32: 30, 11-13). The figure of the Servant of the Lord, outlined in the Book of Isaiah, is also portrayed by his role of intercession and expiation for many; at the end of his suffering he "will see the light" and "will justify many", bearing their iniquities (cf. Is 52: 13-53, 12, especially vv. 53: 11).

Psalm 51 can be considered, according to the perspective of the Old Testament, as a synthesis of the process of reintegration: the sinner confesses and recognizes his guilt (v. 3), asking insistently to be purified or "cleansed" (vv. 2, 9, 10, 17) so as to proclaim the divine praise (v. 15).

Purgatory is not a place but a condition of existence

4. In the New Testament Christ is presented as the intercessor who assumes the functions of high priest on the day of expiation (cf. Heb 5: 7; 7: 25). But in him the priesthood is presented in a new and definitive form. He enters the heavenly shrine once and for all, to intercede with God on our behalf (cf. Heb 9: 23-26, especially, v. 24). He is both priest and "victim of expiation" for the sins of the whole world (cf. 1 Jn 2: 2).

Jesus, as the great intercessor who atones for us, will fully reveal himself at the end of our life when he will express himself with the offer of mercy, but also with the inevitable judgement for those who refuse the Father's love and forgiveness.

This offer of mercy does not exclude the duty to present ourselves to God, pure and whole, rich in that love which Paul calls a "[bond] of perfect harmony" (Col 3: 14).

Answer 9

Purgatory is the condition of being purified in preparation for entrance into the kingdom of God. We are corrupt and we must become incorrupt. Going from corrupt to incorrupt is purgatory.

Answer 10

No I don't believe it does. Most of the support for purgatory comes from the deuterocanonical books which even the early church fathers did not consider inspired. Paul tells us to be absent from the body is to be present with Christ. We are also told it is appointed unto man once to die and then the judgment. I just find no support for purgatory in the Bible. I have seen many of the verses used by Catholics to support purgatory and I don't see it in them.