Catholics, could you explain purgatory to a Protestant?

Question

Are there scriptures you interpret or is it teachings of the early church fathers? This is not a baiting question, I'm trying to understand.

Wolfeblayde, thank you for the answer. It just seems to be a very detailed doctrine to be built around so few verses. (I know, the same can be said for lots of Protestant doctrines.) Actually, after reading the near-death experiences of non-religious people, a lot of what they described sounds like purgatory. That got me wondering.

Answer 1

Purgatory is the process by which the saving Grace of Christ is applied to the sinner's soul.

It is necessary because "all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God." (Romans 3:23) and because "nothing unclean can enter heaven" (Revelations 21:27, I think -- don't have my Bible at hand.)

If everybody sins and dies a sinner, then we die with some sin still marring our souls.

If nothing unclean can enter heaven, then we cannot enter heaven in this state.

Therefore, sometime after death (as a sinner) and before entering heaven (as a totally pure saint), we must go through some cleansing process so that we can be "washed whiter than snow" by the Blood of the Lamb.

Every Protestant I know believes that Jesus washes us pure so that we can enter heaven. That's what purgatory (place of purging ) is. Protestants just don't have a name for it like Catholics do.

Answer 2

Protestant faith got here approximately with the aid of fact of depraved Popes taking benefit of their authority. It had no longer something to do with the Catholic Church or the Protestant Church. Many Popes have enable their potential circulate to their heads. no longer all stable men might enable it. those undesirable Popes burned those stable men on the stakes and hung them. Their blood is on the palms of those Popes. Demons can own Popes merely like people. you may no longer clarify purgatory and praying to Mary to me. it is not in the word of God, the Holy Bible. the only element on the brink of purgatory strengthen into Abraham's Bosom, yet Christ took those saints to heaven with Him after the resurrection. you may no longer pray everyone into heaven or out of hell. If that be so, then Christ died for no longer something. no longer a Christian dwelling will accept as true with that. Mary is a lifeless guy or woman. we are to no longer touch lifeless people. we've one propose in heaven and that's Christ Jesus. Jesus isn't the babe in the manger. Jesus is returning with the aid of fact the Lion of Judah, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Christ will decide this international with a righteous judgment. Repent and alter out of your evil techniques. seek for the Lord with all your heart.

Answer 3

I used to be Catholic (not anymore, I'm non-denominational) but from what I remember it was thought that if you didn't go to hell for all the bad stuff you did and weren't good enough to enter heaven, people on earth could pray you into heaven. But nowhere in the Bible does it say that.
Priests long ago took advantage of that by letting people 'buy their way out'-- another false idea.

Lisa

Answer 4

The concept of purgation is hinted at in the Bible. Here are a few of places:

But if someone's work is burned up, that one will suffer loss; the person will be saved, but only as through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:15)

So that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:7)

But the souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace. For if before men, indeed, they be punished, yet is their hope full of immortality; Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed, because God tried them and found them worthy of himself. As gold in the furnace, he proved them, and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself. (Wisdom 3:1-6)

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 on earth into perfect beings in heaven.

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

Everyone in purgatory is on his or her way to heaven.

I do not think Mother Teresa of Calcutta had a very hard time of it.

+ Sources of Doctrine +

The Catholic Church does not only use Holy Scripture for the basis of doctrine. The early Catholic church existed before and during the time that the New Testament was written (by Catholics).

Catholics also believe that the Holy Spirit was guiding the early church (and is guiding the church today) to make the correct choices about things like
- The Holy Trinity (which is also only hinted at in the Bible)
- Going to church on Sunday instead of Saturday (which is actually directly against one of the ten commandments)
- Which books to include in the New Testament?
- How do our imperfect selves on earth get to be perfect in heaven?

This second source of doctrine is called Apostolic Tradition.

For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 1030: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art12.htm#1030

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 5

The section in the Catechism on purgatory (1030 - 1032) is sufficient to show false the "we don't believe it anymore" claim. And, while it is true that the doctrine of purgatory isn't near the top of the "hierarchy of truths," it is nevertheless a truth.

What the Church teaches is that there is a purification that occurs after death for all who die in God's friendship but who have not been sufficiently purified for the glory of heaven. This purification can involve some kind of pain or discomfort. And the faithful on earth can assist those being purified — for example, by their prayers and by the saying of Mass.

There are a number of passages that bear mentioning.

One of the most famous is 2 Maccabees 12:32-45, in which we read that Judah Maccabee prayed for and had a sacrifice offered for certain of his men who had been killed fighting for the Lord. This was the ancient equivalent of praying for the dead and having a Mass said for them.

The text is explicit in saying that Judah Maccabee prayed and offered sacrifice so that "the sin which had been committed might be wholly blotted out" (v. 42) and "that they [the fallen soldiers] might be delivered from their sin" (v. 45). They had a venial sin even though fundamentally they were on the side of right.

The text thus envisions that someone can die in a state of grace but still carry the temporal (temporary, non-eternal) consequences of sins. It also envisions that the actions of the living (prayer and sacrifice) can assist those in this condition.

. . . This book had been included in Scripture from the dawn of Christian history. 2 Maccabees is part of the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament), which is the version of Scripture that the apostles and other authors of the New Testament quoted over eighty percent of the time. Also, some passages in the New Testament specifically allude to 2 Maccabees (for example, Hebrew 11:35b refers to 2 Maccabees 7). . . It was to avoid this doctrine that the Protestant Reformers felt it necessary to remove from Scripture a book that previously had been almost universally honored.

The second point is that 2 Maccabees is a pre-Christian book. It is a Jewish book. And so it is no surprise to find that Jews today pray for their departed loved ones. For almost a year after a loved one dies, devout Jews pray a prayer known as the Mourners' Qaddish (the "Mourner's Blessing") for the purification of their loved ones. The belief in purgatory — a posthumous purification — has been part of the true religion since before the time of Christ! Jews accept it, Catholics accept it, Eastern Orthodox accept it, the other Eastern churches accept it. Only the Protestant churches that have arisen in the last 500 years challenge it.

The third response is to point out that there are multiple New Testament passages besides 2 Maccabees that support the doctrine of purgatory. These texts reflect the fact that, even though sin is forgiven, painful consequences may remain to be dealt with after death and before an individual enters the full glory of heaven. Included are the passages in which Jesus alludes to the sin that will be forgiven neither in this life nor the next (Matt 12:32; suggesting that some may be forgiven in the next life), and he warns that after one faces judgment before God, one may be punished "till you have paid the last penny" (Matt 5:26; suggesting that after one has paid the last penny one will no longer be punished).

One of the clearest texts pertaining to purgatory is I Corinthians 3:12-15, in which Paul warns that "fire will test what sort of work each one has done" (v. 13). When this testing by fire is 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" (vv. 14-15). Escaping through flames is not a "fun" thing. Thus Paul indicates that one can make it into heaven even though the testing one will experience after death is not a fun thing.

One may also point out that we will be totally sinless when we are with God in heaven. Indeed, Scripture says that God is "of purer eyes than to behold evil and canst not look on wrong" (Hab 1:13) and that "nothing unclean shall enter" the heavenly city (Rev 21:27). Since many (most!) of us are still quite unclean at the time of death, this means that between death and glory must come a purification.

Sanctification

This recognition opens an important way of making the concept of purgatory intelligible to the Protestant mind. Though Catholic theology often uses the terms justification and sanctification in a largely overlapping manner, Evangelical theology customarily draws a sharp line between the two. When this is done, it is often claimed that justification refers to the forgiveness of sins while sanctification refers to the purification of our behavior so that we no longer commit sins. (This does not fully accord with the usage of these terms in the Bible, but that is another matter.)

Given this usage, it is possible to explain purgatory in categories familiar to Protestants. Even after we have been forgiven, there are still sinful tendencies and consequences that remain to be dealt with. Even after justification there is sanctification.

Since we will be totally sanctified (holy) in heaven, if we die imperfectly sanctified we must have our sanctification brought up to snuff before we are in the glory of heaven. Whether that change has some for of duration or whether it is instantaneous (as it will be for those Christians alive on the last day; 1 Cor 15:51-53, 1 John 3:2), the Church does not say. It only says that the transformation occurs, that we will be completely sanctified.

Purgatory, then, may be seen as the last stage of sanctification, whether it happens over "time" or all in a rush. And this answers another common Protestant difficulty with purgatory: the question of whether it "detracts" from the work of Christ. Protestants themselves acknowledge that, whereas forgiveness is an instantaneous thing, sanctification is a process. Yet it does not detract from the work of Christ and, indeed, is empowered and enabled by that work. Jesus' death on the cross is the cause of our sanctification, though Protestants generally see the former as a process and the latter as instantaneous.

The bottom line is: It's all God's grace. It all comes to us because of Christ's death. Without Him, we would be doomed, but because of His love for us we may be both forgiven and sanctified, whether all at once or not.

One thing remains true: When we are united to God in heaven, we will be both totally forgiven and totally sanctified. If we die with the first but without the second, God will make sure we receive the gift of complete holiness before we are with Him in glory.

Answer 6

First, what is purgatory? Purgatory is a state or condition of purification in which the souls of the faithful departed are purified of their sins and faults after death. For according to the Book of Revelation, "nothing impure can enter heaven" (Rev 21:27). "the condition of existence that those who, after death, exist in a state of purification." In other words, we can say that the word "purgatory," properly speaking, stands for the "condition of souls which, at the moment of death, are in the state of grace, but which have not completely made reparation for their sins, nor attained the level of holiness necessary to enter heaven."



Now, there are several places in Scripture that indicate the existence of a place of purification after death. The most well-known passage in the Old Testament about this truth is found in the Second Book of Maccabees. The passage is a little long, but it is worth quoting at length because it is so important:

Judas Maccabees and his men went to gather up the bodies of the slain (after the battle) and bury them with their kinsmen in their ancestral tombs. But under the tunic of each of the dead they found amulets sacred to the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. So it was clear to all that this was why these men had been slain… He then took up a collection among all his soldiers, amounting to 2,000 silver drachmas, which he sent to Jerusalem to provide for an expiatory sacrifice. In doing this he acted in a very excellent and noble way… It was a holy and pious thought. Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be freed from sin." (2 Mac. 12:39-40, 43, 45-46)

In the New Testament Christ warns us that "we will not be released until we have paid the last penny" (Mt 5:26), and St. Paul states in his First Letter to the Corinthians that "if someone’s work is burned up… the person will be saved, but only by fire" (3:15). Now the doctrine of purgatory alone can explain this passage of St. Paul’s. Karl Keating, a well-respected apologist, explains, "this ‘loss’ that he speaks about cannot refer to hell, because no one is saved there; and it cannot refer to heaven, because there is no suffering by fire there."

Although the word "purgatory" is not mentioned in the Bible, the reality of purgatory is clearly mentioned there. The words "Trinity" and "incarnation" and "Bible" are not mentioned in the Bible, but these realities are revealed there. Jesus speaks of sins to be forgiven in the life to come (Matthew 12:23). Saint Paul speaks of those saved in the next life "through fire" (1 Corinthians 3:15). Saint Peter speaks of the "spirits in prison" (1 Peter 3:18-20) and of the Gospel "preached to the dead" (1 Peter 4:6). The Bible explicitly tells us to pray for the dead (2 Maccabees 12:44-46). Besides being found in Sacred Tradition, which explicitly affirms the existence of purgatory, it is clearly that the doctrine of it existence is also found in Sacred Scripture.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a "purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven," which is experienced by those "who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified" (CCC 1030). It notes that "this final purification of the elect . . . is entirely different from the punishment of the damned" (CCC 1031).

The purification is necessary because, as Scripture teaches, nothing unclean will enter the presence of God in heaven (Rev. 21:27) and, while we may die with our mortal sins forgiven, there can still be many impurities in us, specifically venial sins and the temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven.


Two Judgments



When we die, we undergo what is called the particular, or individual, judgment. Scripture says that "it is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment" (Heb. 9:27). We are judged instantly and receive our reward, for good or ill. We know at once what our final destiny will be. At the end of time, when Jesus returns, there will come the general judgment to which the Bible refers, for example, in Matthew 25:31-32: "When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." In this general judgment all our sins will be publicly revealed (Luke 12:2–5).

Augustine said, in The City of God, that "temporary punishments are suffered by some in this life only, by others after death, by others both now and then; but all of them before that last and strictest judgment" (21:13). It is between the particular and general judgments, then, that the soul is purified of the remaining consequences of sin: "I tell you, you will never get out till you have paid the very last copper" (Luke 12:59).
Christ refers to the sinner who "will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come" (Matt. 12:32), suggesting that one can be freed after death of the consequences of one’s sins. Similarly, Paul tells us 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). Now this loss, this penalty, can’t refer to consignment to hell, since no one is saved there; and heaven can’t be meant, since there is no suffering ("fire") there.

Why would anyone go to purgatory? To be cleansed, for "nothing unclean shall enter [heaven]" (Rev. 21:27). Anyone who has not been completely freed of sin and its effects is, to some extent, "unclean." Through repentance he may have gained the grace needed to be worthy of heaven, which is to say, he has been forgiven and his soul is spiritually alive. But that’s not sufficient for gaining entrance into heaven. He needs to be cleansed completely.

It is entirely correct to say that Christ accomplished all of our salvation for us on the cross. But that does not settle the question of how this redemption is applied to us. Scripture reveals that it is applied to us over the course of time through, among other things, the process of sanctification through which the Christian is made holy. Sanctification involves suffering (Rom. 5:3–5), and purgatory is the final stage of sanctification that some of us need to undergo before we enter heaven. Purgatory is the final phase of Christ’s applying to us the purifying redemption that he accomplished for us by his death on the cross.



From this it is inferred that a less than cleansed soul, even if "covered," remains a dirty soul and isn’t fit for heaven. It needs to be cleansed or "purged" of its remaining imperfections. The cleansing occurs in purgatory. Indeed, the necessity of the purging is taught in other passages of Scripture, such as 2 Thessalonians 2:13, which declares that God chose us "to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit." Sanctification is thus not an option, something that may or may not happen before one gets into heaven. It is an absolute requirement, as Hebrews 12:14 states that we must strive "for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord."

Purgatory is a step before Heaven where believers are cleaned up for the "wedding banquet" of the Lord in Heaven. Not all believers have to go through Purgatory (some go straight to Heaven) but all people in Purgatory eventually make it to Heaven. They are the elect.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

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 1030)

Answer 7

Purgatory is a place of cleansing and reparation for sin. God cannot look upon sin, so any imperfections in our nature must be dealt with before we can enter Heaven. Christ's sacrificial death on the Cross means that we are forgiven for our sins, but we still need to be cleansed of anything that is not completely pure and holy.

Think in terms of someone who accidentally backs into your car. You may forgive the person, but the damage to your car still remains and has to be repaired. Sin damages our souls, and we have to deal with the consequences of our own deliberate wrong-doing.

The doctrine of Purgatory is based on several Scriptures, particularly the one in Macabees which states that, "It is a wholesome thing to pray for the dead." It can also be inferred from the fact that Paul mentions those who were baptized for the dead: what would be the point if there was no intermediate state between death and entering Heaven?

I hope this has helped. If you have any more questions, please edit your post, and I'll try to explain in more detail.

Edit:

The doctrine of Purgatory has never been dismissed by the Catholic Church. The Pope dealt with the issue of Limbo, which was thought by some theologians to be the place where the souls of children and those righteous persons who lived before Christ were sent. To be in Limbo was to be deprived of the Beatific Vision, but there was no punishment.

Limbo was never an official doctrine of the Church, so the Pope finally laid the idea to rest. But as I said, the doctrine of Purgatory was never in question.

Edit #2:

You're welcome! As providence would have it, I just logged into the Yahoo prayer group that I manage, and someone had posted this article about Purgatory:

http://www.catholic.com/library/Purgatory.asp

This will give you a very good, detailed explaination of the doctrine of Purgatory.

Happy New Year to you and yours! :-)

Answer 8

hells waiting room.

Answer 9

Yes, it is in Sacred Scripture. In the Old Testament, it is in the Book of Maccabees(in Catholic Scripture, not Protestant), & in the New Testament, it is the Gospel according to St. Mark, chapter 3, where Christ Tells the Pharisees that except for Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, all sins can be forgiven either in this life or the next.

Answer 10

I'm not a Catholic, so someone might come up with a better answer, but my understanding is that purgatory is the space between heaven and hell, where people go who are not baptized, such as children who died before baptism or good people who died before Christ was born, such as Socrates.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a "purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven," which is experienced by those "who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified." It notes that "this final purification of the elect . . . is entirely different from the punishment of the damned."
The purification is necessary because, as Scripture teaches, nothing unclean will enter the presence of God in heaven (Rev. 21:27) and, while we may die with our mortal sins forgiven, there can still be many impurities in us, specifically venial sins and the temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven.

If I'm also not mistaken, the Pope said a few years back that purgatory doesn't really exist and people were very upset because he changed a major part of people's understanding. I could very well be wrong on this point, so it might be worth looking into.