When I was attending Protestant churches, I heard many arguments against the Catholic faith or aspects of the Catholic faith. Many of them were simple misunderstandings, or lack of clarification, some dating back to the time of Martin Luther. One of the biggest sticking points though was the notion of Purgatory. Protestants claimed Purgatory was not in the Bible and was man-made tradition. While there are many aspects of the Catholic faith that are Tradition, most if not all of them have some Biblical backing. Purgatory is no different. (it's also important to note that the Bible for itself speaks of traditions. See 2 Thessalonians 2:15) Today, I'd like to discuss Purgatory, and clear some of the air around it.
Purgatory is not a state between Heaven and Hell. It's not a final chance to receive salvation if one has not attained it. Purgatory is for those who have died in a state of grace and are saved, but still need a final purification before entering the Kingdom of Heaven. Purgatory like a refinery, removing what final impurities, earthly desires, and attachments we have. While these attachments and desires may not necessarily have been bad, They prevent us from fully experiencing the eternal joy and bliss that is Heaven. The souls in Purgatory are holy, and they're happy to be there because it means that one day they will enter Paradise.
How long does someone stay in Purgatory? It depends on what all needs done for them to enter heaven, And that is forgot alone to decide. Yet, Purgatory, like heaven is not subject to earthly time constraints. The world beyond is eternal. A great analogy is Narnia in C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia. When the children enter in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, they stay until adulthood, and after many years, return to Earth and find that it is the exact moment in which they left. In the following novel, Prince Caspian, they enter again to find that 1,000 years have passed. Using these images, CS Lewis shows us that Heaven, Purgatory, and Hell are not limited by our time.
Now, the all important question: Where is this in the Bible? In Catholic Bibles, there are the books of 1st and 2nd Maccabees, the story of Judas Maccabeus, a Jewish general who lived and fought about 50 years before Jesus's birth. These books, Along with the books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, and Sirach, were removed from the Bible by Martin Luther at the time of the Protestant Reformation. In Second Maccabees 12:38– 46, Judas Maccabeus discovers that his soldiers have been killed because they were wearing graven images of neighboring heathen gods. He then takes up a collection, and offers a prayer in atonement for their sins they may be forgiven. If there was no hope of their salvation, and the soldiers were condemned for their sin, and offering would not have been made. This indicates that at least some Jews believe in a final atonement or purification before the Resurrection.
Jesus references this belief many times in the Gospels. During the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5) He tells his disciples, "Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him, otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny." Jesus is discussing eternal salvation and the afterlife. He isn't simply talking about earthly morality. In today's Gospel, Jesus speaks of the king throwing a servant in prison for not forgiving his fellow servants a smaller debt than the King forgave him. Jesus said he would be handed over until he paid off the entire debt. Both of these situations implied eventual release, otherwise Jesus would've simply said that the person was condemned.
However, the strongest evidence for Purgatory in the New Testament is found in St. Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. In first Corinthians 3:12-15, St. Paul writes, "If anyone builds on this foundation cold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, work of each will come to light, for the Day will disclose it. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each one's work. If the work stands that someone built upon the foundation, that person will receive wage. But if someone's work is burned up, that one will suffer a loss; the person will be saved, only as through fire." Here, Paul speaks of the foundation of faith, in the necessity for that faith to have strength. Paul speaks of fire being used to purify and test the work of the faithful. As I mentioned in a previous blog post our actions and works alone cannot save us. God's grace is the only thing that can redeem us, but we have to accept His grace through our actions. Yet, as we see here, our actions have merit, and what we build in faith will be tested.
As we've seen here, there is strong evidence for existence of Purgatory in the Bible. Is a Tradition that dates back to the time of the Apostles. The idea of Purgatory should not scare us, but should gives us hope. Purgatory is not our final destination. It means we're saved, and will one day enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The souls in Purgatory are awaiting God. They're praying for us that we may experience eternal life as they will. We should also pray for them, which is why many Catholic Masses are offered for the dead and why Catholics pray for the repose of the souls of those who have gone before us. Purgatory is a place of preparation, the final dress rehearsal before standing before God, the final refining and purifying of our hearts. It is where we pay our final debts before entering salvation.
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