Purgatory

Let me deal with a misunderstanding first.1. Contrary to Iano’s claim, the RC Church does not claim that faith and deeds can get you into heaven. It is grace, the RC Church teaches that “has the power to justify us, that is, to cleanse us from our sins and to communicate to us ”the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ . ’” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1987).“Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God.” (CCC, 1996).Now if it’s a gift that means that those who are aware of it must either choose to accept it or reject it. For those who accept it, lets call that faith. But if we suppose that this is where our spiritual journey ends, then that would be a tragic mistake for as James says, ”What good is it for someone to say that he has faith if his actions do not prove it?’ (James 2:14). We’d do well also to consider Jesus’ own parable about how on judgment day all people will be divided into two groups: Those who have fed the hungry, given drink to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked, given help to the sick, and visted those in prison, against those who have done none of this. (Matthew 25:31-45).Faith and works are not separate entities. They are parts of the same act of devotion.With regards to Purgatory, it is important to realize that it was believed by the earliest members of Christianity, as well as the Jews before them. II Maccabees 12:39-45 illustrates this historical truth. I want to make a very important distinction. II Maccabees 12:39-45 does two things. First it makes the philosophical/theological claim that to pray for the dead is a good thing, implying that there is some sort of intermediate state where departed individuals can benefit from our prayers. This claim can be rejected by those who do not view Maccabees as Sacred Scripture. But the second point is the one relevant to this post. The verse makes the historical claim that certain Jews from this time prayed for those who had died.Around the time of Jesus, we have rabbinical writings testifying to the existence of a ”Purgatory,’ though they would not have used that particular word.And throughout early Christianity we have hosts of early Church Fathers endorsing the view, as well as Biblical authors that are see to be hinting towards it.Flags often start flying when the word ”Purgatory’ is mentioned. This is because these individuals have a deep and sincere devotion to the Bible and they believe that the doctrine of Purgatory is extra-Biblical. Members of the RC Church would disagree.Logically speaking, from a Christian perspective, all people are sinners. While Jesus died for our sins, it doesn’t change the fact that we still sin, and it doesn’t change the fact that we are in need of forgiveness. When we die we will die a sinful being. But Revelation 21:27 states that nothing unclean will enter heaven. And that is why Christians believe Jesus dies for us, so that we can be made pure and pleasing to God. The Bible does not tell us how Jesus’ death washes away our sins, it just tells us that they do. Its not unreasonable to suppose that at our death, those who have died in God’s friendship will find that that grace is personally activated and they are purified.This is what Purgatory can be. The Church’s catechism states that it has not determined whether it is a place or a process or both. The point is though that purification takes place, and all Christian’s believe this. Catholics calls this Purgatory.This is a complex subject so if anyone wishes further detail on certain elements of my post, then please say so. If not, view this as a brief response correcting the misconceptions about the faith/works controversy, as well as an intro to the subject of Purgatory.EVC's Resident Priest