Im terrified of purgatory ,is there any way to avoid purgatory

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Trap_344

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I never knew what purgatory was tell here recently and from how it was describe was like a temporary hell , is this true ,how can i avoid it or is it something everybody goes through. Sorry for the bad english
 
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The simple answer is yes: become a saint. There is a path to sainthood for everyone.

It is not like Hell. It’s not pleasant, after all it’s a time of purification, but if you’re in Purgatory you know you made it, you’ll get to be in Heaven with God and there are no more doubts about His existence or His Love. I imagine that’s extremely comforting for those souls.
 
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I used to be afraid of Purgatory. I’m not afraid any more because both St. Therese of Lisieux, who is a doctor of the Church, and St. Faustina, who started the Divine Mercy devotion, taught that one can avoid Purgatory by trusting completely in God’s mercy. So now I do that.

(I am more afraid of my loved ones getting sent there, so I make use of indulgences and Gregorian Masses in order to help them if they need help. If they don’t need help then the prayers and Masses will go to help someone else who does.)

There is also a famous book called “How to Avoid Purgatory” that offers a lot of helpful tips. It was written some decades ago and therefore does not mention the Divine Mercy as that teaching had not been approved when the book came out. But lots of the other things it suggests, like going to confession frequently and praying for the Poor Souls in Purgatory, is good advice. You can read it for free online.

https://www.ewtn.com/library/spirit/avoidprg.txt
 
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don’t sin…

or go to confession as often as needed

saying a rosary every day will help…
 
Well, Trap,
I imagine Billy Graham went straight up! Live as Christ and our Saints. Purity of mind. No evil or bad thoughts. Don’t watch Tv or Movies w impure morals. Don’t listen to immoral music. Basically, cool Christian music is available.
Purity in body. Modest, clean dress.(male and female).
Purity of soul= no anger, no hate, no profane words or saying the name of our Lord in vain.
Self-control. Ppl feel God’s love shining through you.
It is a tough assignment.
Purgatory is to purge our souls of unresolved sin. We cannot enter heaven, where it is sinless, w sin. Mary showed the kids of Fatima, Purgatory by opening the earth and letting them peek. It was fiery and hot. I’m not going to throw in some other thoughts here. It might be nicer but after the Fatima vision, I don’t know. It sounds like hell hut temporary.
Go to confession frequently. Go to mass and communion regularly. Live w joy in Jesus, though.
God is Not the author of fear, but of a sound mind.
In Christ’s Love
Tweedlealice
 
To avoid purgatory:

Take advantage of indulgences, and make a firm intention not to sin; however, when you do, seek the sacrament of holy reconciliation immediately.

Once you have done that, receive Holy Communion (the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ) as soon and as often as possible, since it is the antidote to sin (together with avoiding the near occasion of sin) - in the Christian East, the Holy Eucharist is called the “medicine of immortality”.
 
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that’s a tough regimen;

sounds solid theologically 🙂

i am not 100% sure “billy graham” was not an anti-catholic bigot

i could post some links

but i won’t do it now because, well just because…
 
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Yeah! We are to be Christ. Ask Him daily,” What do You want me to do today? Figure it out and serve Him. Lift His Name higher and higher. Bring in His Sheaves… We need to be out there fighting the evil w conversions in a stubborn world.
Help us Lord.
In Hesus Name
Tweedlealice
 
tweedlealice said:
I imagine Billy Graham went straight up!
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While I do not disagree with the fact that we should “live as Christ and our saints” as much as we can, you and I have absolutely no idea where Billy Graham went.
We pray for him as we pray for all deceased souls as it is possible that he had to go to Purgatory for a while.
I would presume from his good public life that he managed to avoid Hell, but we don’t even know that for sure.
 
Trap_344 said:
I never knew what purgatory was tell here recently and from how it was describe was like a temporary hell , is this true ,how can i avoid it or is it something everybody goes through. Sorry for the bad english
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I will do what I can in this life to avoid or minimize my stay in Purgatory, but I will not fear it. Yes, there may be suffering, but the joy will also be greater than what we experience in this life. Purgatory is not a prison; it is a state of charity, because everybody there is in a state of sanctifying grace. This means the love in Purgatory is something even better than we find on earth. Because of that charity, souls in Purgatory stay there because they know they are not ready.

I still always think of Fr. Benedict Groeschel’s description: Between Purgatory and Heaven is an open door, and God is there, inviting you in. It is you who lovingly tells God, not yet; you will be there when you know you are fully cleansed.

If I find myself in Purgatory, I’d rejoice to be there.
 
Agreed.

We do him no favors by asuing he is already in heaven. Instead, we should pray for his happy repose.
 
Brittany said:
Purgatory will be painful … but it’s not like hell.
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Not true according to St. Thomas Aquinas and others. For example, :
in a book available on EWTN for free or on Amazon for purchase, Purgatory is described as a prison of fire in which you will suffer the intensest pain. One minute in the horrific fire of Purgatory will seem like a century of fire . St. Thomas Aquinas says that the fire of Purgatory is equal in intensity to the fire of Hell, and that the slightest contact with it is more dreadful than all the possible sufferings of this Earth.
Read Me or Rue it by Fr. Paul O’Sullivan with APPROVAL OF HIS EMINENCE THE CARDINAL PATRIARCH OF LISBON
http://www.ewtn.com/library/SPIRIT/READRUE.TXT
 
Judgement is God’s domain but Pope Jogn Paul II went straight up. Some lives just shine Jesus. He traveled most all countries. He wasn’t killed in some. Truly a miracle. Throngs of millions came forward. Jesus couldn’t come until the whole world heard about Him. This was his mission. Now, TV Evangelists continue. In Africa, God has sent a good bit to convert and guide them. Horrible circumstances to live in.
Goodness exudes from their Spirits. Discernment of Spirits.
In Christs love
Tweedlealice
I never speak if a person and destination if a Southern trip is possible. That is condemning. Lives such as theirs, all one can say is going home to Jesus.
 
I agree with Brian Custer here.
Don’r sin.
Set yourself strongly against it.
 
AlNg said:
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Brittany:
Purgatory will be painful … but it’s not like hell.
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Not true according to St. Thomas Aquinas and others. For example, :
in a book available on EWTN for free or on Amazon for purchase, Purgatory is described as a prison of fire in which you will suffer the intensest pain. One minute in the horrific fire of Purgatory will seem like a century of fire . St. Thomas Aquinas says that the fire of Purgatory is equal in intensity to the fire of Hell, and that the slightest contact with it is more dreadful than all the possible sufferings of this Earth.
Read Me or Rue it by Fr. Paul O’Sullivan with APPROVAL OF HIS EMINENCE THE CARDINAL PATRIARCH OF LISBON
http://www.ewtn.com/library/SPIRIT/READRUE.TXT
Click to expand...
As esteemed as St. Thomas Aquinas and co. are, they do not constitute the Magisterium, and the medieval Western imagery of a “horrific” purgatory goes against what the Church really teaches of it. Read Me or Rue It is an especially unpleasant take on Purgatory, something which the Church has never magisterially defined.

Yes, it must be admitted that there is suffering in Purgatory. Such is the nature of being cleansed, and such is the conclusion one can draw from the Church’s teaching that prayers for the dead benefit them. But “horrific?” Absolutely not. There is nothing “horrific” about a state where all the souls are in a state of grace, and therefore existing in a state of charity, among everyone there, something that can hardly be said of this wayfaring state. If there’s anything to be considered “horrific”, it’s hell, then this life. Souls suffering in a state of sanctifying grace, but yet borne out of love for God with the absolute firm assurance that they are saved can constitute nothing more than a suffering borne with a joy in excess of what we experience in this life. It would be a joy similar to that experienced by the martyrs as they sang praises to God on the way to their deaths. Their suffering was intense, but their joy abundant.

Portraying Purgatory as a kind of temporary hell does a disservice to such a beautiful and merciful dogma of the Church and strikes unnecessary fear into the faithful, as evidenced by the OP of this thread.
 
mdgspencer said:
Don’r sin.

Set yourself strongly against it.
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The problem with this is, humans sin. Even with the best will in the world, you’re going to commit sins, because you are human and fallible.
Even the saints committed sins. Some of them worried very much over their own salvation.

So, while avoiding sin is always a good thing to do, you’re never going to be able to do it 100%.

That is where the “trust in God’s mercy” comes in. In addition to trying to do all you can to live a good life, you should always pray for God’s mercy and help at the hour of your death, and for Mary’s help at the hour of your death (we actually pray for this every time we say a “Hail Mary” because it contains the line “pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death”).
 
porthos11 said:
Portraying Purgatory as a kind of temporary hell does a disservice to such a beautiful and merciful dogma of the Church and strikes unnecessary fear into the faithful, as evidenced by the OP of this thread.
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You said yourself that there is suffering in Purgatory. Purgatory is not a pleasant place to be. If it was pleasant and a walk in the park, then we wouldn’t be praying so hard to get souls out of it and on their way.

We do not know whether it has fire or might be horrific at least for some souls. It’s entirely possible that Purgatory for some souls might be worse than for others, or that there are “levels” of purification. While it is true that Aquinas, Padre Pio, and other saints do not constitute the Magisterium, I’m not inclined to dismiss their teachings out of hand just because they’re scary. They may well be right; at best, we can say that we do not know for sure.

But in any event, if we trust in God’s mercy we do not have to worry about whether Purgatory is a lake of fire or a glorified waiting room lobby, because we won’t be going there.
 
Not everybody goes through it. We are humble and do not want to take God for granted, so we say purgatory. Most of us who practice our Catholic religion reasonably probably can go straight to heaven. There are so many graces available for us to make that possible. God does not want it to be difficult for us.

Here’s a few things you can habitually observe - be holy, go for Confession regularly and the Eucharist, involve in some work of charity either corporately or personally, and have regular prayer life to sustain and guide you spiritually.

God bless you.
 
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