Purgatory and Indulgences

[Thomas1981]

I recently joined the Catholic Church as a former Lutheran. Yesterday my sister gave me this petition book that used to belong to my grandmother (she was a very faithful Catholic her whole life). The book was from 1954, so pre-Vatican II. In it there was this section on indulgences with reference to purgatory. Like if you say this prayer every day for a year you will get 300 days knocked off of purgatory and such. Then there was this thing about plenary indulgences. I don’t hear people talk much about indulgences and purgatory anymore. Is this still something that’s really important in the Church or is this something that has been downplayed after Vatican II, or both!? I understand there are lots of misconceptions about Vatican II. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[spedteacherita]

I recently joined the Catholic Church as a former Lutheran. Yesterday my sister gave me this petition book that used to belong to my grandmother (she was a very faithful Catholic her whole life). The book was from 1954, so pre-Vatican II. In it there was this section on indulgences with reference to purgatory. Like if you say this prayer every day for a year you will get 300 days knocked off of purgatory and such. Then there was this thing about plenary indulgences. I don’t hear people talk much about indulgences and purgatory anymore. Is this still something that’s really important in the Church or is this something that has been downplayed after Vatican II, or both!? I understand there are lots of misconceptions about Vatican II. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

It must be still important because I sometimes watch the EWTN’s kids shows which are animated Priests and Nuns teaching children about some aspect of Catholicism and there have been a couple that I have seen several times where the focus is teaching children that when they do something there are indulgences created for someone in Purgatory. My brain isn’t working for me right now to tell you exactly what the kids were doing.

 

[Thomas1981]

I have a sense that it is still important. I will ask my deacon more about it. I just don’t know if it is one of those “optional” sorts of things or not. I went to Catholic school until fourth grade and I don’t remember them ever talking about purgatory. Maybe I was too young.

 

[InThePew]

Purgatory’s a bit out of fashion these days but it’s still a part of Catholic doctrine as a sort of in between stage before we can be one with God and see him face to face. The way I’ve explained it before is like our eyes adjusting to bright sunlight after stepping outside. Indulgences help to reduce that adjustment period by making us more like God through doing the things which attract indulgences.

The difficulty in talking about indulgences though is that God is outside of time - so references to 300 days’ reduction for example are just a means of expressing something which we have no other way of expressing.

 

[Vico]

I recently joined the Catholic Church as a former Lutheran. Yesterday my sister gave me this petition book that used to belong to my grandmother (she was a very faithful Catholic her whole life). The book was from 1954, so pre-Vatican II. In it there was this section on indulgences with reference to purgatory. Like if you say this prayer every day for a year you will get 300 days knocked off of purgatory and such. Then there was this thing about plenary indulgences. I don’t hear people talk much about indulgences and purgatory anymore. Is this still something that’s really important in the Church or is this something that has been downplayed after Vatican II, or both!? I understand there are lots of misconceptions about Vatican II. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

Purgatory is a dogma of faith as well as that the Church possesses the power to grant Indulgences and that the use of Indulgences is useful and salutary to the Faithful. The Congregation responsible for issuing them is the Apostolic Penitentiary, part of the Roman Curia.

This being dogma of the faith, and beneficial, it is very important aspect of the Church.

It is a misconception that one can “get 300 days knocked off of purgatory and such”. The days refers to how much equivalent penance was necessary here on earth in earlier times. That was revised in 1967 and currently the amount of remission is “in proportion to the devotion with which those good works are performed or prayers recited”.

All the older indulgences were abrogated in 1987. Some of the former indulgences were renewed, however, after that. The Church has published the indulgences that may be obtained. It is entitled the Enchridion Indulgentarium Normae et Concessiones currently in the fourth revision from from 1999. Some more have even been added since then.

Latin: vatican.va/roman_curia/tribunals/apost_penit/documents/rc_trib_appen_doc_20020826_enchiridion-indulgentiarum_lt.html

catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=1292

 

[twf]

Vico is completely correct. The “days” have nothing to do with the actual time in purgatory. We have no way to measure time in purgatory. If an indulgence was assigned “300 days”, that meant the Church, in her mercy, was applying the merits of 300 days of penance to the particular action. So while you would simply say a few simple prayers, God would count it as if you had done 300 days of penance. In doing so, the Church drew upon the merits of Our Lord, Our Lady, and the saints, for in Christ we are one body and the fruit of one member benefits all.

 

[Vico]

Purgatory is a dogma of faith as well as that the Church possesses the power to grant Indulgences and that the use of Indulgences is useful and salutary to the Faithful. The Congregation responsible for issuing them is the Apostolic Penitentiary, part of the Roman Curia.

This being dogma of the faith, and beneficial, it is very important aspect of the Church.

It is a misconception that one can “get 300 days knocked off of purgatory and such”. The days refers to how much equivalent penance was necessary here on earth in earlier times. That was revised in 1967 and currently the amount of remission is “in proportion to the devotion with which those good works are performed or prayers recited”.

All the older indulgences were abrogated in 1987. Some of the former indulgences were renewed, however, after that. The Church has published the indulgences that may be obtained. It is entitled the Enchridion Indulgentarium Normae et Concessiones currently in the fourth revision from from 1999. Some more have even been added since then.

Latin: vatican.va/roman_curia/tribunals/apost_penit/documents/rc_trib_appen_doc_20020826_enchiridion-indulgentiarum_lt.html

catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=1292

The date of the abrogation was 1968 (not 1987 as posted).

Enchiridion indulgentiarum: normae et concessiones

Prima editio, mense iunio 1968 - Secunda editio, mense octobri 1968 - Tertia editio, mense maio 1986 - Quarta editio, mense iulio 1999

 

[Thomas1981]

Thank you very much Vico, twf, and InThePew for your helpful explanations. My understanding of this is much improved and I will consult the sources you suggested to further it. There is so much to learn about the Catholic faith!

God Bless You!