Purgatory, few questions

  • Thread starter Thread starter StormSurfer
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
S

StormSurfer

Guest
So, here is the question:

If you are a revert from Christianity (hope I said that right, I was once a Christian, but I am not now) do you go to purgatory, or straight to Hell? Or is this not really a question for Christians, but to God? Also, if I was to go to Purgatory, what happens to me?

Thanks for Answers, and I hope you guys/gals have a good day.

Your Friend,
StormSurfer
 
i ws just doing some research on this kind of thing.

the Catholic Church teaches that only Catholics can go to Heaven. But there are some people who are “Catholic” in the “inner forum” of their hearts, just not in the external forum of official mmembership in the Church… and those have a chance, although it is very difficult … to be totally Catholic and not a member of Christ’s Church… Even so i have seen Protestants who are more Catholic than mnay Catholics… Protestants do have more time in Purg according to some saint or another… because thye don’t have that connection with the True Church.

if i had heard this maybe 8 years ago or so i would have been astounded… and would have questioned it far more than i do now…

but I don’t question it at ALL now… i have studied things and been through things & seen things that make it impossible to doubt this. I would say i know it… but that sounds arrogant… even so, i know it

… and after all these years of studying (history/teachings of Church, Scripture) and experiencing this and that (frequent Mass, the rosary, etc) and observing other’s lives, etc… i am 200% convinced its true…

that’s because absolute truth abides in this one Church that God established on Earth… One God, one truth… one Church
 
Purgatory is for all those who have not become sufficiently purified so as to enter Heaven…

the average stay there is supposed to 40 years… some longer, some shorter… according to a very reliable source… saints.

you can shorten your time in Purgatory by praying rosaries, going to mass often… and spending time in the Real Presence…(the souls being purged in Purgatory are supposedto be there with Christ). i find spending time there in total silence is very helpful although some pray rosaries there… which i have done also… i guess you just have to go by the Spirit to know which is best for whichever mood you are in or whatever… Well, i guess that didnt sound right… it should be the Holy Spirit that guides, not mood but sometimes hard to tell the difference… 😃
 
StormSurfer said:
So, here is the question:

If you are a revert from Christianity (hope I said that right, I was once a Christian, but I am not now) do you go to purgatory, or straight to Hell? Or is this not really a question for Christians, but to God? Also, if I was to go to Purgatory, what happens to me?

Thanks for Answers, and I hope you guys/gals have a good day.

Your Friend,
StormSurfer
Click to expand...
A “revert” is someone who left a religion for another (or no religion), then they come back (or “revert” back to their former religion). So, you would be a revert if you come back to Christianity.

We don’t really say who goes to Hell. You are right, this is not really a question for Christians, but for God. If you left Christianity, that does not necessarily mean that you are going to Hell, however in our opinion, the full means of salvation, as well as the encompassing world view, is found in Christianity, specifically the Catholic Church. There are many reasons why people leave Christianity, so it’s not possible to generalize that if someone leaves Catholicism or Christianity in general, they are off to Hell. We believe that Catholicism has the fullness of Truth, however that does not mean that non-Catholics or non-Christians are automatically off to Hell. However, all that are saved are saved through Jesus Christ.

Purgatory is purification before entrance to Heaven. Not all those that are saved will be purified in Purgatory. Many believe that there is a purifying (purging) fire in Purgatory, though perhaps the fire is more of an analogy. The point is that all in Purgatory are saved, and will be in Heaven with God after purification.
 
Officially, there has been no statement on how “long” one remains in Purgatory, especially because Purgatory may have a different “time” concept than we experience now.
 
distracted said:
i ws just doing some research on this kind of thing.

the Catholic Church teaches that only Catholics can go to Heaven. But there are some people who are “Catholic” in the “inner forum” of their hearts, just not in the external forum of official mmembership in the Church… and those have a chance, although it is very difficult … to be totally Catholic and not a member of Christ’s Church… Even so i have seen Protestants who are more Catholic than mnay Catholics… Protestants do have more time in Purg according to some saint or another… because thye don’t have that connection with the True Church.

if i had heard this maybe 8 years ago or so i would have been astounded… and would have questioned it far more than i do now…

but I don’t question it at ALL now… i have studied things and been through things & seen things that make it impossible to doubt this. I would say i know it… but that sounds arrogant… even so, i know it

… and after all these years of studying (history/teachings of Church, Scripture) and experiencing this and that (frequent Mass, the rosary, etc) and observing other’s lives, etc… i am 200% convinced its true…

that’s because absolute truth abides in this one Church that God established on Earth… One God, one truth… one Church
Click to expand...
Well there’s a few corrections here

The Catholic church does not teach that only Catholics go to heaven. It does however teach that everyone who does go to heaven gets there through the Catholic Church. So if you’re Baptist (for instace), you’re not going to Hell. Rather, because of your imperfect connection to the Catholic Church, provided you have the faith, and you keep the morals to the best of your understanding, you can go to heven. This will happen due to your being a member of the body of Christ, through the Catholic Church.

As far as people who have lost the faith… I guess I can’t answer with certainty. I can only offer my best, current understanding. That is this:

While it is true that non-christians can make to to heaven, it’s only because there is a certain fine print. That fine print is this, you’re not Christian because no one has taught you the true nature of God as reveled by Jesus Christ.

Notice, you have to be ignorant of Christ. If you’ve fallen away, you ar e not ingorant of Christ. You’ve been taught the truth, and you rejected it. If you remain unrepentant in your rejection of Christ, until it is too late (whether Christ might come to you in the final moment, and offer you one more chance none of us can answer), then I don’t beleive you can make it to heaven. Because you can’t make it to heaven, you would never make it to purgatory, as all soles here will eventually make it to Heaven.

Again, I’m not proporting to be an expert in all things here. This is my best answer at this time, and I do trust God will do everything possible (perhaps many things outside my capability to comprahend) to try and get you to heaven. But I think at the end of the day, you know Christ. You can accept or reject the truth of God as reveled by Christ. If you do so, then I think you can’t make it to heaven.
 
What an interesting thought. But, I would be more interested in what made you think or rather what did you do to be once deserving to have received the gift you now claim to have abandoned, and what have you replaced it with? If you have found a better authority I would certainly be interested.
 
distracted said:
Purgatory is for all those who have not become sufficiently purified so as to enter Heaven…

the average stay there is supposed to 40 years… some longer, some shorter… according to a very reliable source… saints.

you can shorten your time in Purgatory by praying rosaries, going to mass often… and spending time in the Real Presence…(the souls being purged in Purgatory are supposedto be there with Christ). i find spending time there in total silence is very helpful although some pray rosaries there… which i have done also… i guess you just have to go by the Spirit to know which is best for whichever mood you are in or whatever… Well, i guess that didnt sound right… it should be the Holy Spirit that guides, not mood but sometimes hard to tell the difference… 😃
Click to expand...
 
Where in God’s word do you find the 40 year benchmark for purgatory. I’d sure like to read that. Thanks
 
sholland98 said:
Where in God’s word do you find the 40 year benchmark for purgatory. I’d sure like to read that. Thanks
Click to expand...
As others have said, these “benchmarks” come from the spiritual experiences of various Catholics (private revelations), and are not doctrinal. They are not binding on Catholics.
 
sholland98 said:
What an interesting thought. But, I would be more interested in what made you think or rather what did you do to be once deserving to have received the gift you now claim to have abandoned, and what have you replaced it with? If you have found a better authority I would certainly be interested.
Click to expand...
Who are you talking too?
 
crazzeto said:
Well there’s a few corrections here

The Catholic church does not teach that only Catholics go to heaven. It does however teach that everyone who does go to heaven gets there through the Catholic Church. So if you’re Baptist (for instace), you’re not going to Hell. Rather, because of your imperfect connection to the Catholic Church, provided you have the faith, and you keep the morals to the best of your understanding, you can go to heven. This will happen due to your being a member of the body of Christ, through the Catholic Church.

As far as people who have lost the faith… I guess I can’t answer with certainty. I can only offer my best, current understanding. That is this:

While it is true that non-christians can make to to heaven, it’s only because there is a certain fine print. That fine print is this, you’re not Christian because no one has taught you the true nature of God as reveled by Jesus Christ.

Notice, you have to be ignorant of Christ. If you’ve fallen away, you ar e not ingorant of Christ. You’ve been taught the truth, and you rejected it. If you remain unrepentant in your rejection of Christ, until it is too late (whether Christ might come to you in the final moment, and offer you one more chance none of us can answer), then I don’t beleive you can make it to heaven. Because you can’t make it to heaven, you would never make it to purgatory, as all soles here will eventually make it to Heaven.
.
Click to expand...
if this sounds arrogant, sorry… sometimes truth sounds all kinds of weird ways…but my post is a more accurate portrayal of the Catholic view…

for instance it is wrong to say that Baptists will go to Heavnen. some do some don’t…

if one is a baptist and suspects the RCc may be right about some things… and doesn’t bother ivnestigating things… that person could be in serious trouble.

**Jesus said ti is hard to make it into Heavne… **i think the main reason he said that is because peple dont want to change, don’t want to give up thingsthat drag them to Hell… material things, lack of charity… sex… e tc…

if he said its hard to get there we should never act like … well, like just anyone can get into Heaven… better to err on the side of caution.
 
StormSurfer said:
So, here is the question:

If you are a revert from Christianity (hope I said that right, I was once a Christian, but I am not now) do you go to purgatory, or straight to Hell? Or is this not really a question for Christians, but to God? Also, if I was to go to Purgatory, what happens to me?

Thanks for Answers, and I hope you guys/gals have a good day.

Your Friend,
StormSurfer
Click to expand...
If you were once a Christian then you should know that Jesus is “the truth the way and the life”, and no one is saved unless they believe in him. I don’t know why you left Christianity, you have your reasons, but keep in mind that you have put your soul in jeapardy. And no, you will not got to Purgatory. You have rejected Jesus, who is God, and the truth. Salvation is only through Him and through no other means. I would give
serious thought in reviewing your decision. I cannot say if you will go to hell, that is up to you and God alone. But I can say that you are headed in that direction. I will pray for you.

PAX DOMINI :signofcross:

Shalom Aleichem
 
i’ve always believed that Jesus has told us that anyone who does His work can enter heaven, not only those who belonged to His group

The Good Samaritan is one

the other is the Parable of Two Sons, where one son says he will do what his father asked and didn’t do it (a Catholic who is baptized but doesn’t go to church, doesn’t do good deeds, etc) and the other son who told his father he will not do what he asks, but later thinks about it and does what the father asked (non-Catholics or non-Christians who are righteous and charitable, etc.)

of course there is no greater guarantee to be in the presence of God in the next life if we keep the faith and do all that He asks of us. Jesus will be the one to judge and no one on earth can speak for what His judgement might be.

think of it this way. think of going to Heaven as driving home. and thinking of being in another faith as being drunk. you may make it home, you may not. why put the big risk? drive home sober! 👍
 
Javl said:
If you were once a Christian then you should know that Jesus is “the truth the way and the life”, and no one is saved unless they believe in him. I don’t know why you left Christianity, you have your reasons, but keep in mind that you have put your soul in jeapardy. And no, you will not got to Purgatory. You have rejected Jesus, who is God, and the truth. Salvation is only through Him and through no other means. I would give
serious thought in reviewing your decision. I cannot say if you will go to hell, that is up to you and God alone. But I can say that you are headed in that direction. I will pray for you.

PAX DOMINI :signofcross:

Shalom Aleichem
Click to expand...
I’ll pray for you too :).
 
distracted said:
if this sounds arrogant, sorry… sometimes truth sounds all kinds of weird ways…but my post is a more accurate portrayal of the Catholic view…

for instance it is wrong to say that Baptists will go to Heavnen. some do some don’t…

if one is a baptist and suspects the RCc may be right about some things… and doesn’t bother ivnestigating things… that person could be in serious trouble.

**Jesus said ti is hard to make it into Heavne… **i think the main reason he said that is because peple dont want to change, don’t want to give up thingsthat drag them to Hell… material things, lack of charity… sex… e tc…

if he said its hard to get there we should never act like … well, like just anyone can get into Heaven… better to err on the side of caution.
Click to expand...
Agreed. What the Catholic Church says is that it is possible for people not in “visible” (can’t think of a good word) communion with the Church to be saved. So it’s not correct to say that Baptists are saved, but that it’s possible for Baptists to be saved. And everyone saved is saved through Jesus Christ.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top