purgatory

[Jonni]

Hi, hope you are all well.
I am new to the Catholic faith and in reading about the faith i have come across something that you guys may be able to answer.
If a Buddhist, Muslim, Protestant and so on died could they be in purgatory? I am reading a book called hungry souls. it tells you about people like sister Lucia and the apparitions in Fatima. Is there anything documented about apparitions of none catholic’s being sent to purgatory?

Many thanks in advance.

 

[bzkoss236]

Hi, hope you are all well.
I am new to the Catholic faith and in reading about the faith i have come across something that you guys may be able to answer.
If a Buddhist, Muslim, Protestant and so on died could they be in purgatory? I am reading a book called hungry souls. it tells you about people like sister Lucia and the apparitions in Fatima. Is there anything documented about apparitions of none catholic’s being sent to purgatory?

Many thanks in advance.

The answer to the first question is yes, it is possible for them to end up in purgatory, just as it is possible for you or I to end up in purgatory. Though, remember, purgatory isn’t necessarily a place, but rather a process of purification in preparation for heaven. Whether this involves a “location” is not known and so we can only speculate.

Also note, it is also possible for a Catholic, or any Christian, to go to hell if they die unrepentant of sin.

I don’t know about the second question. Maybe someone else can answer that.

 

[onjac]

I couldn’t fully understand your question but I’ll do my best to answer. You can be a Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, Protestant, etc and end up in either Heaven, purgatory or hell. A Catholic takes a different spiritual path but isn’t guaranteed to end up in Heaven, either.

 

[odile53]

One of my personal images of purgatory is this: A huge room that looks like a seedy bus terminal, overheated, stuffy, and complete with peeling paint, surly ticket agents, and a few drunks passed out in vomit in the corner, and in that big waiting room there are Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans, and Methodists all packed in because we are all too stupid to resolve the minute but significant doctrinal differences that separated us in the first place, and the Catholics are there because they did not in life try to explain why we believe what we believe to the other “first generation” split-off group.

I know that time as we understand it does not exist in Purgatory, but once a week (in my image) St. Michael himself comes in like a stern junior high school principal, AGAIN explains the minute differences and why they are erroneous, and asks for repentance among our separated brethren, and the Catholics have to write an essay about why they didn’t bother to try to explain it to someone during life, why they didn’t offer to take someone to Mass who had never been before, why they did not pray for Christian unity, and so forth. We all sit there and look stupid, because we are. Yet people went to their deaths for some of these erroneous beliefs. Then we all have to get in line and ask the surly ticket agents for our tickets, and get told that we can’t get on the bus yet. We go back and sit down in our own miserable stupidity until the next time.

There are other rooms for people who are further away from the Faith, and my personal imagination hasn’t concocted anything specific that goes on there.

That was just my own personal meditation on the subject of purgatory. I truly believe that the small but significant differences in belief among the closest-to-Catholic wounds the Heart of Christ even more than outright disbelief in Him. I pray, but don’t have much hope, that some day these things will be resolved here on earth. No, people are still having too much “fun” throwing spitballs at each other!

 

[Sarcelle]

One of my personal images of purgatory is this: A huge room that looks like a seedy bus terminal, overheated, stuffy, and complete with peeling paint, surly ticket agents, and a few drunks passed out in vomit in the corner, and in that big waiting room there are Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans, and Methodists all packed in because we are all too stupid to resolve the minute but significant doctrinal differences that separated us in the first place, and the Catholics are there because they did not in life try to explain why we believe what we believe to the other “first generation” split-off group.

I know that time as we understand it does not exist in Purgatory, but once a week (in my image) St. Michael himself comes in like a stern junior high school principal, AGAIN explains the minute differences and why they are erroneous, and asks for repentance among our separated brethren, and the Catholics have to write an essay about why they didn’t bother to try to explain it to someone during life, why they didn’t offer to take someone to Mass who had never been before, why they did not pray for Christian unity, and so forth. We all sit there and look stupid, because we are. Yet people went to their deaths for some of these erroneous beliefs. Then we all have to get in line and ask the surly ticket agents for our tickets, and get told that we can’t get on the bus yet. We go back and sit down in our own miserable stupidity until the next time.

There are other rooms for people who are further away from the Faith, and my personal imagination hasn’t concocted anything specific that goes on there.

That was just my own personal meditation on the subject of purgatory. I truly believe that the small but significant differences in belief among the closest-to-Catholic wounds the Heart of Christ even more than outright disbelief in Him. I pray, but don’t have much hope, that some day these things will be resolved here on earth. No, people are still having too much “fun” throwing spitballs at each other!

My visualization of purgatory would be a psychiatrist’s or psychologist’s office where people would reflect on their life, what they did and what they didn’t do, what attachments were currently holding them back from going to heaven.

 

[Mrs_Sally]

Best description of purgatory yet! LOL

My understanding is that in/during purgatory we are being “purged” of our own shortcomings. That though we have been forgiven, we are finishing off our penance - getting polished up for heaven.

Non-Christians who follow the natural law to the best of their ability and who practice those parts of their faith that point toward Jesus (even though they don’t believe he is God or even know much about him at all) may end up in heaven. Presumably, given the opportunity, those people would have converted in life.

The same is true of non-Catholic Christians who practice the Christian faith in a way that aligns with the truths of the Church (because there are definately examples of people using Christianity in a very unChristian way!)

Conversely, Catholics, who should know better, but who are lackdasical in their devotion or who presume on a well-timed last confession to sneak them into heaven, may find themselves very suprised!

Whatever may have been stated in a private revelation, we need to follow what the Church teaches and not be too hung up on any specific apparition or message.

 

[thistle]

Hi, hope you are all well.
I am new to the Catholic faith and in reading about the faith i have come across something that you guys may be able to answer.
If a Buddhist, Muslim, Protestant and so on died could they be in purgatory? I am reading a book called hungry souls. it tells you about people like sister Lucia and the apparitions in Fatima. Is there anything documented about apparitions of none catholic’s being sent to purgatory?

Many thanks in advance.

A non-Catholic MAY, not will, be saved only if they are truly invincibly ignorant (meaning through no fault of their own they do not know Christ and his Church [the Catholic Church] but in that ignorance live a life according to Christ’s teachings).
However, the Church does not specify who might be captured under invincible ignorance so it is all speculation.