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Tomster
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Let us turn to the Holy Scriptures.
In considering the passages of Scripture that bear on Purgatory, we must not imagine that the Church at some time noticed these passages, concluded from them that there must be a purgatory, and thereafter began a new teaching and a new practice of praying for the souls there. For the Church had the Catholic faith and the Catholic religion complete from the beginning in all its substance. The doctrine of purgatory was not learned from the texts of in the Scriptures. But these texts were written by men who, in the Jewish Church or in the Catholic Church, already knew this doctrine. That the dead are to be judged according to their works; that there sins make it a terrible thing to be judged by God; that the souls need his mercy if they are to enter heaven; that we, their brethren in the family of God, ought to pray him to show them this mercy - these are the essential facts, known to the Jews before our Lord’s time, and familiar to the New Testament writers. Judas Machabeus found concealed on the bodies of his men who had fallen in battle the offerings they had looted from the pagan temple. “And making a gathering, he sent twelve thousand drachms of silver to Jerusalem for sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the dead;” which leads the inspired writer to say that it is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their sins (2 Machabees 12:40-46).
Our Lord’s disciples were familiar with this knowledge about sin and judgment; and hearing his teachings, they would understand them just as we do, who are familiar with the same truths. They heard him saying that he will render to every man according to his works (Matthew 16:27); that some sins are to be punished with many stripes ansd some with few (Luke 12: 47-48); that some people have many sins to be forgiven, and some but few (Luke 7:47); that for every idle word we shall render an account in the day of judgment (Matthew 12:36); that some sins will not be forgiven in this world nor in the next (Matthew 12:32). All this would lead them the more to pray for their dead; for while it deepened their sense of the holiness of God before which the dead are judged, it also kindled their hopes of his merciful forgiveness.
He told them the stern truths of death and judgment and hell; that in this life heaven must be won: “Are there not twelve hours of the day? (John 11:9) Walk while you have the light (John 12:35); the night cometh in which no man can work (John 9:4); this night do they require thy soul of thee (Luke 12:20); the rich man died and was buried in hell (Luke 16:22); there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12). But there was nothing to suggest that only the spotlessly pure can escape hell. On the contrary, the judgment, instant and strict, is also just. Each shall receive according to his works; some shall be beaten with many stripes, some with few.
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Church_Militant
Guest
Jesus is not, then, referring to the possibility of cleansing in the future, but is instead speaking of an “eternal sin,” one that has no forgiveness whatsoever. Matt 12:32 has nothing to do with purgatory as the parallel verse in Mark shows. A sin that can never be forgiven.
First the verse is about Christian workers, not all Christians.
There is nothing in this verse about temporal punishments for sin.
There is nothing in this verse about purging or cleansing.
The verse refers to a testing of WORKS not of souls or persons.
The WORKS of hay and stubble are burned. It speaks of the quality of a mans work, and the fire is figurative.
Rome has never officially declared the meaning of this passage.
The NewAdvent.org site claims this verse for Limbo, as does the Douay, Baltimore, and Pope Pius X, Catechisms. Under the heading LIMBUS PATRUM.
"St. Peter still more explicitly teaches that “being put to death indeed, in the flesh, but enlivened in the spirit,” Christ went and “preached to those souls that were in prison, which had been some time incredulous, when they waited for the patience of God in the days of Noah” (1 Peter 3:18-20). "
newadvent.org/cathen/09256a.htm
**As we can see it surely is not in the Bible.**Thank you for stating your interpretation of all those verses, but I’ve seen them all before and the narrow interpretation you take is typical of those who wish to deny the implied teachings of the Word of God. You see the same sort of thing with the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists on other issues.
As I said before the scriptures do indeed support a purgatorial state and the Jews believe in it to this day. I’ll stick with the Word of God and the historic teachings of Christianity, especially when even the Jews who reject Jesus as the Christ can see and understand what you reject.
I don’t care very much what New Advent says…last time I checked they nowhere claim infallibility…and rightly so. Limbo is irrelevant to this topic. Purgatory is real. Limbo has never been taught as Catholic dogma or doctrine, though many a-Cs wish.
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Fidelis
Guest
Incorrect. Similarity does not equal source. It’s almost as silly as the charge that pictures of Mary and the Baby Jesus have their origin in pagan images of a godess and her child. Hello?? There are mothers and babies in ALL societies. Trouble is, there are just so many visual images to go around.
Read this:
Is Catholicism Pagan?
catholic.com/library/Is_C…cism_Pagan.asp
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kaycee
Guest
As I said before the scriptures do indeed support a purgatorial state and the Jews believe in it to this day. I’ll stick with the Word of God and the historic? teachings of Christianity, especially when even the Jews who reject Jesus as the Christ can see and understand what you reject.Guess your not a Newman fan (progressive illumination)
Guess you not a fan of the Douay, Baltimore, and Pope Pius X, Catechisms either then.
Gotta love all this unity.
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westcoast
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