I do not think you understand the Catholic position.
Christ’s death and resurrection were and are ‘sufficient’ to forgive any and all sins.
But the Catholic position is not, and never was, that Christ’s death and resurrection were NOT sufficient, so that’s a strawman.
The Catholic position is that, as with everything else salvific, our cooperation is required. Christ gives us sufficient grace for salvation–every one of us–but we must cooperate with that grace. The man (or woman) who persists in sin is not ‘saved in spite of himself’.
If Christ’s death and resurrection worked to cover sin ‘sufficiently’ enough that nothing else were needed, then the worst unrepentant axe murderer would enter heaven. After all, his sins were ‘forgiven’, weren’t they?
But, you’ll say, cooperation is assumed. A simple ‘confession with the mouth’ is all that is needed. Thus, that same axe murderer, should he profess Christ as Lord, is assumed then to ‘cooperate’ and thus walk into heaven just as freely as the person he murdered, should that person likewise have ‘confessed with the mouth.’
But. . .I recall passages from Matthew where Jesus speaks of the judgment, where people are separated into ‘sheep’ and ‘goats’. Now, none of these are told, “did you confess me with your mouth? Advance into heaven!” No, rather they are told, “I was hungry and you fed me” or "I was hungry, and you did not feed me’.
Actions seem to matter a great deal more than words. Because many of these people never actually thought that they were doing anything for CHRIST Himself. “Confessing Him with the mouth” was not even on the list. “Doing unto others” was.
The action of killing a person is a great evil. Even when the action is forgiven, the effect of the killing remains. The victim’s life cut short, the trauma to the family members, the effects on thousands of lives throughout time. . .these remain. Justice demands that this be recognized. In spite of forgiveness, restitution must be made.
Since forgiveness (if confessed sincerely) we know will be given, it stands to reason that there must be some way of making restitution for the ‘effects’ of mortal sins. This is justice; the mercy of course is that we are forgiven in the first place.
Purgatory is justice. No one is ever sent to HELL from Purgatory. Only those ‘forgiven’ who yet have to restore the temporal effects from their sins and can no longer do so on earth enter purgatory. We know from scripture that nothing evil can enter heaven. The residual effects of the evil keep a person from heaven. He must be ‘saved, as though through fire’ as Scripture tells us. It is a cooperative effort with Christ, made possibly ONLY through His mercy, acknowledging the forgiveness that makes Purgatory POSSIBLE.
