Where does the Bible speak of purgatory?

[ann_marie_alma]

Greetings! I am a non-Catholic with many questions (as I consider joining with the Catholic faith), but will try to be brief:
1a-Where does the Bible speak of Purgatory? b-How does praying people through it work?
2-Why are prayers to Mary and the saints encouraged? Can you specify Bible verses to support this belief?
3-Where can I get a copy of the catechism?
4-I have a very old family Bible that contains the Maccabes and a couple of other books not found in the Bible I was raised with. The Wesleyan church I attended for a while shunned these books and would not even consider my parusing them. What is your opinion of these “lost” books?

Thank you for your time and patience! God Bless!

 

[Devon_Caffran]

The following links should assist you in better understanding the Catholic Church’s teaching on the awesome gift of Purgatory.

Recommended Reading:
Do you have a history of Purgatory?
Purgatory in Scripture

These links should be helpful for understanding the Communion of Saints.

Recommended reading:
The Intercession of the Saints (Fathers*)
Praying to the Saints
Saint Worship?
Do Catholics Worship Statues?

These links will help you find a copy of The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Recommended reading:
Catechism of the Catholic Church, Pocket Edition
Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition
Compendium To The Catechism Of The Catholic Church

These links should be helpful for explaining the Church’s continued inclusion of the deuterocanonical books in the Bible.(sometimes referred to by Protestants as the Apocrypha, which BTW can also be found in the actual 1611 edition KJB which are still available.) If you have any further questions or concerns that are not answered by these links, please contact Catholic Answers directly.

Recommended Reading:
The Old Testament Canon
How to prove deuterocanonical books are inspired?
Did Catholics add books to the Bible?
Original books of Bible