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The Catholic Doctrine of Purgatory

Origins, Beliefs, Functions and History of Purgatory

Jul 5, 2008

Medieval Depiction of Purgatory, Catholic Spot

The Catholic Doctrine of Purgatory became firmly situated within the minds of Catholics in the second half of the twelfth century.

The Origins of the Doctrine of Purgatory

It is the Apocryphal book entitled The Maccabees that contains the integral beginnings of the doctrine of purgatory. In an obscure passage, the narrator states that it is a good thing to pray for the dead. In these few word lie the complex and fascinating origins of the doctrine of Purgatory.

What Is the Doctrine of Purgatory?

Purgatory is the intermediate state between heaven and hell where those of the dead who have not sinned greatly enough to warrant hell, but have not yet purified themselves enough in goodness to enter into heaven, go to prepare and purify themselves of sin.

According to The Birth of Purgatory by Jacque Le Goff, Purgatory is “an intermediary world” in which some of the dead are subjected to a trial that could be shortened by prayers and other spiritual assistance of those still living. According to The Divine Crucible of Purgatory by Mother Mary of St. Austin, there are several points that are absolutely essential in the understanding of purgatory.

There is a Purgatory
Those in Purgatory are in a state of grace, meaning that they will eventually be purified and enter into heaven
They suffer or undergo purifications to satisfy the justice of God for sins committed in their lives
The faithful on earth can shorten their time by offering prayers and the sacrifice of the Holy Mass.

St. Catherine of Genoa, a Catholic Saint and Mystic, seemed to be shown another view. The Lord said to her, “The cause of all the suffering through which you have to pass is better understood by experience than by reasoning. Yet know this: I make of the body a purgatory for the soul.” She seemed to experience a purgatory on earth as was demonstrated by her own life, wherein she underwent a great deal of trials and difficulties.

In Purgatory – Explained by the Lives and Legends of the Saints, by Fr. F.X. Schouppe, S.J., a plethora of mystical encounters with souls from purgatory are revealed through the visions of Catholic Saints, and in this work, each incident reveals an understanding of what is required for the expiation of certain types of sin.

Why Is Purgatory so Important?

Purgatory holds such importance for humanity because it presents a third option to heaven (total holiness) and hell (total evil) – and offers a different view into the mind of God and how He works to perfect the souls of man through this intermediate world. Perhaps purgatory is best represented by The Divine Comedy of Dante, wherein the poet Virgil takes an imaginary journey into the Inferno (Hell), Paradisio (Heaven) and Purgatorio (Purgatory). By so doing, Virgil meets those along the path who have warranted various destinies and thereby shows us our own destiny as we identify ourselves along the way.

Negating Purgatory

Saints have described it as a place of suffering and a place of purification. In order for souls to attain to the holiness required to stand in the presence of God, acute self-examination must be undergone. Self-examination is painful yet necessary for such a high attainment to be achieved.

The Chaplet of the Divine Mercy is a Catholic Devotion given to St. Faustina Kowalska in the 1930s by Jesus Christ to completely negate the time required for souls to spend in purgatory and precipitated the institution of Divine Mercy Sunday.

St. Gertrude the Great received a prayer in which she was promised by the Lord that 1,000 souls would be released from purgatory each time it was said:

"Eternal father, I offer you the most precious blood of thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. - Amen"

Sources: The Birth of Purgatory - By Jacques Le Goff, Heaven, Hell and Purgatory, The Divine Crucible of Purgatory - By Mother Mary of St. Austin, The Spiritual Doctrine of Saint Catherine of Genoa, Purgatory Explained by the Lives and Legends of the Saints - By Fr. F.X. Schouppe, S.J.

The copyright of the article The Catholic Doctrine of Purgatory in Catholicism is owned by Marilynn Hughes. Permission to republish The Catholic Doctrine of Purgatory in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.