Purgatory: The First of Many Reasons Why I Could Never Be Catholic

One of my biggest concerns –– if not the biggest –– is the Catholic doctrine of purgatory (formally declared 1274 AD).¹ I find this belief to be contrary to God’s nature and His infallible Word: The Bible. Why would God the Father, whose Son voluntarily underwent an excruciating death to pay for our sin and save us from eternal damnation, then turn around and send us to purgatory to be sanctified by an agonizing fire for an indefinite amount of time? Was the Savior’s sacrifice or the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work (Philippians:1:6Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
See All...) insufficient to the task? Why would a loving Father do this to His own children? Why do Catholics believe this when there is virtually no scriptural support for it outside of their additional books² in the Roman Catholic Bible?³

If the doctrine of purgatory is true, would not Jesus have discussed it at length with the disciples or at least mentioned it? The Catholic Church also shares the same books of the New Testament in which Protestants believe; so where did this doctrine come from if not from Christ, not from the Apostle Paul, nor any other New Testament writer? This question speaks to the debate regarding the source of our authority. Is it Sola Scriptura — Scripture alone as taught by the Protestant Church; or is it Prima Scriptura — Scripture plus church tradition, Scripture plus the teaching authority of the Magisterium (the Pope and Bishops)?⁴ What should Christians believe when purgatory is not clearly addressed –– or even alluded to, in my opinion –– within the Protestant Bible?

Understanding the RCC Doctrines of Purgatory and Sanctifying Grace 

“As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.”⁵

According to Catholic Answers website: “The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a “purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven,” which is experienced by those “who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified”⁶. It notes that “this final purification of the elect … is entirely different from the punishment of the damned”⁷.

“The purification is necessary because, as Scripture teaches, nothing unclean will enter the presence of God in heaven (Rev:21:27And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
See All...) and, while we may die with our mortal sins forgiven, there can still be many impurities in us, specifically venial sins⁸ and the temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven.”⁹

 What Does It Mean to Be “Sanctified?”

The word grace denotes God’s unmerited love and favor toward human beings. It can be broadly understood as kindness or blessings from God that we don’t deserve. The word sanctify as it pertains to the life of a Christian means “to set a person apart for holiness” or “to make holy.”¹⁰

In Protestantism, Christians enter sanctification — a state of holiness and growing in holiness at the moment they are born of the Spirit of God: “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe” (Rms 3:22) regardless of whether they have been physically water baptized.

However, this does not mean that we are without sin for the rest of our life. It simply means we are no longer slaves to it (Rms 6:1-7). We are positionally set apart from sin (1 Cor:6:11And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
See All..., 1:2; Heb:10:10By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
See All...,14,29; Rms 1:7). We then continue to become more like Christ as we live according to His will (1 Pet:1:15-16 [15] But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; [16] Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
See All...). At God’s timing, we are fully sanctified once we enter heaven (1 John:3:2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
See All..., Rms 8:29).¹¹ Furthermore, Protestantism teaches it is not our works that sanctify us, but the finished work of Christ and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Christ sanctifies us through the truth of his Word (Eph:5:25-26 [25] Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; [26] That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
See All..., John:17:17Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
See All...), and it is the Holy Spirit Who changes hearts so that we want to follow Christ (2 Thess 2:13, 1 Peter:1:2Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
See All...).

The RCC, on the other hand, teaches the doctrine of sanctifying grace, which refers to a specific supernatural infusion of God’s grace that, via the Catholic sacrament of water Baptism, makes a person holy and pleasing to God. The RCC teaches that at Baptism, sanctifying grace is received, and a person becomes part of the Body of Christ and “… becomes a ‘son of light,’ indeed, he becomes ‘light’ himself”¹² “… it is necessary for salvation.”¹³ Thus, they are able to receive additional graces for living a holy life.

The Catholic can eventually gain full and final justification by sustaining this relationship with God, cooperating with His continuing graces, and not committing any mortal sins¹⁴ without subsequent penance.¹⁵ Thus, “sanctifying grace” is also called the “grace of justification,” because it is the grace that makes a soul acceptable or justified before God. ¹⁶ As the Catholic Catechism states: “Justification is conferred in Baptism, it conforms us to the righteousness of God …”¹⁷

Only at the end of this process of cooperation (that is, at death) will a Catholic person know for certain if they are fully justified. If he or she is not fully justified at death, then they go to purgatory to complete the sanctification process. According to Catholic Answers: “Through repentance, he (the sinner) may have gained the grace needed to be worthy of heaven, which is to say, he has been forgiven and his soul is spiritually alive. But that is not sufficient for gaining entrance into heaven. He needs to be cleansed completely.”¹⁸

In explaining purgatory to non-Catholics, RCC apologists will paint a picture of what we need to do after we have been given access to God’s house. (i.e., initial salvation) We don’t want to enter God’s house covered in filth. Before we sit down to dinner with God, we need to wash up and put on our finest clothes. Purgatory is presented as the final step in preparation to enter God’s presence. (Compare with 2 Cor:5:8We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
See All... “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.”) RCC apologists use the example of the thief on the cross (Luke:23:33And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.
See All...–43) to justify the doctrine of purgatory¹⁹ and argue that, in addition to being justified by faith, good works are also necessary for salvation. Purgatory is an intermediate place where final purification occurs for those who lack sufficient good works. Should the thief, who was saved from damnation because of coming to faith at the last minute, be given the same privileges as that of the Catholic saint? Catholic Answers realizes the eyewitness of the thief on the cross (Luke:23:42-43 [42] And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. [43] And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
See All...) calls their claims into question and works hard but unpersuasively to make him the exception to the rule.²⁰ 

The writer of Hebrews quotes from this Psalm to argue that “we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time” (Heb:10:10By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
See All...). Christ’s blood not only justifies us once for all time but also sanctifies us once for all time.

For the full article and footnotes, see:

https://midwestoutreach.org/2023/07/20/purgatory-the-first-of-many-reasons-why-i-could-never-be-catholic/