Purgatory - Revision history

TeraS at 03:14, 18 June 2017

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	[[File:V.Carmen de Beniajan-general.jpg\|thumb\|upright\|right\|Our Lady of Mount Carmel with angels and souls in Purgatory. Baroque sculpture from Beniajan, Spain]]		[[File:V.Carmen de Beniajan-general.jpg\|thumb\|upright\|right\|Our Lady of Mount Carmel with angels and souls in Purgatory. Baroque sculpture from Beniajan, Spain]]
	[[File:Folio 113v - Purgatory.jpg\|thumb\|right\|upright\|Image of a fiery purgatory in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry]]		[[File:Folio 113v - Purgatory.jpg\|thumb\|right\|upright\|Image of a fiery purgatory in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry]]
	While use of the word "Purgatory" (in Latin ''purgatorium'') as a noun appeared perhaps only between 1160 and 1180, giving rise to the idea of purgatory as a place<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=DnEQQaTQy4wC&pg=PA18&dq=le+goff+purgatoire&cd=4#v=onepage&q=le%20goff%20purgatoire&f=false Megan McLaughlin, Consorting with Saints: Prayer for the Dead in Early Medieval France (Cornell University Press 1994 ISBN 978-0-8014-2648-3), p. 18]</ref> (what Jacques Le Goff called the "birth" of purgatory),<ref>LeGoff, Jacques. ''The Birth of Purgatory''. Trans. Arthur Goldhammer. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1986, Pg 362–66</ref> the Roman Catholic tradition of Purgatory as a transitional condition has a history that dates back, even before Jesus Christ, to the worldwide practice of caring for the dead and praying for them, and to the belief, found also in Judaism,<ref>Cf. Maccabees 12:42–44 NRSV</ref> which is considered the precursor of Christianity, that prayer for the dead contributed to their afterlife purification. The same practice appears in other traditions, such as the medieval Chinese Buddhist practice of making offerings on behalf of the dead, who are said to suffer numerous trials.<ref name="EB">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9061946/purgatory Purgatory] in Encyclopædia Britannica</ref> Roman Catholic belief in Purgatory is based, among other reasons, on the previous Jewish practice of prayer for the dead,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III 1032]</ref> a practice that presupposes that the dead are thereby assisted between death and their entry into their final abode.<ref name="EB"/> It is also based on various passages of Scripture and on the Sacred Tradition of the Church.		While use of the word "Purgatory" (in Latin ''purgatorium'') as a noun appeared perhaps only between 1160 and 1180, giving rise to the idea of purgatory as a place<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=DnEQQaTQy4wC&pg=PA18&dq=le+goff+purgatoire&cd=4#v=onepage&q=le%20goff%20purgatoire&f=false Megan McLaughlin, Consorting with Saints: Prayer for the Dead in Early Medieval France (Cornell University Press 1994 ISBN 978-0-8014-2648-3), p. 18]</ref> (what Jacques Le Goff called the "birth" of purgatory),<ref>LeGoff, Jacques. ''The Birth of Purgatory''. Trans. Arthur Goldhammer. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1986, Pg 362–66</ref> the Roman Catholic tradition of Purgatory as a transitional condition has a history that dates back, even before Jesus Christ, to the worldwide practice of caring for the dead and praying for them, and to the belief, found also in Judaism,<ref>Cf. Maccabees 12:42–44 NRSV</ref> which is considered the precursor of Christianity, that prayer for the dead contributed to their afterlife purification. The same practice appears in other traditions, such as the medieval Chinese Buddhist practice of making offerings on behalf of the dead, who are said to suffer numerous trials.<ref name="EB2">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9061946/purgatory Purgatory] in Encyclopædia Britannica</ref> Roman Catholic belief in Purgatory is based, among other reasons, on the previous Jewish practice of prayer for the dead,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III 1032]</ref> a practice that presupposes that the dead are thereby assisted between death and their entry into their final abode.<ref name="EB"/> It is also based on various passages of Scripture and on the Sacred Tradition of the Church.

	Belief in after-life "temporary punishments agreeable to every one's behaviour and manners" was expressed in the early Christian work in Greek known as Josephus's Discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades, which was once attributed to Josephus (37 – c. 100) but is now believed to be by Hippolytus of Rome (170–235).<ref>''Discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades'', paragraph 1</ref>		Belief in after-life "temporary punishments agreeable to every one's behaviour and manners" was expressed in the early Christian work in Greek known as Josephus's Discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades, which was once attributed to Josephus (37 – c. 100) but is now believed to be by Hippolytus of Rome (170–235).<ref>''Discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades'', paragraph 1</ref>

TeraS at 20:16, 27 October 2014

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	* [http://www.churchfathers.org/category/salvation/purgatory/ Church Fathers on Purgatory]		* [http://www.churchfathers.org/category/salvation/purgatory/ Church Fathers on Purgatory]
	* [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/483923/purgatory Purgatory]. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2009.		* [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/483923/purgatory Purgatory]. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2009.
	* [http://www.paintedchurch.org/chaldon.htm English c. 1200 wall painting with an image of a ladder, reminiscent of icons such as the ''[[Ladder of Divine Ascent ~~(icon)\|Ladder of Divine Ascent]]~~'', which has been interpreted as a "purgatorial ladder"]		* [http://www.paintedchurch.org/chaldon.htm English c. 1200 wall painting with an image of a ladder, reminiscent of icons such as the ''Ladder of Divine Ascent'', which has been interpreted as a "purgatorial ladder"]

TeraS: /* Heaven and Hell */

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Heaven and Hell

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	====Heaven and Hell====		====Heaven and Hell====
	[[File:Cristobal Rojas 46a.JPG\|thumb\|upright\|right\|A depiction of purgatory by Venezuelan painter Cristóbal Rojas (1890) representing the boundary between heaven (above) and hell (below)]]		[[File:Cristobal Rojas 46a.JPG\|thumb\|upright\|right\|A depiction of purgatory by Venezuelan painter Cristóbal Rojas (1890) representing the boundary between heaven (above) and hell (below)]]
	According to Catholic belief, immediately after death, a person undergoes ~~[[particular~~ judgment~~\|judgment]]~~ in which the soul's eternal destiny is specified.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2L.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1021–1022]</ref> Some are eternally united with God in [[Heaven]], envisioned as a paradise of eternal joy, where ~~[[Divinization (Christian)\|~~Theosis]] is completed and one experiences the [[beatific vision]] of God. Conversely, others (those who die in hatred of God and Christ) reach a state called [[Hell]], that is eternal separation from God often envisioned as an abode of never ending, fiery torment, a fire sometimes considered to be ~~[[metaphor]]ical~~.<ref>Cf. [http://books.google.com/books?id=9uxX38ARtGcC&pg=PA222&dq=purgatory+fire+catholic&hl=en&ei=duQbTqe_LofOhAfXypjJBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBjgU#v=onepage&q&f=false David L. Schindler, ''Love Alone Is Credible'' (Eerdmans 2008 ISBN 978-0-8028-6247-1), p. 222]</ref>		According to Catholic belief, immediately after death, a person undergoes judgment in which the soul's eternal destiny is specified.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2L.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1021–1022]</ref> Some are eternally united with God in [[Heaven]], envisioned as a paradise of eternal joy, where Theosis is completed and one experiences the beatific vision of God. Conversely, others (those who die in hatred of God and Christ) reach a state called [[Hell]], that is eternal separation from God often envisioned as an abode of never ending, fiery torment, a fire sometimes considered to be metaphorical.<ref>Cf. [http://books.google.com/books?id=9uxX38ARtGcC&pg=PA222&dq=purgatory+fire+catholic&hl=en&ei=duQbTqe_LofOhAfXypjJBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBjgU#v=onepage&q&f=false David L. Schindler, ''Love Alone Is Credible'' (Eerdmans 2008 ISBN 978-0-8028-6247-1), p. 222]</ref>

	====Role====		====Role====

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Role

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	====Role====		====Role====
	In addition to accepting the states of Heaven and Hell, Catholicism envisages a third state before being admitted to heaven. According to Catholic doctrine, some souls are not sufficiently free from the ~~[[Wiktionary:~~temporal~~\|temporal]]~~ effects of sin and its consequences to enter the state of Heaven immediately, nor are they so sinful and hateful of Christ as to be destined for Hell either.<ref>Cf. [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030–1032]</ref> Such souls, ultimately destined to be united with God in Heaven, must first endure Purgatory – a state of purification.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030–1032]</ref> In Purgatory, souls "achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven."<ref> Purgatory is only for those destined towards heaven, and is viewed as a preparation for the [[Beautific Vision]]. [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm CCC 1054]</ref> The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus Christ, through the [[atonement]] saves all Christians from hell, however because of the love of the Father, he does not remit the punishment incurred by our sins because to do so would be unjust and ultimately unloving. God gives [[temporal punishment]] to the elect as an act of love that ultimately makes Christian sinners turn from their evil ways and embrace the fullness of Christian truth in life and doctrine.		In addition to accepting the states of Heaven and Hell, Catholicism envisages a third state before being admitted to heaven. According to Catholic doctrine, some souls are not sufficiently free from the temporal effects of sin and its consequences to enter the state of Heaven immediately, nor are they so sinful and hateful of Christ as to be destined for Hell either.<ref>Cf. [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030–1032]</ref> Such souls, ultimately destined to be united with God in Heaven, must first endure Purgatory – a state of purification.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030–1032]</ref> In Purgatory, souls "achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven."<ref> Purgatory is only for those destined towards heaven, and is viewed as a preparation for the Beautific Vision. [http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm CCC 1054]</ref> The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus Christ, through the atonement saves all Christians from hell, however because of the love of the Father, he does not remit the punishment incurred by our sins because to do so would be unjust and ultimately unloving. God gives temporal punishment to the elect as an act of love that ultimately makes Christian sinners turn from their evil ways and embrace the fullness of Christian truth in life and doctrine.

	Temporal punishment and eternal punishment are incurred by [[mortal sin]] and hate of Jesus Christ, but eternal punishment is normally remitted by the [[sacrament of reconciliation]] (known also as the sacrament of penance or confession) or confession to God. The remaining temporal punishment may be remitted by sufferings in this life or acts of charities (donations to charities dedicated towards Christian work), the Church, or after death in Purgatory, with the assistance of prayers (including [[Requiem Masses]] offered for the deceased on Earth, devotions, and mortifications of Christians still living) or other means known to God. The Catholic Church also teaches that the Lord may hold back the punishment due to sin, due to his ability to act as the sole judge of the living and the dead (as is the case with St. Paul, Acts 9:3-9), or he might choose to release the fullness of his wrath against it (the death of [[Ananias and Sapphira]], Acts 5:1-11).		Temporal punishment and eternal punishment are incurred by mortal sin and hate of Jesus Christ, but eternal punishment is normally remitted by the sacrament of reconciliation (known also as the sacrament of penance or confession) or confession to God. The remaining temporal punishment may be remitted by sufferings in this life or acts of charities (donations to charities dedicated towards Christian work), the Church, or after death in Purgatory, with the assistance of prayers (including Requiem Masses offered for the deceased on Earth, devotions, and mortifications of Christians still living) or other means known to God. The Catholic Church also teaches that the Lord may hold back the punishment due to sin, due to his ability to act as the sole judge of the living and the dead (as is the case with St. Paul, Acts 9:3-9), or he might choose to release the fullness of his wrath against it (the death of Ananias and Sapphira, Acts 5:1-11).

	====Sin====		====Sin====

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Sin

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	====Sin====		====Sin====
	Catholics make a distinction between two types of sin.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1854]</ref> [[Mortal sin]] is a "sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent",<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1857]</ref> and if it is not redeemed by repentance and God's forgiveness, it causes exclusion from Christ's kingdom and the eternal death of Hell.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1861]</ref> This teaching on the consequences of unrepented sin is based on both ~~[[Bible\|~~Sacred Scripture]] and [[Sacred Tradition]].		Catholics make a distinction between two types of sin.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1854]</ref> Mortal sin is a "sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent",<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1857]</ref> and if it is not redeemed by repentance and God's forgiveness, it causes exclusion from Christ's kingdom and the eternal death of Hell.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM CCC 1861]</ref> This teaching on the consequences of unrepented sin is based on both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

	In contrast, [[venial sin]] (meaning "forgivable" sin) "does not set us in direct opposition to the will and friendship of God"<ref name="CCC 1863">[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P6C.HTM CCC 1863]</ref> and, although still "constituting a moral disorder",<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p3s1c1a8.htm#IV CCC 1875]</ref> does not deprive the sinner of friendship with God, and consequently the eternal happiness of heaven.<ref name="CCC 1863"/>		In contrast, venial sin (meaning "forgivable" sin) "does not set us in direct opposition to the will and friendship of God"<ref name="CCC 1863">[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P6C.HTM CCC 1863]</ref> and, although still "constituting a moral disorder",<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p3s1c1a8.htm#IV CCC 1875]</ref> does not deprive the sinner of friendship with God, and consequently the eternal happiness of heaven.<ref name="CCC 1863"/>

	According to Catholicism, pardon of sins and purification can occur during life – for example, in the ~~[[Baptism#Baptism and salvation in Catholic teaching\|~~Sacrament of Baptism]]<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P3N.HTM CCC 1263]</ref> and the [[Sacrament of Penance ~~(Catholic Church)\|Sacrament of Penance]]~~.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4F.HTM CCC 1468]</ref> However, if this purification is not achieved in life, venial sins can still be purified after death.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030]</ref> The specific name given to this purification of sin after death is "purgatory".<ref name="CCC 1031">[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1031]</ref>		According to Catholicism, pardon of sins and purification can occur during life – for example, in the Sacrament of Baptism<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P3N.HTM CCC 1263]</ref> and the Sacrament of Penance.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4F.HTM CCC 1468]</ref> However, if this purification is not achieved in life, venial sins can still be purified after death.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1030]</ref> The specific name given to this purification of sin after death is "purgatory".<ref name="CCC 1031">[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm#III CCC 1031]</ref>

	====Pain and fire====		====Pain and fire====

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2014-10-27T20:11:26Z

Pain and fire

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	====Pain and fire====		====Pain and fire====
	Purgatory is commonly regarded as a cleansing by way of painful temporal punishment, which, like the eternal punishment of hell, is associated with the idea of fire.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12575a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory]</ref> While "pain of the senses" (as opposed to "pain of longing" for the Beatific Vision) is not doctrinally defined as being a part of Purgatory, the overwhelming consensus of theologians has been that it does involve pain of the senses. Several Church Fathers regarded Corinthians 3:10–15 NKJV as evidence for the existence of an intermediate state in which the dross of lighter transgressions will be burnt away, and the soul thus purified will be saved.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> Fire was the Bible-inspired image ("We went through fire and through water")<ref>Ps 66:12</ref> that Christians used for the notion of after-life purification.<ref name=Lacoste>[http://books.google.com/books?q=Lacoste+%22tested+by+fire%22&btnG=Search+Books&oq= Jean-Yves Lacoste, Encyclopedia of Christian Theology (Taylor and Francis, 2004 ISBN 978-1-57958-250-0), p. 1322]</ref> [[St. Augustine]] described the fires of cleansing as more painful than anything a man can suffer in this life,<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> and Pope Gregory I wrote that there must be a cleansing fire for some minor faults that may remain to be purged away.<ref>"Each one will be presented to the Judge exactly as he was when he departed this life. Yet, there must be a '''cleansing fire''' before judgment, because of some minor faults that may remain to be purged away. Does not Christ, the Truth, say that if anyone blasphemes against the Holy Spirit he shall not be forgiven 'either in this world or in the world to come'(Mt. 12:32)? From this statement we learn that some sins can be forgiven in this world and some in the world to come. For, if forgiveness is refused for a particular sin, we conclude logically that it is granted for others. This must apply, as I said, to slight transgressions." Gregory the Great [regn. A.D. 590–604], Dialogues, 4:39 (A.D. 594).</ref> Origen wrote about the fire that needs to purify the soul<ref>"For if on the foundation of Christ you have built not only gold and silver and precious stones (1 Cor.,3); but also wood and hay and stubble, what do you expect when the soul shall be separated from the body? Would you enter into heaven with your wood and hay and stubble and thus defile the kingdom of God; or on account of these hindrances would you remain without and receive no reward for your gold and silver and precious stones; neither is this just. It remains then that you be committed to the fire which will burn the light materials; for our God to those who can comprehend heavenly things is called a cleansing fire. But this fire consumes not the creature, but what the creature has himself built, wood, and hay and stubble. It is manifest that the fire destroys the wood of our transgressions and then returns to us the reward of our great works." Origen, Homilies on Jeremias, PG 13:445, 448 ( A.D. 244).</ref>[[St. Gregory of Nyssa]] also wrote about the purging fire.<ref>"When he has quitted his body and the difference between virtue and vice is known he cannot approach God till the '''purging fire''' shall have cleansed the stains with which his soul was infested. That same fire in others will cancel the corruption of matter, and the propensity to evil." Gregory of Nyssa, Sermon on the Dead, PG 13:445,448 (ante A.D. 394).</ref>		Purgatory is commonly regarded as a cleansing by way of painful temporal punishment, which, like the eternal punishment of hell, is associated with the idea of fire.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12575a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory]</ref> While "pain of the senses" (as opposed to "pain of longing" for the Beatific Vision) is not doctrinally defined as being a part of Purgatory, the overwhelming consensus of theologians has been that it does involve pain of the senses. Several Church Fathers regarded Corinthians 3:10–15 NKJV as evidence for the existence of an intermediate state in which the dross of lighter transgressions will be burnt away, and the soul thus purified will be saved.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> Fire was the Bible-inspired image ("We went through fire and through water")<ref>Ps 66:12</ref> that Christians used for the notion of after-life purification.<ref name=Lacoste>[http://books.google.com/books?q=Lacoste+%22tested+by+fire%22&btnG=Search+Books&oq= Jean-Yves Lacoste, Encyclopedia of Christian Theology (Taylor and Francis, 2004 ISBN 978-1-57958-250-0), p. 1322]</ref> St. Augustine described the fires of cleansing as more painful than anything a man can suffer in this life,<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> and Pope Gregory I wrote that there must be a cleansing fire for some minor faults that may remain to be purged away.<ref>"Each one will be presented to the Judge exactly as he was when he departed this life. Yet, there must be a '''cleansing fire''' before judgment, because of some minor faults that may remain to be purged away. Does not Christ, the Truth, say that if anyone blasphemes against the Holy Spirit he shall not be forgiven 'either in this world or in the world to come'(Mt. 12:32)? From this statement we learn that some sins can be forgiven in this world and some in the world to come. For, if forgiveness is refused for a particular sin, we conclude logically that it is granted for others. This must apply, as I said, to slight transgressions." Gregory the Great [regn. A.D. 590–604], Dialogues, 4:39 (A.D. 594).</ref> Origen wrote about the fire that needs to purify the soul<ref>"For if on the foundation of Christ you have built not only gold and silver and precious stones (1 Cor.,3); but also wood and hay and stubble, what do you expect when the soul shall be separated from the body? Would you enter into heaven with your wood and hay and stubble and thus defile the kingdom of God; or on account of these hindrances would you remain without and receive no reward for your gold and silver and precious stones; neither is this just. It remains then that you be committed to the fire which will burn the light materials; for our God to those who can comprehend heavenly things is called a cleansing fire. But this fire consumes not the creature, but what the creature has himself built, wood, and hay and stubble. It is manifest that the fire destroys the wood of our transgressions and then returns to us the reward of our great works." Origen, Homilies on Jeremias, PG 13:445, 448 ( A.D. 244).</ref>St. Gregory of Nyssa also wrote about the purging fire.<ref>"When he has quitted his body and the difference between virtue and vice is known he cannot approach God till the '''purging fire''' shall have cleansed the stains with which his soul was infested. That same fire in others will cancel the corruption of matter, and the propensity to evil." Gregory of Nyssa, Sermon on the Dead, PG 13:445,448 (ante A.D. 394).</ref>

	[[File:Wimpfen-stadtkirche-predell.jpg\|thumb\|left\|Another image of [[soul]]s being purified by flames in purgatory]]		[[File:Wimpfen-stadtkirche-predell.jpg\|thumb\|left\|Another image of [[soul]]s being purified by flames in purgatory]]

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2014-10-27T20:10:22Z

Pain and fire

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	====Pain and fire====		====Pain and fire====
	Purgatory is commonly regarded as a cleansing by way of painful temporal punishment, which, like the eternal punishment of hell, is associated with the idea of fire.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12575a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory]</ref> While "pain of the senses" (as opposed to "pain of longing" for the [[Beatific Vision]]) is not doctrinally defined as being a part of Purgatory, the overwhelming consensus of theologians has been that it does involve pain of the senses. Several [[Church Fathers]] regarded ~~{{bibleverse\|1\|~~Corinthians\|3:10–15\|NKJV}} as evidence for the existence of an intermediate state in which the dross of lighter transgressions will be burnt away, and the soul thus purified will be saved.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> Fire was the Bible-inspired image ("We went through fire and through water")<ref>~~{{bibleref2\|~~Ps\|66:12}}</ref> that Christians used for the notion of after-life purification.<ref name=Lacoste>[http://books.google.com/books?q=Lacoste+%22tested+by+fire%22&btnG=Search+Books&oq= Jean-Yves Lacoste, Encyclopedia of Christian Theology (Taylor and Francis, 2004 ISBN 978-1-57958-250-0), p. 1322]</ref> [[St. Augustine]] described the fires of cleansing as more painful than anything a man can suffer in this life,<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> and ~~[[Gregory the Great\|~~Pope Gregory I]] wrote that there must be a cleansing fire for some minor faults that may remain to be purged away.<ref>"Each one will be presented to the Judge exactly as he was when he departed this life. Yet, there must be a '''cleansing fire''' before judgment, because of some minor faults that may remain to be purged away. Does not Christ, the Truth, say that if anyone blasphemes against the Holy Spirit he shall not be forgiven 'either in this world or in the world to come'(Mt. 12:32)? From this statement we learn that some sins can be forgiven in this world and some in the world to come. For, if forgiveness is refused for a particular sin, we conclude logically that it is granted for others. This must apply, as I said, to slight transgressions." Gregory the Great [regn. A.D. 590–604], Dialogues, 4:39 (A.D. 594).</ref> [[Origen]] wrote about the fire that needs to purify the soul<ref>"For if on the foundation of Christ you have built not only gold and silver and precious stones (1 Cor.,3); but also wood and hay and stubble, what do you expect when the soul shall be separated from the body? Would you enter into heaven with your wood and hay and stubble and thus defile the kingdom of God; or on account of these hindrances would you remain without and receive no reward for your gold and silver and precious stones; neither is this just. It remains then that you be committed to the fire which will burn the light materials; for our God to those who can comprehend heavenly things is called a cleansing fire. But this fire consumes not the creature, but what the creature has himself built, wood, and hay and stubble. It is manifest that the fire destroys the wood of our transgressions and then returns to us the reward of our great works." Origen, Homilies on Jeremias, PG 13:445, 448 ( A.D. 244).</ref>[[St. Gregory of Nyssa]] also wrote about the purging fire.<ref>"When he has quitted his body and the difference between virtue and vice is known he cannot approach God till the '''purging fire''' shall have cleansed the stains with which his soul was infested. That same fire in others will cancel the corruption of matter, and the propensity to evil." Gregory of Nyssa, Sermon on the Dead, PG 13:445,448 (ante A.D. 394).</ref>		Purgatory is commonly regarded as a cleansing by way of painful temporal punishment, which, like the eternal punishment of hell, is associated with the idea of fire.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12575a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory]</ref> While "pain of the senses" (as opposed to "pain of longing" for the Beatific Vision) is not doctrinally defined as being a part of Purgatory, the overwhelming consensus of theologians has been that it does involve pain of the senses. Several Church Fathers regarded Corinthians 3:10–15 NKJV as evidence for the existence of an intermediate state in which the dross of lighter transgressions will be burnt away, and the soul thus purified will be saved.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> Fire was the Bible-inspired image ("We went through fire and through water")<ref>Ps 66:12</ref> that Christians used for the notion of after-life purification.<ref name=Lacoste>[http://books.google.com/books?q=Lacoste+%22tested+by+fire%22&btnG=Search+Books&oq= Jean-Yves Lacoste, Encyclopedia of Christian Theology (Taylor and Francis, 2004 ISBN 978-1-57958-250-0), p. 1322]</ref> [[St. Augustine]] described the fires of cleansing as more painful than anything a man can suffer in this life,<ref name="Catholic Encyclopedia on Purgatory"/> and Pope Gregory I wrote that there must be a cleansing fire for some minor faults that may remain to be purged away.<ref>"Each one will be presented to the Judge exactly as he was when he departed this life. Yet, there must be a '''cleansing fire''' before judgment, because of some minor faults that may remain to be purged away. Does not Christ, the Truth, say that if anyone blasphemes against the Holy Spirit he shall not be forgiven 'either in this world or in the world to come'(Mt. 12:32)? From this statement we learn that some sins can be forgiven in this world and some in the world to come. For, if forgiveness is refused for a particular sin, we conclude logically that it is granted for others. This must apply, as I said, to slight transgressions." Gregory the Great [regn. A.D. 590–604], Dialogues, 4:39 (A.D. 594).</ref> Origen wrote about the fire that needs to purify the soul<ref>"For if on the foundation of Christ you have built not only gold and silver and precious stones (1 Cor.,3); but also wood and hay and stubble, what do you expect when the soul shall be separated from the body? Would you enter into heaven with your wood and hay and stubble and thus defile the kingdom of God; or on account of these hindrances would you remain without and receive no reward for your gold and silver and precious stones; neither is this just. It remains then that you be committed to the fire which will burn the light materials; for our God to those who can comprehend heavenly things is called a cleansing fire. But this fire consumes not the creature, but what the creature has himself built, wood, and hay and stubble. It is manifest that the fire destroys the wood of our transgressions and then returns to us the reward of our great works." Origen, Homilies on Jeremias, PG 13:445, 448 ( A.D. 244).</ref>[[St. Gregory of Nyssa]] also wrote about the purging fire.<ref>"When he has quitted his body and the difference between virtue and vice is known he cannot approach God till the '''purging fire''' shall have cleansed the stains with which his soul was infested. That same fire in others will cancel the corruption of matter, and the propensity to evil." Gregory of Nyssa, Sermon on the Dead, PG 13:445,448 (ante A.D. 394).</ref>

	[[File:Wimpfen-stadtkirche-predell.jpg\|thumb\|left\|Another image of [[soul]]s being purified by flames in purgatory]]		[[File:Wimpfen-stadtkirche-predell.jpg\|thumb\|left\|Another image of [[soul]]s being purified by flames in purgatory]]
	Most theologians of the past have held that the fire is in some sense a material fire, though of a nature different from ordinary fire, but the opinion of other theologians who interpret the Scriptural term "fire" metaphorically has not been condemned by the Church<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm#VI Catholic Encyclopedia on "poena sensus"]</ref> and may now be the more common view among theologians. The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of a "cleansing fire"<ref name="CCC 1031"/> and quotes the expression "purgatorius ignis" (purifying fire) used by Pope Gregory the Great. It speaks of the temporal punishment for sin, even in this life, as a matter of "sufferings and trials of all kinds".<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1473]. In his 2007 encyclical ''Spe salvi'', [[Pope Benedict XVI]] applies to the purgation of souls after death the words of [[Paul the Apostle]] in ~~{{bibleverse\|1\|~~Corinthians\|3:12–15\|NKJV}} about some being "saved, but only as through fire"; in the encounter with Christ after death, Christ's "gaze, the touch of his heart heals us through an undeniably painful transformation 'as through fire'. But it is a blessed pain, in which the holy power of his love sears through us like a flame, enabling us to become totally ourselves and thus totally of God" ([http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html ''Spe salvi''], 46–47).</ref> It describes purgatory as a necessary purification from "an unhealthy attachment to creatures", a purification that "frees one from what is called the 'temporal punishment' of sin", a punishment that "must not be conceived of as a kind of vengeance inflicted by God from without, but as following from the very nature of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1472]</ref>		Most theologians of the past have held that the fire is in some sense a material fire, though of a nature different from ordinary fire, but the opinion of other theologians who interpret the Scriptural term "fire" metaphorically has not been condemned by the Church<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm#VI Catholic Encyclopedia on "poena sensus"]</ref> and may now be the more common view among theologians. The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of a "cleansing fire"<ref name="CCC 1031"/> and quotes the expression "purgatorius ignis" (purifying fire) used by Pope Gregory the Great. It speaks of the temporal punishment for sin, even in this life, as a matter of "sufferings and trials of all kinds".<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1473]. In his 2007 encyclical ''Spe salvi'', Pope Benedict XVI applies to the purgation of souls after death the words of Paul the Apostle in Corinthians 3:12–15 NKJV about some being "saved, but only as through fire"; in the encounter with Christ after death, Christ's "gaze, the touch of his heart heals us through an undeniably painful transformation 'as through fire'. But it is a blessed pain, in which the holy power of his love sears through us like a flame, enabling us to become totally ourselves and thus totally of God" ([http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html ''Spe salvi''], 46–47).</ref> It describes purgatory as a necessary purification from "an unhealthy attachment to creatures", a purification that "frees one from what is called the 'temporal punishment' of sin", a punishment that "must not be conceived of as a kind of vengeance inflicted by God from without, but as following from the very nature of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1472]</ref>

	====Prayer for the Dead and Indulgences====		====Prayer for the Dead and Indulgences====

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Prayer for the dead and indulgences

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	Most theologians of the past have held that the fire is in some sense a material fire, though of a nature different from ordinary fire, but the opinion of other theologians who interpret the Scriptural term "fire" metaphorically has not been condemned by the Church<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm#VI Catholic Encyclopedia on "poena sensus"]</ref> and may now be the more common view among theologians. The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of a "cleansing fire"<ref name="CCC 1031"/> and quotes the expression "purgatorius ignis" (purifying fire) used by Pope Gregory the Great. It speaks of the temporal punishment for sin, even in this life, as a matter of "sufferings and trials of all kinds".<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1473]. In his 2007 encyclical ''Spe salvi'', [[Pope Benedict XVI]] applies to the purgation of souls after death the words of [[Paul the Apostle]] in {{bibleverse\|1\|Corinthians\|3:12–15\|NKJV}} about some being "saved, but only as through fire"; in the encounter with Christ after death, Christ's "gaze, the touch of his heart heals us through an undeniably painful transformation 'as through fire'. But it is a blessed pain, in which the holy power of his love sears through us like a flame, enabling us to become totally ourselves and thus totally of God" ([http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html ''Spe salvi''], 46–47).</ref> It describes purgatory as a necessary purification from "an unhealthy attachment to creatures", a purification that "frees one from what is called the 'temporal punishment' of sin", a punishment that "must not be conceived of as a kind of vengeance inflicted by God from without, but as following from the very nature of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1472]</ref>		Most theologians of the past have held that the fire is in some sense a material fire, though of a nature different from ordinary fire, but the opinion of other theologians who interpret the Scriptural term "fire" metaphorically has not been condemned by the Church<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07207a.htm#VI Catholic Encyclopedia on "poena sensus"]</ref> and may now be the more common view among theologians. The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of a "cleansing fire"<ref name="CCC 1031"/> and quotes the expression "purgatorius ignis" (purifying fire) used by Pope Gregory the Great. It speaks of the temporal punishment for sin, even in this life, as a matter of "sufferings and trials of all kinds".<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1473]. In his 2007 encyclical ''Spe salvi'', [[Pope Benedict XVI]] applies to the purgation of souls after death the words of [[Paul the Apostle]] in {{bibleverse\|1\|Corinthians\|3:12–15\|NKJV}} about some being "saved, but only as through fire"; in the encounter with Christ after death, Christ's "gaze, the touch of his heart heals us through an undeniably painful transformation 'as through fire'. But it is a blessed pain, in which the holy power of his love sears through us like a flame, enabling us to become totally ourselves and thus totally of God" ([http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html ''Spe salvi''], 46–47).</ref> It describes purgatory as a necessary purification from "an unhealthy attachment to creatures", a purification that "frees one from what is called the 'temporal punishment' of sin", a punishment that "must not be conceived of as a kind of vengeance inflicted by God from without, but as following from the very nature of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm CCC 1472]</ref>

	====Prayer for the ~~dead~~ and ~~indulgences~~====		====Prayer for the Dead and Indulgences====
	~~{{Main\|Prayer for the dead\|Indulgences}}~~		[[File:A-Procession-in-the-Catacomb-of-Callistus.jpg\|upright\|thumb\|left\|Catacomb inscriptions include prayers for the dead.<ref>Cabrol and Leclercq, Monumenta Ecclesiæ Liturgica. Volume I: Reliquiæ Liturgicæ Vetustissimæ (Paris, 1900–2) pp. ci–cvi, cxxxix.</ref>]]
	[[File:A-Procession-in-the-Catacomb-of-Callistus.jpg\|upright\|thumb\|left~~\|[[Catacombs of Rome~~\|Catacomb]] inscriptions include prayers for the dead.<ref>Cabrol and Leclercq, Monumenta Ecclesiæ Liturgica. Volume I: Reliquiæ Liturgicæ Vetustissimæ (Paris, 1900–2) pp. ci–cvi, cxxxix.</ref>]]		The Catholic Church teaches that the fate of those in purgatory can be affected by the actions of the living. Its teaching is based also on the practice of prayer for the dead mentioned as far back as Maccabees 12:42–46 NAB, considered by Catholics and Orthodox to be part of Sacred Scripture.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2N.HTM CCC 1032]</ref>
	The Catholic Church teaches that the fate of those in purgatory can be affected by the actions of the living. Its teaching is based also on the practice of prayer for the dead mentioned as far back as ~~{{bibleverse\|2\|~~Maccabees\|12:42–46\|NAB}}, considered by Catholics and Orthodox to be part of [[Sacred Scripture]].<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2N.HTM CCC 1032]</ref>		[[File:LadyOfMtCarmelWithSufferingSouls.jpg\|right\|upright\|thumb\|Statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel with [[soul]]s in purgatory begging the intercession of Mary]]
	[[File:LadyOfMtCarmelWithSufferingSouls.jpg\|right\|upright\|thumb\|[[Statue]] of [[Our Lady of Mount Carmel]] with [[soul]]s in purgatory begging the ~~[[Mediatrix\|~~intercession of Mary]]]]		In the same context there is mention of the practice of indulgences. An indulgence is a remission before God, through the mediation of the Church, of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4G.HTM CCC 1471]</ref> Indulgences may be obtained for oneself, or on behalf of the dead.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P4G.HTM CCC 1479]</ref> Despite popular perception, the Catholic Church has never taught that indulgences forgive any sins, for this is God's jurisdiction alone. Any persons who have taught that acts of charity such as indulgences can forgive sins have been condemned as heretics by the Catholic Church. It is also a heretical position to suggest that indulgences are applied no matter how strong a Christian may be in his faith. An indulgence is dependent (or any act of charity for that matter) on the present faith of the individual Christian.
	In the same context there is mention of the practice of ~~[[indulgence]]s~~. An indulgence is a remission before God, through the mediation of the Church, of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4G.HTM CCC 1471]</ref> Indulgences may be obtained for oneself, or on behalf of the dead.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P4G.HTM CCC 1479]</ref> Despite popular perception, the Catholic Church has never taught that indulgences forgive any sins, for this is God's jurisdiction alone. Any persons who have taught that acts of charity such as indulgences can forgive sins have been condemned as heretics by the Catholic Church. It is also a heretical position to suggest that indulgences are applied no matter how strong a Christian may be in his faith. An indulgence is dependent (or any act of charity for that matter) on the present faith of the individual Christian ~~(see [[Johann Tetzel]])~~.

	Prayers for the dead and indulgences have been popularly envisioned as decreasing the "duration" of time the dead spend in purgatory, an idea associated with the fact that, in the past, indulgences were measured in terms of days, "quarantines" (i.e. 40-day periods as for [[Lent]]), or years, meaning, not that purgatory would be shortened by that amount of time, but that the indulgences were equivalent to that length of canonical penance on the part of a living Christian.<ref name="catholic-pages.com">[http://www.catholic-pages.com/penance/indulgences.asp Indulgences in the Church \| Catholic-Pages.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> When the imposition of such canonical penances of a determinate duration fell out of custom these expressions were sometimes popularly misinterpreted as reduction of that much time of a soul's stay in purgatory.<ref name="catholic-pages.com"/> A prayer roll that once belonged to [[Henry VIII]]<ref>http://pressandpolicy.bl.uk/Press-Releases/British-Library-unrolls-Henry-VIII-s-pious-past-25d.aspx</ref> claimed that "this image of pity devotedly say ''5 Pater Noster'', ''5 Ave Maria'' and ''1 Credo''..." gave a pardon and reduction of time in purgatory of "52,712 years and 40 days of pardon".<ref>Starkey, D. 2009. ''Henry Virtuous Prince'' p.202 Harper Perennial. ISBN 9780007247721</ref> In [[Pope Paul VI]]'s revision of the rules concerning indulgences, these expressions were dropped, and replaced by the expression "partial indulgence", indicating that the person who gained such an indulgence for a pious action is granted, "in addition to the remission of temporal punishment acquired by the action itself, an equal remission of punishment through the intervention of the Church".<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/P6INDULG.HTM Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution on Indulgences], norm 5</ref>		Prayers for the dead and indulgences have been popularly envisioned as decreasing the "duration" of time the dead spend in purgatory, an idea associated with the fact that, in the past, indulgences were measured in terms of days, "quarantines" (i.e. 40-day periods as for Lent), or years, meaning, not that purgatory would be shortened by that amount of time, but that the indulgences were equivalent to that length of canonical penance on the part of a living Christian.<ref name="catholic-pages.com">[http://www.catholic-pages.com/penance/indulgences.asp Indulgences in the Church \| Catholic-Pages.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> When the imposition of such canonical penances of a determinate duration fell out of custom these expressions were sometimes popularly misinterpreted as reduction of that much time of a soul's stay in purgatory.<ref name="catholic-pages.com"/> A prayer roll that once belonged to Henry VIII<ref>http://pressandpolicy.bl.uk/Press-Releases/British-Library-unrolls-Henry-VIII-s-pious-past-25d.aspx</ref> claimed that "this image of pity devotedly say ''5 Pater Noster'', ''5 Ave Maria'' and ''1 Credo''..." gave a pardon and reduction of time in purgatory of "52,712 years and 40 days of pardon".<ref>Starkey, D. 2009. ''Henry Virtuous Prince'' p.202 Harper Perennial. ISBN 9780007247721</ref> In Pope Paul VI's revision of the rules concerning indulgences, these expressions were dropped, and replaced by the expression "partial indulgence", indicating that the person who gained such an indulgence for a pious action is granted, "in addition to the remission of temporal punishment acquired by the action itself, an equal remission of punishment through the intervention of the Church".<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/P6INDULG.HTM Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution on Indulgences], norm 5</ref>

	Historically, the practice of granting indulgences, and the widespread<ref>Section "Abuses" in [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Purgatory]</ref> associated abuses, led to them being seen as increasingly bound up with money, with criticisms being directed against the "sale" of indulgences, a source of controversy that was the immediate occasion of the [[Protestant Reformation]] in [[Germany]] and [[Switzerland]].<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12700b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Reformation]</ref>		Historically, the practice of granting indulgences, and the widespread<ref>Section "Abuses" in [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Purgatory]</ref> associated abuses, led to them being seen as increasingly bound up with money, with criticisms being directed against the "sale" of indulgences, a source of controversy that was the immediate occasion of the Protestant Reformation in Germany and Switzerland.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12700b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Reformation]</ref>

	====As a physical place====		====As a physical place====

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As a physical place

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	The envisioning of Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory as places in the physical universe was never a Church doctrine. Nonetheless, in antiquity and medieval times, Heaven and Hell were widely regarded as places existing within the physical universe: Heaven "above", in the sky; Hell "below", in or beneath the earth. Similarly, Purgatory has at times been thought of as a physical location.		The envisioning of Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory as places in the physical universe was never a Church doctrine. Nonetheless, in antiquity and medieval times, Heaven and Hell were widely regarded as places existing within the physical universe: Heaven "above", in the sky; Hell "below", in or beneath the earth. Similarly, Purgatory has at times been thought of as a physical location.

	In 1206, a peasant named Thurkhill in England claimed that Saint Julian took him on a tour of Purgatory. He gave precise details, including descriptions of what he called Purgatory's "torture chambers", and was widely believed, including by the Church historian [[Roger of Wendover]].<ref>''King John'' by Warren. Published by the University of California Press in 1961. p. 11</ref>		In 1206, a peasant named Thurkhill in England claimed that Saint Julian took him on a tour of Purgatory. He gave precise details, including descriptions of what he called Purgatory's "torture chambers", and was widely believed, including by the Church historian Roger of Wendover.<ref>''King John'' by Warren. Published by the University of California Press in 1961. p. 11</ref>

	In Dante's fourteenth century work [[The Divine Comedy]], Purgatory is depicted as a mountain in the southern hemisphere. It is apparently the only land there. Souls who loved God and man half-heartedly find themselves at ~~[[Divine Comedy#Purgatorio\|~~Mt. Purgatory]], where there are two levels, then Seven Levels representing the Seven deadly sins with ironic punishments. For example, on the first level for Pride the inhabitants are weighed down by huge stones which force them to look at examples of Pride on the pavement like Arachne. When they reach the top they will find themselves at Jerusalem's ~~[[antipodes\|~~antipode]], the [[Garden of Eden]] itself. Thus cleansed of all sin and made perfect, they wait in Earthly paradise before ascending to Heaven.		In Dante's fourteenth century work The Divine Comedy, Purgatory is depicted as a mountain in the southern hemisphere. It is apparently the only land there. Souls who loved God and man half-heartedly find themselves at Mt. Purgatory, where there are two levels, then Seven Levels representing the Seven deadly sins with ironic punishments. For example, on the first level for Pride the inhabitants are weighed down by huge stones which force them to look at examples of Pride on the pavement like Arachne. When they reach the top they will find themselves at Jerusalem's antipode, the Garden of Eden itself. Thus cleansed of all sin and made perfect, they wait in Earthly paradise before ascending to Heaven.

	In 1999 [[Pope John Paul II]] referred to Purgatory as "a condition of existence",<ref name="Audience of 4 August 1999"/> implying that it is most likely not an actual physical location or place, but is a state wherein "those who, after death, exist in a state of purification, are already in the love of Christ who removes from them the remnants of imperfection."		In 1999 Pope John Paul II referred to Purgatory as "a condition of existence",<ref name="Audience of 4 August 1999"/> implying that it is most likely not an actual physical location or place, but is a state wherein "those who, after death, exist in a state of purification, are already in the love of Christ who removes from them the remnants of imperfection."

	In 2011 [[Pope Benedict XVI]], speaking of Saint [[Catherine of Genoa]] (1447–1510), said that in her time the purification of souls (Purgatory) was pictured as a location in space, but that the saint saw Purgatory as a purifying inner fire, such as she experienced in her profound sorrow for sins committed, when compared with God's infinite love. She said that being bound still to the desires and suffering that derive from sin makes it impossible for the soul to enjoy the beatific vision of God. The Pope commented: "We too feel how distant we are, how full we are of so many things that we cannot see God. The soul is aware of the immense love and perfect justice of God and consequently suffers for having failed to respond in a correct and perfect way to this love; and love for God itself becomes a flame, love itself cleanses it from the residue of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20110112_en.html General Audience Talk, 12 January 2011]</ref>		In 2011 Pope Benedict XVI, speaking of Saint Catherine of Genoa (1447–1510), said that in her time the purification of souls (Purgatory) was pictured as a location in space, but that the saint saw Purgatory as a purifying inner fire, such as she experienced in her profound sorrow for sins committed, when compared with God's infinite love. She said that being bound still to the desires and suffering that derive from sin makes it impossible for the soul to enjoy the beatific vision of God. The Pope commented: "We too feel how distant we are, how full we are of so many things that we cannot see God. The soul is aware of the immense love and perfect justice of God and consequently suffers for having failed to respond in a correct and perfect way to this love; and love for God itself becomes a flame, love itself cleanses it from the residue of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20110112_en.html General Audience Talk, 12 January 2011]</ref>

	====Catholic Statements====		====Catholic Statements====

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Catholic statements

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	In 2011 [[Pope Benedict XVI]], speaking of Saint [[Catherine of Genoa]] (1447–1510), said that in her time the purification of souls (Purgatory) was pictured as a location in space, but that the saint saw Purgatory as a purifying inner fire, such as she experienced in her profound sorrow for sins committed, when compared with God's infinite love. She said that being bound still to the desires and suffering that derive from sin makes it impossible for the soul to enjoy the beatific vision of God. The Pope commented: "We too feel how distant we are, how full we are of so many things that we cannot see God. The soul is aware of the immense love and perfect justice of God and consequently suffers for having failed to respond in a correct and perfect way to this love; and love for God itself becomes a flame, love itself cleanses it from the residue of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20110112_en.html General Audience Talk, 12 January 2011]</ref>		In 2011 [[Pope Benedict XVI]], speaking of Saint [[Catherine of Genoa]] (1447–1510), said that in her time the purification of souls (Purgatory) was pictured as a location in space, but that the saint saw Purgatory as a purifying inner fire, such as she experienced in her profound sorrow for sins committed, when compared with God's infinite love. She said that being bound still to the desires and suffering that derive from sin makes it impossible for the soul to enjoy the beatific vision of God. The Pope commented: "We too feel how distant we are, how full we are of so many things that we cannot see God. The soul is aware of the immense love and perfect justice of God and consequently suffers for having failed to respond in a correct and perfect way to this love; and love for God itself becomes a flame, love itself cleanses it from the residue of sin."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20110112_en.html General Audience Talk, 12 January 2011]</ref>

	====Catholic ~~statements~~====		====Catholic Statements====
	The [[Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church]], first published in 2005, is a summary in dialogue form of the [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]]. It deals with purgatory in the following exchange:<ref>''Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church'', [http://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html#I%20Believe%20in%20the%20Holy%20Spirit 210–211]</ref>		The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, first published in 2005, is a summary in dialogue form of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It deals with purgatory in the following exchange:<ref>''Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church'', [http://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html#I%20Believe%20in%20the%20Holy%20Spirit 210–211]</ref>
	{{quotation\|'''210. What is purgatory?'''		{{quotation\|'''210. What is purgatory?'''
	: ''Purgatory is the state of those who die in God’s friendship, assured of their eternal salvation, but who still have need of purification to enter into the happiness of heaven.''		: ''Purgatory is the state of those who die in God’s friendship, assured of their eternal salvation, but who still have need of purification to enter into the happiness of heaven.''
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	These two questions and answers summarize information in sections 1020–1032<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P2N.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 1020–1032]</ref> and 1054<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2R.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 1054]</ref> of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, published in 1992, which also speaks of purgatory in sections 1472 and 1473.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4G.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 1472–1473]</ref>		These two questions and answers summarize information in sections 1020–1032<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P2N.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 1020–1032]</ref> and 1054<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2R.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 1054]</ref> of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, published in 1992, which also speaks of purgatory in sections 1472 and 1473.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/ __P4G.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 1472–1473]</ref>

	Other authoritative statements are those of the [[Council of Trent]] in 1563<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/COUNCILS/TRENT25.HTM#1 Decree concerning Purgatory]</ref> and the [[Council of Florence]] in 1439.<ref>[http://www.catecheticsonline.com/SourcesofDogma7.php Denzinger 1304 – old numbering 693]</ref>		Other authoritative statements are those of the Council of Trent in 1563<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/COUNCILS/TRENT25.HTM#1 Decree concerning Purgatory]</ref> and the Council of Florence in 1439.<ref>[http://www.catecheticsonline.com/SourcesofDogma7.php Denzinger 1304 – old numbering 693]</ref>

	===Eastern Christian churches===		===Eastern Christian churches===