Is Purgatory, Limbo, and Hades, bascally Greek Myths or just Mistranslation.

[Athanasius377]

Matt. 5:26,18:34; Luke 12:58-59 – Jesus teaches us, “Come to terms with your opponent or you will be handed over to the judge and thrown into prison. You will not get out until you have paid the last penny.” The word “opponent” (antidiko) is likely a reference to the devil (see the same word for devil in 1 Pet. 5:8) who is an accuser against man (c.f. Job 1.6-12; Zech. 3.1; Rev. 12.10), and God is the judge. If we have not adequately dealt with satan and sin in this life, we will be held in a temporary state called a prison, and we won’t get out until we have satisfied our entire debt to God. This “prison” is purgatory where we will not get out until the last penny is paid.

You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. 26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Mt 5:21–26). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58 As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Lk 12:57–59). (2016). Crossway Bibles.



The word "opponent", while an ok translation of the word ἀντίδικος the better translation would be accuser or even plaintiff as it has a juridical connotation. Which makes sense since both passages are dealing with the Mosaic law. The whole point of the passage in Matthew and the corollary passage in Luke is that it isn't just good enough to not murder someone but also to have unrighteous anger in the heart. Also, the phrase Ισθι εὐνοῶν τῷ ἀντιδίκῳ σου ταχύ, can also be translated as "Make friends your accuser", so the idea that the accuser is the devil does not work. Moreover the ἀντίδικος described by Jesus here is named a brother, not the devil. Context dictates the definition here and not the context of an unrelated passage. As to the punishment due is incidental to the overall thrust: which is to say that the LORD sees into the heart of man cf 1 Sam 16:7. So those that thought they were pulling off their Law keeping by not committing murder are just as guilty due to of anger in their hearts as the murderer. Furthermore the guilty here is receiving just punishment precisely because he is not reconciled and not because he is forgiven but required to undergo satispassio in purgatory. Lastly the punishment received is in this life not the next.

Matt. 5:48 – Jesus says, “be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.” We are only made perfect through purification, and in Catholic teaching, this purification, if not completed on earth, is continued in a transitional state we call purgatory.

The exact quote is :

48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Mt 5:48). (2016). Crossway Bibles.



This is a capstone on the proceeding verses that began in verse 17-20.





Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Mt 5:17–20). (2016). Crossway Bibles.




The Pharisees had maintained that there was a written Torah and an equally authoritative oral Torah (Traditions of the Elders). These traditions were kept by the Pharisees as a means to maintain the law which the motivations were good if misguided. What it did was produce a false security with the notion that some were actually pulling off Law keeping. Here Jesus ramps up the Law saying that it is not good enough to simply obey the Law but rather to be Perfect. .Should we strive for perfection? Absolutely. This process is called sanctification not purgatory.

 

[Athanasius377]

Matt. 12:32 – Jesus says, “And anyone who says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but no one who speaks against the Holy Spirit will be forgiven either in this world or in the next.” Jesus thus clearly provides that there is forgiveness after death. The phrase “in the next” (from the Greek “en to mellonti”) generally refers to the afterlife (see, for example, Mark 10.30; Luke 18.30; 20.34-35; Eph. 1.21 for similar language). Forgiveness is not necessary in heaven, and there is no forgiveness in hell. This proves that there is another state after death, and the Church for 2,000 years has called this state purgatory.

Not so fast. This is reading something into the text that isn’t there. Since this teaching is in all three of the synoptic Gospels lets see what Mark and Luke report:





Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— 30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Mk 3:28–30). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, 9 but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Lk 12:8–10). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





The phrase “ this age or the age or the age to come” refer to the completion of this age and what lies beyond judgement. There is no implied intermediary state. The Greek word μέλλω simply means to take place at a future point in time and subsequent to another event. Its simply a verb, lol. Furthermore it is preposterous to say that the Church Rome taught the doctrine of purgatory for 2000 years because she didn’t.

Luke 12:47-48 – when the Master comes (at the end of time), some will receive light or heavy beatings but will live. This state is not heaven or hell, because in heaven there are no beatings, and in hell we will no longer live with the Master.

Lets put this back into context.





35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. 38 If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”


41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” 42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 45 But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. 47 And that servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. 48 But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.





The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Lk 12:35–48). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





This is a verse that is stripped out of context and is also an abuse of a parable of justify a pet doctrine. The golden rule of interpreting parables is the find the one point of comparison. Eisegesis like this abuses parables by clinging on to the details when in reality the details have no significance independent of the parable.

 

[Athanasius377]

Luke 16:19-31 – in this story, we see that the dead rich man is suffering but still feels compassion for his brothers and wants to warn them of his place of suffering. But there is no suffering in heaven or compassion in hell because compassion is a grace from God and those in hell are deprived from God’s graces for all eternity. So where is the rich man? He is in purgatory.

Lets read the text for ourselves:





19 “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— 28 for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’ ”


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Lk 16:19–31). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





The rich man is most certainly not in purgatory. He is in Hell. How do we know this? Because the chasm between is fixed and none may cross as quoted directly from the text. I’m guessing this is why you didn’t quote the text.


This part of a much larger argument that occupies the entirety of Chapter 15 of 1 For. But lets put this passage back into some context.



When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.

29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (1 Co 15:28–34). (2016). Crossway Bibles.



This is one of the most disputed and hard to interpret passages in all of Scripture. Paul is reacting to the denial by some in Corinth of the Resurrection. This practice of Baptism on behalf of the dead is offered as a proof. A description rather than a proscription. The whole point is that if there is no resurrection then why baptize on behalf of the dead or why risk life and limb every our if such a teaching (resurrection of the dead) is not true? The idea that there is a intermediate state of being simply is not present in the text. One needs to read it (eisegete) into the text.

 

[Athanasius377]

Phil. 2:10 – every knee bends to Jesus, in heaven, on earth, and “under the earth” which is the realm of the righteous dead, or purgatory.

Another out of context proof text that really doesn’t say what you are twisting it to say. So lets put this back into context:





Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Php 2:5–11). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





Again this demonstrates appalling hermeneutics but that is how Rome must engage in hermeneutics. She has to overlay doctrines that appeared centuries or even a millennia later on top of Scripture and this is exactly what has been done here. The phrase you quoted is simply referring to the whole created order then Jesus is Lord over all. Its part of an early creed.

2 Tim. 1:16-18 – Onesiphorus is dead but Paul asks for mercy on him “on that day.” Paul’s use of “that day” demonstrates its eschatological usage (see, for example, Rom. 2.5,16; 1 Cor. 1.8; 3.13; 5.5; 2 Cor. 1.14; Phil. 1.6,10; 2.16; 1 Thess. 5.2,4,5,8; 2 Thess. 2.2,3; 2 Tim. 4.8). Of course, there is no need for mercy in heaven, and there is no mercy given in hell. Where is Onesiphorus? He is in purgatory.

5 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, 17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— 18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (2 Ti 1:15–18). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





Where does Paul say that Onesiphorus is dead? Because he’s not. Once again you have to read that into the text.

Heb. 12:14 – without holiness no one will see the Lord. We need final sanctification to attain true holiness before God, and this process occurs during our lives and, if not completed during our lives, in the transitional state of purgatory.

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. 14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; 16 that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Heb 12:12–17). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





This is referring to Sanctification. The audience here is still alive so this cannot be purgatory. The context makes this clear as Hebrews is a sermon.

 

[Athanasius377]

Heb. 12:23 – the spirits of just men who died in godliness are “made” perfect. They do not necessarily arrive perfect. They are made perfect after their death. But those in heaven are already perfect, and those in hell can no longer be made perfect. These spirits are in purgatory.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Heb 12:22–24). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





Um, no. Another swing and a miss. You need to read passages in context especially Hebrews as it a sermon. So how are the spirits of the righteous made perfect? By Jesus Christ. From earlier in the chapter”





Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Heb 12:1–2). (2016). Crossway Bibles.


Jesus made them perfect by his imputed righteousness and not by some fictional purgatory.

1 Peter 3:19; 4:6 – Jesus preached to the spirits in the “prison.” These are the righteous souls being purified for the beatific vision.

Lets plug this back into context:


18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (1 Pe 3:18–22). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





This is passage is not referring to departed souls but rather fallen angels. “Spirits” in the NT always refers to nonhuman spiritual beings unless qualified (as, e.g., in Heb. 12:23; see Matt. 12:45; Mark 1:23, 26; 3:30; Luke 10:20; Acts 19:15–16; 16:16; 23:8–9; Eph. 2:2; Heb. 1:14; 12:9; Rev. 16:13, 14). Second, these are disobedient spirits or likely fallen Angels from the time of Noah. Peter is likely referencing 1 Enoch.21:





6 These are of the number of the stars of heaven which have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and are bound here till ten thousand years, the time entailed by their sins, are consummated.’ 7 And from thence I went to another place, which was still more horrible than the former, and I saw a horrible thing: a great fire there which burnt and blazed, and the place was cleft as far as the abyss, being full of great descending columns of fire: neither its extent or magnitude could I see, nor could I conjecture. 8 Then I said: ‘How fearful is the place and how terrible to look upon!’ 9 Then Uriel answered me, one of the holy angels who was with me, and said unto me: ‘Enoch, why hast thou such fear and affright?’ And I answered: ‘Because of this fearful place, and because of the spectacle of the pain.’ 10 And he said unto me: ‘This place is the prison of the angels, and here they will be imprisoned for ever.’


Charles, R. H., & Oesterley, W. O. E. (1917). The Book of Enoch (Enoch 21:6–10). Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.


So no purgatory here either.

 

[Athanasius377]

Rev. 21:4 – God shall wipe away their tears, and there will be no mourning or pain, but only after the coming of the new heaven and the passing away of the current heaven and earth. Note the elimination of tears and pain only occurs at the end of time. But there is no morning or pain in heaven, and God will not wipe away their tears in hell. These are the souls experiencing purgatory.

Um no.


Lets put this back into context.





Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Re 21:1–4). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





The proof text here is quite the stretch. The passage is describing the New Heaven and the New Earth in the escaton. This passage has absolutely nothing to do with the concept of purgatory whatsoever To suggest such a thing is laughable on its face. So no, this passage doesn’t work for purgatory either.

Rev. 21:27 – nothing unclean shall enter heaven. The word “unclean” comes from the Greek word “koinon” which refers to a spiritual corruption. Even the propensity to sin is spiritually corrupt, or considered unclean, and must be purified before entering heaven. It is amazing how many Protestants do not want to believe in purgatory. Purgatory exists because of the mercy of God. If there were no purgatory, this would also likely mean no salvation for most people. God is merciful indeed.

Lets put this back into context:

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Re 21:22–27). (2016). Crossway Bibles.



This passage is referring to the New Jerusalem in Rev 21:9. Again, this is the eschaton and has nothing to do with the concept of purgatory. And κοινός simply means common or profane. In. This context it means ceremonially unclean. We protestants do not believe in purgatory because it is a Romish fiction that developed much later. It certainly isn’t found in the apostolic writings.

 

[Athanasius377]

Luke 23:43 – many Protestants argue that, because Jesus sent the good thief right to heaven, there can be no purgatory. There are several rebuttals.

1. First, when Jesus uses the word “paradise,” He did not mean heaven. Paradise, from the Hebrew “sheol,” meant the realm of the righteous dead. This was the place of the dead who were destined for heaven, but who were captive until the Lord’s resurrection.

Lets start with the actual quote:





One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Lk 23:39–43). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





The word παράδεισος or paradeiso means a transcendent place of blessedness or paradise. It does not mean Sheol. That would be ᾅδης or Hades.

Second, since there was no punctuation in the original manuscript, Jesus’ statement “I say to you today you will be with me in paradise” does not mean there was a comma after the first word “you.” This means Jesus could have said, “I say to you today, you will be with me in paradise” (meaning, Jesus could have emphasized with exclamation his statement was “today” or “now,” and that some time in the future the good thief would go to heaven).

This is the 6th time Jesus uses the phrase “Truly I say to you in the Gospel of Luke. Cf 4:24, 12:37, 18:17, 21:32. In other words its a common phrase and not a happenstance construction of a sentence. The word σήμερον or today is often associated with salvation throughout the Gospel of Luke and it means that day not some point in the future.. Cf 2:11, 4:21, 5:26 and 19:9. The thief is wanting to be remembered at some point by Jesus but here Jesus corrects him and says Today, not some other day, or some other time or when his time undergoing satispassio is done but rather today he will be with Jesus in paradise. So the punctuation in the English absolutely gets it correct. The NABRE also puts the comma in the exact same place as well as the Douay:


He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.


New American Bible (Revised Edition, Lk 23:43). (2011). The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.


43 And Jesus said to him: Amen I say to thee: This day thou shalt be with me in paradise.


The Holy Bible, Translated from the Latin Vulgate (Lk 23:43). (2009)

Third, even if the thief went straight to heaven, this does not prove there is no purgatory (those who are fully sanctified in this life – perhaps by a bloody and repentant death – could be ready for admission in to heaven).

The passage also doesn’t disprove Bigfoot either. You made the assertion therefore the burden of proof falls upon you. This is shifting the burden.

 

[Athanasius377]

Gen. 50:10; Num. 20:29; Deut. 34:8 – here are some examples of ritual prayer and penitent mourning for the dead for specific periods of time. The Jewish understanding of these practices was that the prayers freed the souls from their painful state of purification, and expedited their journey to God.

So lets put this back into context:





And Pharaoh answered, “Go up, and bury your father, as he made you swear.” 7 So Joseph went up to bury his father. With him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 as well as all the household of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s household. Only their children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the land of Goshen. 9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen. It was a very great company. 10 When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Ge 50:6–10). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





This passage is dealing with the death of Jacob. All it says is they the made a great and previous lamentation and mourned for 7 days. This is consistent with the biblical witness cf 1 Sam. 31:13 par. 1 Chr. 10:12; 2 Sam. 11:27; Job 2:13. Though no mention of an intermediary state or that Jacob is suffering satispassio.





So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord, 6 and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day. 7 Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. 8 And the people of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Dt 34:5–8). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





This is one exception to the seven day morning period rule. The other was the death of Aaron Num 20:29. Again, no mention of an purgatory or anything like purgatory.





As to the Jewish background of what became Purgatory in the Western Church I would note that one school of legal interpretation seems to have held that view. That being Bet Shammai.





The view of purgatory is still more clearly expressed in rabbinical passages, as in the teaching of the Shammaites: “In the last judgment day there shall be three classes of souls: the righteous shall at once be written down for the life everlasting; the wicked, for Gehenna; but those whose virtues and sins counterbalance one another shall go down to Gehenna and float up and down until they rise purified; for of them it is said: ‘I will bring the third part into the fire and refine them as silver is refined, and try them as gold is tried’ [Zech. xiii. 9]; also, ‘He [the Lord] bringeth down to Sheol and bringeth up again’ ” (1 Sam. 2:6). The Hillelites seem to have had no purgatory; for they said: “He who is ‘plenteous in mercy’ [Ex. 34:6] inclines the balance toward mercy, and consequently the intermediates do not descend into Gehenna” (Tosef., Sanh. xiii. 3; R. H. 16b; Bacher, “Ag. Tan.” i. 18). Still they also speak of an intermediate state.


Singer, I., ed. (1901–1906). In The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, 12 Volumes (Vol. 10, p. 274). Funk & Wagnalls.





Yet the Bet Shammai apparently is all but ignored in the Talmud




When there is an opinion of R. Aqiba alongside one of R. Eliezer, we follow [Aqiba’s] view, and when there is an opinion of the House of Shammai alongside one of the House of Hillel, the former is not regarded as a valid Mishnah-law.


Neusner, J. (2011). The Babylonian Talmud: A Translation and Commentary (Vol. 1, p. 247). Hendrickson Publishers.





The last point I would make is that there is a lot of post exilic weirdness that pops up in Judaism and afterwords that bears little resemblance to the faith the OT Jews or the early church.

 

[Athanasius377]

Baruch 3:4 – Baruch asks the Lord to hear the prayers of the dead of Israel. Prayers for the dead are unnecessary in heaven and unnecessary in hell. These dead are in purgatory.

O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, the soul in anguish and the wearied spirit cry out to you. 2 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy, for we have sinned before you. 3 For you are enthroned forever, and we are perishing forever. 4 O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, hear now the prayer of those of Israel who have died and of the sons of those who sinned before you, who did not heed the voice of the Lord their God, so that calamities have clung to us. 5 Remember not the iniquities of our fathers, but in this time remember your power and your name.


Engelbrecht, E. A., ed. (2012). The Apocrypha: The Lutheran Edition: Text (Bar 3). Concordia Publishing House.





Baruch is part of the apocrypha and is not scripture. Second there is no evidence that the dead are in purgatory.

2 Macc. 12:43-45 – the prayers for the dead help free them from sin and help them to the reward of heaven. Those in heaven have no sin, and those in hell can no longer be freed from sin. They are in purgatory. Luther was particularly troubled with these verses because he rejected the age-old teaching of purgatory. As a result, he removed Maccabees from the canon of the Bible.

Lets put this into context:

On the next day, as by that time it had become necessary, Judas and his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchers of their fathers. 40 Then under the tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. And it became clear to all that this was why these men had fallen. 41 So they all blessed the ways of the Lord, the righteous Judge, who reveals the things that are hidden; 42 and they turned to prayer, imploring that the sin that had been committed might be wholly blotted out. And the noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. 43 He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of 2,000 drachmas of silver and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering. In doing this he acted very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. 44 For if he were not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. 45 But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.

Engelbrecht, E. A., ed. (2012). The Apocrypha: The Lutheran Edition: Text (2 Mac 12:39–45). Concordia Publishing House.



First I would observe that 2 Macs is not Scripture. Never was.

Luther, along with others including Jerome and even Cardinal Cajetan rejected the apocrypha. For those who don’t know Jerome translated the Bible into Latin and that text became the Vulgate. Cardinal Carejatn was a contemporary of Luther and was the cardinal who interviewed Luther for heresy.




Second, the reason the men were dead was because they had tokens of idols under their tunics which is idolatry. Now if I’m not mistaken is not Idolatry still considered a mortal sin by Rome? And if so, these men are not in purgatory they are in Hell.



Lastly, and this is the problem with the apocrypha in general is that it contradicts so much of scripture. In particular with this passage is a violation of Lev 4 if indeed Judas is sending money to offer sacrifice on behalf of the dead (Which is not clear). The sacrifice mentioned is as follows:

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If anyone sins unintentionally in any of the Lord’s commandments about things not to be done, and does any one of them, 3 if it is the anointed priest who sins, thus bringing guilt on the people, then he shall offer for the sin that he has committed a bull from the herd without blemish to the Lord for a sin offering. 4 He shall bring the bull to the entrance of the tent of meeting before the Lord and lay his hand on the head of the bull and kill the bull before the Lord. 5 And the anointed priest shall take some of the blood of the bull and bring it into the tent of meeting, 6 and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle part of the blood seven times before the Lord in front of the veil of the sanctuary.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Le 4:1–6). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





The purification offering is for sin that was done unintentionally and atoned for on behalf by a levitical priest for the living. So no, this passage doesn’t work either.

 

[Athanasius377]

Zech. 9:11 – God, through the blood of His covenant, will set those free from the waterless pit, a spiritual abode of suffering which the Church calls purgatory.

Lets put this back into context:


9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!


Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!


Behold, your king is coming to you;


righteous and having salvation is he,


humble and mounted on a donkey,


on a colt, the foal of a donkey.


10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim


and the war horse from Jerusalem;


and the battle bow shall be cut off,


and he shall speak peace to the nations;


his rule shall be from sea to sea,


and from the River to the ends of the earth.


11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,


I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.


12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;


today I declare that I will restore to you double.


13 For I have bent Judah as my bow;


I have made Ephraim its arrow.


I will stir up your sons, O Zion,


against your sons, O Greece,


and wield you like a warrior’s sword.





The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Zec 9:9–13). (2016). Crossway Bibles.

The prisoners, are the people of God remaining in exile, would be set free from the waterless pit is is a cistern that could be used as a temporary hold for prisoners cf Gen. 37:24; Jer. 38:6). The saving mechanism is the blood of "my covenant" cf Ex. 24:8. As a result of their hope they will return to Jerusalem and the Lord is committed to doubling their prosperity. I would also mention this is a Messianic passage as well. But these people are very much alive in the immediate context.

 

[Illuminator]

Lets put this back into context:

The author of my source states that citations are followed by brief exegesis of the text, not a comprehensive theological treatise covering all possible objections. None of your "I gotcha" replies have anything to do with post #72.
Is that Lutheran theology you are flooding the thread with???
Was Athanasius a proto-Protestant?

 

[Athanasius377]

1 Cor. 3:10-15 – works are judged after death and tested by fire. Some works are lost, but the person is still saved. Paul is referring to the state of purgation called purgatory. The venial sins (bad works) that were committed are burned up after death, but the person is still brought to salvation. This state after death cannot be heaven (no one with venial sins is present) or hell (there is no forgiveness and salvation).

So lets put this back into context.








But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?


5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.


10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.



The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (1 Co 3:1–15). (2016). Crossway Bibles.





So what is happening in this passage? First , this is not a passage detailing soteriology but rather how teachers and church leaders should be careful how they build upon the foundation of the church.

Nope. That’s a swing and a miss. a couple of problems here. Fire can be used in two ways in scripture. First way is that it purifies, usually using the imagery of refining metal. The other way is to test something. Here given the context Paul is clearly referring to testing the works. Paul laid the foundation (i.e. The Gospel), take care on how you build upon because it will be tested. And tested not in purgatory but rather “the Day”. The ESV and the NABRE both capitalize “Day “ to indicate it is referring to the Day of Judgement and not referring to purgatory. Second purgatory is the purification of the soul according to the Universal catechism and not the testing of works. Thirdly, the phrase, “But only as through fire” is simply a popular phrase like “Saved by the skin of one’s teeth”. Furthermore, Paul is quick to say that even though those foolish builders suffered loss it is not impacting their salvation.

 

[Athanasius377]

1 Cor. 3:15 – further, Paul writes “he himself will be saved, “but only” (or “yet so”) as through fire.” “He will be saved” in the Greek is “sothesetai” (which means eternal salvation). The phrase “but only” (or “yet so”) in the Greek is “houtos” which means “in the same manner.” This means that man is both eternally rewarded and eternally saved in the same manner by fire.

Again, this passage is the testing of works and not the testing of one’s soul. While we are alive we cannot judge the motivations of teachers and church leaders but in the Day, the judgement their works will be revealed by fire. Fire that reveals not fire that purifies. And even though one may suffer loss because their work was burned up in the fire on the Day, they are still saved not because they underwent purification in purgatory but because of the Gospel of Christ. This simply is not a soteriological text because it does not involve all people, it does not involve the purification of one’s soul and lastly those that do suffer loss are already saved.

1 Cor. 3:13 – when Paul writes about God revealing the quality of each man’s work by fire and purifying him, this purification relates to his sins (not just his good works). Protestants, in attempting to disprove the reality of purgatory, argue that Paul was only writing about rewarding good works, and not punishing sins (because punishing and purifying a man from sins would be admitting that there is a purgatory).

Where in the text does it say anything about being purified of sins?

1 Cor. 3:17 – but this verse proves that the purgation after death deals with punishing sin. That is, destroying God’s temple is a bad work, which is a mortal sin, which leads to death. 1 Cor. 3:14,15,17 – purgatory thus reveals the state of righteousness (v.14), state of venial sin (v.15) and the state of mortal sin (v.17), all of which are judged after death.

Nothing of what you said here is mentioned in the text. Again. Paul laid the foundation. Someone else is now building on that foundation. Take care of how you (teachers, church leaders etc) build upon that foundation because it will be revealed on the last day. That’s it. No idea of purgatory here. No idea of purification of the soul whatsoever. It is interesting though the analogy of using building materials as Corinth was sacked by the Roman army in 146 B.C. and was refounded in 44 B.C.by Julius Caesar At the time Paul is writing it is likely that many buildings are a patchwork of new and old materials. Perhaps that is what Paul was thinking about when he wrote his letter. Solid building materials and not so solid materials. So no, one will not find any evidence for purgatory in these passages.

 

[Athanasius377]

1 Cor. 3:15 – “if any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” The phrase for “suffer loss” in the Greek is “zemiothesetai.” The root word is “zemioo” which also refers to punishment. The construction “zemiothesetai” is used in Ex. 21:22 and Prov. 19:19 which refers to punishment (from the Hebrew “anash” meaning “punish” or “penalty”). Hence, this verse proves that there is an expiation of temporal punishment after our death, but the person is still saved. This cannot mean heaven (there is no punishment in heaven) and this cannot mean hell (the possibility of expiation no longer exists and the person is not saved).

This is called illegitimate totality transfer. Its a hermeneutical error. The word ζημιόω can mean to experience loss or it can mean to be punished. Here the word ζημιόω means to experience loss based on the context. Paul is contrasting reward with loss not reward and punishment. Also, I think you mean onesh not anash.

 

[Illuminator]

This is called illegitimate totality transfer. Its a hermeneutical error. The word ζημιόω can mean to experience loss or it can mean to be punished. Here the word ζημιόω means to experience loss based on the context. Paul is contrasting reward with loss not reward and punishment. Also, I think you mean onesh not anash.

Of course we won’t find a fully developed medieval conception of purgatory [in 1 Cor 3], but it is foolish to expect that anyway, just as it would be to expect to find full Chalcedonian Christology and trinitarianism in all its glorious nuanced complexity. That is true of all doctrines, so why should purgatory be an exception?

Purgatory: My Biblical Defense Of Its Doctrinal Development

I habitually either qualify or presuppose doctrinal development or make clear in context that I am not claiming that Scripture explicitly "proves" a full-blown doctrine of purgatory.

www.patheos.com

 

[Zao is life]

Very true, Purgatory has no biblical support, it basically is from pagan origin. The idea of purgatory has roots in ancient pagan beliefs and appears in the writings of Plato and in other pagan writers, and differed from the Hades. This idea which they called 'celestial hades' came from myths and suggested a place where the souls would go after death and claimed they would then be reincarnated or get to a higher plane of existence. We can see how it denies the basic doctrines of justification/sanctification by faith, and throws aside putting our trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior.

It also seeks to diminish the efficacy of Jesus' once-for-all sacrifice for sin, as though doctrines produced in man's imagination can somehow add a little to what only God could do, and did do, once-for-all.

 

[Zao is life]

Purgatory is not about paying the penalty of sin. Jesus on the Cross pays the penalty of our sin -- which is death. Those in purgatory are not in spiritual death; they are all headed to heaven.

Purgatory pays for the "consequences" of our sin, not for the sin itself.

The consequences of sin is death, according to the apostles of Christ. Jesus paid for the consequences of our sin through His death, according to Jesus and the apostles of Christ.

So then, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned ~ Romans 5:12

Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? ~ Romans 6:3

Yet a little while and the world does not see Me any more. But you see Me. Because I live, you shall live also. At that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. ~ John 14:19-20

We believe God. We hear the Good Shepard's voice. We do not recognize the voice of another, though they try hard to mimick the sound of his voice. They waste their breath uttering futility with great, swelling words of emptiness. Clouds without water.

 

[Illuminator]

The consequences of sin is death, according to the apostles of Christ. Jesus paid for the consequences of our sin through His death, according to Jesus and the apostles of Christ.

You miss the point. If a person steals a car, the consequences is having to give it back, and/or pay a fine. Jesus doesn't say it's ok to keep the car.

So then, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned ~ Romans 5:12

Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? ~ Romans 6:3

Yet a little while and the world does not see Me any more. But you see Me. Because I live, you shall live also. At that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. ~ John 14:19-20

We believe God. We hear the Good Shepard's voice. We do not recognize the voice of another, though they try hard to mimick the sound of his voice. They waste their breath uttering futility with great, swelling words of emptiness. Clouds without water.

Could you be specific? Everything the Church formally teaches is available on line.

It also seeks to diminish the efficacy of Jesus' once-for-all sacrifice for sin, as though doctrines produced in man's imagination can somehow add a little to what only God could do, and did do, once-for-all.

That lie has been debunked since Calvin invented it. It has been explained repeatedly why it is a lie.

Protestant apologists Norman Geisler and Ralph MacKenzie argue that the Catholic dogma of purgatory “in effect denies the all-sufficiency of Christ’s atoning death.” They quote biblical passages that speak of the sufficient nature of Christ’s work on the cross (John 17:4, 19:30; Heb. 10:14) and conclude, “To affirm that we must suffer for our own sins is the ultimate insult to Christ’s atoning sacrifice” (emphasis added).

Geisler and MacKenzie object to the idea that Christians experience some negative consequences for their sins. But they don’t explain why this is an insult to Christ’s atoning sacrifice. (and neither does FoftheG) Others have tried, suggesting, for example, that the suffering in purgatory atones for the eternal punishment of sin, something only Christ can do. Still others have said that suffering for our sins in purgatory contradicts the sufficiency of Christ’s work on the cross because Christ’s death makes it unnecessary for Christians ever to suffer for their sins.

Does either theory have any merit?

Let’s start with the first one: the sufferings in purgatory supposedly atone for the eternal punishment of sin.

People who believe this are simply mistaken as to what the Catholic Church teaches about purgatory and atonement. Purgatory has to do with freeing us from the “temporal punishment of sin” (CCC 1472), not eternal punishment. Purgatory is a final purification of “the elect” (CCC 1031), those for whom eternal punishment has already been remitted by Christ’s atoning death.

The soul in purgatory is on its way to heaven, having already received the grace of salvation: fruit of the sufficient work of Christ on the cross. Purgatory is merely for the sake of making up for temporal consequences due to sin that remain after death.

Let’s now turn to the second reason why some people have suggested that purgatory undermines the sufficiency of Christ’s death on the cross: Christ’s death on the cross makes it unnecessary for Christians ever to suffer for their sins.

This belief doesn’t match up with the biblical data. Consider, for example, 1 Corinthians 3:11-15, where Paul describes how the works of a Christian are being tested:

For no other foundation can any one lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any one builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each man’s work will become manifest; for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work which any man has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.​

This is a go-to passage for many Catholics in support of purgatory. But that aside, for our present purposes it at least portrays a Christian undergoing some form of suffering on account of bad works performed.

In this passage, Paul is clearly talking about a Christian (building on the foundation of Jesus). The “wood,” “hay,” and “straw” that are burned up represent the bad works (or sins) for which the Christian suffers “loss.” That the Christian will be saved “only as through fire” suggests that Christians will experience negative consequences for their sins.

We could also look at Hebrews 12:6, 10:

The Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives. . . . [He] disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.​

​

Notice that God chastises “every son whom he receives”—that’s to say, God disciplines Christians. But being “chastised” involves some sort of suffering for bad behavior. The Greek word for “chastise,” mastigoō, literally means to “lash,” “whip,” “flog,” or “scourge” for the sake of punishment. Therefore, God wills that Christians suffer for their sins.

The author of Hebrews also tells us the end to which such suffering is ordered: “for our good, that we may share his holiness.” So God doesn’t punish his children merely to reform external behavior but for conformity to his holiness. He chastises us so that we may become holy like him.

As in 1 Corinthians, we have a case of a Christian suffering for sins. Hebrews adds the end to which the suffering is ordered: sanctification. For the author of Hebrews, then, a Christian suffering for sins in order to be sanctified and the sufficient work of Christ on the cross are not mutually exclusive.

In fact, it’s because of Christ’s sacrifice for us that we can be sanctified (made holy) through our suffering in the first place. Without Christ’s death on the cross, our suffering for past sins would be to no avail.

And just as Christ’s death on the cross makes sanctification through suffering possible in this life, so too it makes possible our final sanctification in the next. As Jimmy Akin puts it, “His [Jesus] sufferings paid the price for us to be sanctified, and his sufferings paid the price for the whole of our sanctification—both the initial and final parts.”

Purgatory doesn’t contradict the sufficiency of Christ’s death on the cross. It depends on it.
source

 

[Athanasius377]

Of course we won’t find a fully developed medieval conception of purgatory [in 1 Cor 3], but it is foolish to expect that anyway, just as it would be to expect to find full Chalcedonian Christology and trinitarianism in all its glorious nuanced complexity. That is true of all doctrines, so why should purgatory be an exception?

Purgatory: My Biblical Defense Of Its Doctrinal Development

I habitually either qualify or presuppose doctrinal development or make clear in context that I am not claiming that Scripture explicitly "proves" a full-blown doctrine of purgatory.

www.patheos.com

I categorically reject the idea of doctrinal development. You can prove just about anything using this framework. It was the pet hypothesis of John Henry Newman when he couldn't find Rome's distinctives in the first centuries of the church. It is also not the historical Roman apologetic approach. If you read any Romish apologetic works in the proceeding 300 years the argument is that there are two streams of revelation: One is scripture and the other is tradition which the later contains all the teachings that have no basis in scripture (like Purgatory). In fact, the development hypothesis is actually a capitulation to the Protestant objections during the reformation. Furthermore to say that this novel hypothesis is in anyway parallel to the formulations of Trinitarian and Christological formulations isn't just false its also frankly offensive. The Symbol of Chalcedon is based on what the council fathers saw so clearly in Scripture. It was not building upon centuries of theological speculation and outside influences like the doctrine of purgatory.

 

[Illuminator]

I categorically reject the idea of doctrinal development.

The Bible itself took 4 centuries to develop. You refute yourself.

You can prove just about anything using this framework.

Not if the essential core of truths remain constant. Development is not "change".

It was the pet hypothesis of John Henry Newman when he couldn't find Rome's distinctives in the first centuries of the church.

But he did, that's why he became Catholic.

It is also not the historical Roman apologetic approach. If you read any Romish apologetic works in the proceeding 300 years the argument is that there are two streams of revelation: One is scripture and the other is tradition which the later contains all the teachings that have no basis in scripture (like Purgatory).

Scripture and Tradition (properly understood, which it never is) cannot possibly be two streams of revelation. They BOTH flow from the same divine wellspring.

In fact, the development hypothesis is actually a capitulation to the Protestant objections during the reformation.

Newman proved development of doctrine as always being there, he didn't invent it.

Furthermore to say that this novel hypothesis is in anyway parallel to the formulations of Trinitarian and Christological formulations isn't just false its also frankly offensive.

Are the Trinitarian and Christological formulations offensive? Do you at least accept the Nicene Creed? It took up to 5 centuries for the Trinitarian and Christological formulations to mature, thanks to challenging heresies. How is that not development?

The Symbol of Chalcedon is based on what the council fathers saw so clearly in Scripture.

Chalcedon was a long and complicated council. None of the fathers of Chalcedon were sola scripturists.

It was not building upon centuries of theological speculation and outside influences like the doctrine of purgatory.

If the doctrine of purgatory is an outside influence, then so is the doctrine of original sin. Besides, purgatory was not an issue at Chalcedon.

Chalcedon, COUNCIL OF, the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held in 451, from October 8 until November 1 inclusive, at Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor. Its principal purpose was to assert the orthodox Catholic doctrine against the heresy of Eutyches and the Monophysites, although ecclesiastical discipline and jurisdiction also occupied the council’s attention.

Scarcely had the heresy of Nestorius concerning the two persons in Christ been condemned by the Council of Ephesus, in 431, when the opposite error of the Nestorian heresy arose. Since Nestorius so fully divided the Divine and the human in Christ that he taught a double personality or a twofold being in Christ, it became incumbent on his opponents to emphasize the unity in Christ and to exhibit the God-man, not as two beings but as one.

Some of these opponents in their efforts to maintain a physical unity in Christ held that the two natures in Christ, the Divine and the human, were so intimately united that they became physically one, inasmuch as the human nature was completely absorbed by the Divine. Thus resulted one Christ, not only with one personality but also with one nature. After the Incarnation, they said, no distinction could be made in Christ between the Divine and the human. The principal representatives of this teaching were Dioscurus, Patriarch of Alexandria, and Eutyches, an archimandrite or president of a monastery outside Constantinople. The Monophysitic error, as the new doctrine was called (Gr.mon? phusis, one nature), claimed the authority of St. Cyril, but only through a misinterpretation of some expressions of the great Alexandrine teacher.

Council of Chalcedon

Chalcedon, COUNCIL OF, the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held in 451, from October 8 until November 1 inclusive, at Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor. It...

www.catholic.com

The bulk of Newman’s extraordinary work is devoted to the exposition of a series of analogies, showing conclusively that the Protestant static conception of the Church (both historically and theologically) is incoherent and false. He argues, for example, that notions of suffering, or “vague forms of the doctrine of Purgatory,” were universally accepted, by and large, in the first four centuries of the Church, whereas, the same cannot be said for the doctrine of original sin, which is agreed upon by Protestants and Catholics.

Protestants falsely argue that purgatory is a later corruption, but it was present early on and merely developed. Original sin, however, was equally if not more so, subject to development. One cannot have it both ways. If purgatory is unacceptable on grounds of its having undergone development, then original sin must be rejected with it. Contrariwise, if original sin is accepted notwithstanding its own development, then so must purgatory be accepted. [“Development of Doctrine: A Corruption of Biblical Teaching?”

The Jews offered atonement and prayer for their deceased brethren, who had clearly violated Mosaic Law. Such a practice presupposes purgatory, since those in heaven wouldn’t need any help, and those in hell are beyond it. The Jewish people, therefore, believed in prayer for the dead (whether or not this book is scriptural; Protestants deny that it is). [A Biblical Defense of Catholicism, May 1996]