Chris Gordon with daughter, Molly

Chris Gordon is a religion and history teacher and a family man with three young children. Sydney 2008 will be his first world youth day. You can find his profile on XT3. 

The Church teaches that Purgatory is a place of punishment where souls of people who have died in a state of grace, but who still have something owing to divine justice, suffer for a time before they are received into Heaven.

The debt owing to God’s justice is a result of some unrepented venial sin or of satisfaction due after the guilt of mortal sin has been remitted.

The time that a soul must remain in Purgatory and the intensity of the pain suffered differs from soul to soul. St. Thomas Aquinas opines that the duration of Purgatory is equivalent to the degree of attachment to sin, and the intensity of pain is according to the degree of guilt for sins committed. (Comm. In Sent. iv, d. 21)

Two types of pain are experienced in Purgatory. The pain of loss is the knowledge that you are very close to seeing God but are not there yet. This pain is felt intensely and there is a deep sense of regret over lost opportunities to prepare the soul better before death. This pain of loss is balanced though by hope. The souls detained in Purgatory know they will be released and will see God face to face.

While it is not an article of faith, many of the great Church teachers and thinkers suggest that a pain of sense is also experienced in Purgatory. The doctors of the Church explain some kind of fire which is painful in the extreme. “Though we be saved by fire, that fire will be more severe than anything a man can suffer in this life.” (Enarrat. In Ps., 37,3)

The souls in Purgatory are “holy souls” because they died in a state of grace. They are also referred to as ‘poor souls’ because they cannot help themselves. Death is the term of meriting, however, the living may offer prayers and acts of sacrifice on behalf of the deceased which can speed their entry into Heaven.

Through our mystical connection as members of the communion of saints, we in the Church militant here on earth can assist those in the Church suffering in Purgatory via our prayers and sacrifices. From time to time an indulgence may be offered by the Church. Here the faithful perform some prayers, go to Mass and confession all within a close time frame, and in return receive a full or partial exemption from time owed in Purgatory. Indulgences may be acquired by the living for the souls in Purgatory.

There are many references in scripture about sins being pardoned or expiated after death. For example Christ uses the analogy of a court and a judge with a prison officer. This is recounted in Luke’s gospel in chapter 12. Here Christ is warning that we should be repentant and reconcile our sins here on earth, otherwise we will face the judge and could receive a sentence. “I tell you, you will never get out till you have paid the very last penny” (Luke 12, 57-59)