"The problem comes in when you postulate that a soul that enters the place can be earned out of it. THAT is the problem!"
Did I say that?
If I did, I don't believe it.
Hell and Purgatory are the same place: Gehenna.
God judges, the purgation happens. When God is satisfied, the soul goes to heaven.
Can the prayers of the living affect the soul in Gehenna?
To the extent that the prayers of the living can affect the souls of those still on Earth.
Which is to say: it is in God's hands.
I hope so. But I do not know.
Vain philosophy of man with ZERO scriptural support.