What is it with you all and indulgences? They play about as much a role in Catholicism is a pardon does in our political system.
They play a very substantial role for RCs, as did money for them in the past, while the point was that there are so many FR posts on the pope and Catholicism - and far more than there used to be - that one can wonder if some RCs think they get an indulgence for posting them.
Meanwhile the pardon for sin is that of Christ by which a soul is justified by a kind of faith that will follow Christ, which faith is counted for righteousness.
And with growth in grace toward practical maturity taking place in this life with its temptations and afflictions, and not in purifying torments commencing at death so that one progressively becomes perfect enough to enter glory. One either has true faith which effects characteristic holiness, or he does not.
In Scripture, the only clear teaching as to the postmortem place for the believer refers to them being with the Lord. Not only would the penitent criminal go to "paradise" (Lk. 23:43; cf. 2Cor. 12:4; Rv. 2:7) as well as Paul and be with the Lord upon their passing, (Phil 1:23; 2Cor. 5:8: “we”) but so would every resurrected/raptured Corinthian (1Cor. 15:51ff) or Thessalonian, “to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord,” (1Thess. 4:17) if He came, even though the believers among the former were in need of further purification. (2Cor. 7:1)
Nor does 1Cor. 3 refer to purgatory, as the judgment of believers which 1 Cor. 3 describes only takes place at His return, (1Cor. 4:5; 2Tim. 4:1,8; Rev.11:18; Mt. 25:21-23; 1Pt. 1:7; 5:4) versus purgatory, which has souls suffering upon death.
And in which believers whose work (which he built the church with) is burned up are saved despite this loss (and which is their suffering, and the Lord's grievous disapproval), not because of this loss. More
Even Mal. 12 also does not teach purgatory, and RCs trying to find support this tradition do not have any clear Scriptural teaching for it, but try to extrapolate it from unclear texts which of suffering for sins and the need for holiness, but which do not say the redeemed realize postmortem suffering to expiate sin and become holy enough to see God. For it is part of Catholicism 's amorphous tradition, not Scripture.
But may I (fully be committed to being ) be as holy and useful as i can be, more than now.