No Salvation Outside the Church

Catholic Answers ^ | 12/05 | Fr. Ray Ryland

[bdeaner]

Why does the Catholic Church teach that there is "no salvation outside the Church"? Doesn’t this contradict Scripture? God "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4). "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me" (John 14:6). Peter proclaimed to the Sanhedrin, "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

Since God intends (plans, wills) that every human being should go to heaven, doesn’t the Church’s teaching greatly restrict the scope of God’s redemption? Does the Church mean—as Protestants and (I suspect) many Catholics believe—that only members of the Catholic Church can be saved?

That is what a priest in Boston, Fr. Leonard Feeney, S.J., began teaching in the 1940s. His bishop and the Vatican tried to convince him that his interpretation of the Church’s teaching was wrong. He so persisted in his error that he was finally excommunicated, but by God’s mercy, he was reconciled to the Church before he died in 1978.

In correcting Fr. Feeney in 1949, the Supreme Congregation of the Holy Office (now the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith) issued a document entitled Suprema Haec Sacra, which stated that "extra ecclesiam, nulla salus" (outside the Church, no salvation) is "an infallible statement." But, it added, "this dogma must be understood in that sense in which the Church itself understands it."

Note that word dogma. This teaching has been proclaimed by, among others, Pope Pelagius in 585, the Fourth Lateran Council in 1214, Pope Innocent III in 1214, Pope Boniface VIII in 1302, Pope Pius XII, Pope Paul VI, the Second Vatican Council, Pope John Paul II, and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Dominus Iesus.

Our point is this: When the Church infallibly teaches extra ecclesiam, nulla salus, it does not say that non-Catholics cannot be saved. In fact, it affirms the contrary. The purpose of the teaching is to tell us how Jesus Christ makes salvation available to all human beings.

Work Out Your Salvation

There are two distinct dimensions of Jesus Christ’s redemption. Objective redemption is what Jesus Christ has accomplished once for all in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension: the redemption of the whole universe. Yet the benefits of that redemption have to be applied unceasingly to Christ’s members throughout their lives. This is subjective redemption. If the benefits of Christ’s redemption are not applied to individuals, they have no share in his objective redemption. Redemption in an individual is an ongoing process. "Work out your own salvation in fear and trembling; for God is at work in you" (Phil. 2:12–13).

How does Jesus Christ work out his redemption in individuals? Through his mystical body. When I was a Protestant, I (like Protestants in general) believed that the phrase "mystical body of Christ" was essentially a metaphor. For Catholics, the phrase is literal truth.

Here’s why: To fulfill his Messianic mission, Jesus Christ took on a human body from his Mother. He lived a natural life in that body. He redeemed the world through that body and no other means. Since his Ascension and until the end of history, Jesus lives on earth in his supernatural body, the body of his members, his mystical body. Having used his physical body to redeem the world, Christ now uses his mystical body to dispense "the divine fruits of the Redemption" (Mystici Corporis 31).

The Church: His Body

What is this mystical body? The true Church of Jesus Christ, not some invisible reality composed of true believers, as the Reformers insisted. In the first public proclamation of the gospel by Peter at Pentecost, he did not invite his listeners to simply align themselves spiritually with other true believers. He summoned them into a society, the Church, which Christ had established. Only by answering that call could they be rescued from the "crooked generation" (Acts 2:40) to which they belonged and be saved.

Paul, at the time of his conversion, had never seen Jesus. Yet recall how Jesus identified himself with his Church when he spoke to Paul on the road to Damascus: "Why do you persecute me?" (Acts 9:4, emphasis added) and "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting" (Acts 9:5). Years later, writing to Timothy, Paul ruefully admitted that he had persecuted Jesus by persecuting his Church. He expressed gratitude for Christ appointing him an apostle, "though I formerly b.asphemed and persecuted and insulted him" (1 Tim. 1:13).

The Second Vatican Council says that the hierarchical structure of the Catholic Church and the mystical body of Christ "form one complex reality that comes together from a human and a divine element" (Lumen Gentium 8). The Church is "the fullness of him [Christ] who fills all in all" (Eph. 1:23). Now that Jesus has accomplished objective redemption, the "plan of mystery hidden for ages in God" is "that through the Church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places" (Eph. 3:9–10).

According to John Paul II, in order to properly understand the Church’s teaching about its role in Christ’s scheme of salvation, two truths must be held together: "the real possibility of salvation in Christ for all humanity" and "the necessity of the Church for salvation" (Redemptoris Missio 18). John Paul taught us that the Church is "the seed, sign, and instrument" of God’s kingdom and referred several times to Vatican II’s designation of the Catholic Church as the "universal sacrament of salvation":

"The Church is the sacrament of salvation for all humankind, and her activity is not limited only to those who accept her message" (RM 20).

"Christ won the Church for himself at the price of his own blood and made the Church his co-worker in the salvation of the world. . . . He carries out his mission through her" (RM 9).

In an address to the plenary assembly of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (January 28, 2000), John Paul stated, "The Lord Jesus . . . established his Church as a saving reality: as his body, through which he himself accomplishes salvation in history." He then quoted Vatican II’s teaching that the Church is necessary for salvation.

In 2000 the CDF issued Dominus Iesus, a response to widespread attempts to dilute the Church’s teaching about our Lord and about itself. The English subtitle is itself significant: "On the Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the Church." It simply means that Jesus Christ and his Church are indivisible. He is universal Savior who always works through his Church:

The only Savior . . . constituted the Church as a salvific mystery: He himself is in the Church and the Church is in him. . . . Therefore, the fullness of Christ’s salvific mystery belongs also to the Church, inseparably united to her Lord (DI 18).

Indeed, Christ and the Church "constitute a single ‘whole Christ’" (DI 16). In Christ, God has made known his will that "the Church founded by him be the instrument for the salvation of all humanity" (DI 22). The Catholic Church, therefore, "has, in God’s plan, an indispensable relationship with the salvation of every human being" (DI 20).

The key elements of revelation that together undergird extra ecclesiam, nulla salus are these: (1) Jesus Christ is the universal Savior. (2) He has constituted his Church as his mystical body on earth through which he dispenses salvation to the world. (3) He always works through it—though in countless instances outside its visible boundaries. Recall John Paul’s words about the Church quoted above: "Her activity is not limited only to those who accept its message."

Not of this Fold

Extra ecclesiam, nulla salus does not mean that only faithful Roman Catholics can be saved. The Church has never taught that. So where does that leave non-Catholics and non-Christians?

Jesus told his followers, "I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd" (John 10:16). After his Resurrection, Jesus gave the threefold command to Peter: "Feed my lambs. . . . Tend my sheep. . . . Feed my sheep" (John 21:15–17). The word translated as "tend" (poimaine) means "to direct" or "to superintend"—in other words, "to govern." So although there are sheep that are not of Christ’s fold, it is through the Church that they are able to receive his salvation.

People who have never had an opportunity to hear of Christ and his Church—and those Christians whose minds have been closed to the truth of the Church by their conditioning—are not necessarily cut off from God’s mercy. Vatican II phrases the doctrine in these terms: Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the gospel of Christ or his Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their consciences—those too may achieve eternal salvation (LG 16).

Since Christ died for all, and since all men are in fact called to one and the same destiny, which is divine, we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partakers, in a way known to God, of the Paschal mystery (Gaudium et Spes 22).

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

Every man who is ignorant of the gospel of Christ and of his Church but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it can be saved. It may be supposed that such persons would have desired baptism explicitly if they had known its necessity (CCC 1260).

Obviously, it is not their ignorance that enables them to be saved. Ignorance excuses only lack of knowledge. That which opens the salvation of Christ to them is their conscious effort, under grace, to serve God as well as they can on the basis of the best information they have about him.

The Church speaks of "implicit desire" or "longing" that can exist in the hearts of those who seek God but are ignorant of the means of his grace. If a person longs for salvation but does not know the divinely established means of salvation, he is said to have an implicit desire for membership in the Church. Non-Catholic Christians know Christ, but they do not know his Church. In their desire to serve him, they implicitly desire to be members of his Church. Non-Christians can be saved, said John Paul, if they seek God with "a sincere heart." In that seeking they are "related" to Christ and to his body the Church (address to the CDF).

On the other hand, the Church has long made it clear that if a person rejects the Church with full knowledge and consent, he puts his soul in danger:

They cannot be saved who, knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God through Christ, would refuse either to enter it or remain in it (cf. LG 14).

The Catholic Church is "the single and exclusive channel by which the truth and grace of Christ enter our world of space and time" (Karl Adam, The Spirit of Catholicism, 179). Those who do not know the Church, even those who fight against it, can receive these gifts if they honestly seek God and his truth. But, Adam says, "though it be not the Catholic Church itself that hands them the bread of truth and grace, yet it is Catholic bread that they eat." And when they eat of it, "without knowing it or willing it" they are "incorporated in the supernatural substance of the Church."

Extra ecclesiam, nulla salus.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR



Fr. Ray Ryland, a convert and former Episcopal priest, holds a Ph.D. in theology from Marquette University and is a contributing editor to This Rock. He writes from Steubenville, Ohio, where he lives with his wife, Ruth.

[Iscool]

I've been watching your posts and I can only say I have never seen scripture twisted and stretched as much as I have in your posts...

In John 3, Christ tells us that we need to be baptized with water to be born again into the Spirit, but He does not say this is sufficient for salvation. It's necessary, but not sufficient.

Here's a fine example...There's not a word in the verse about baptism...And being born again isn't sufficient for salvation??? That's too funny...If you guys can't find a soulution for your dogma in a single verse, you just improvise and make it up...

I don't know if you are being dishonest or God has blinded your mind but being filled with the Holy Spirit and putting on the 'new man' is the result of being born again and it IS salvation...

Matthew 5:20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Kingdom of Heaven is the Millennial Reign of Jesus on this earth...It has nothing to do with Christians...It's strictly Jewish...That's so far above your head you couldn't reach it with the space shuttle...But contrast that with this...

Rom 4:22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
Rom 4:23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;
Rom 4:24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;
Rom 4:25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

There are two distinct doctrines here...1st example; someone has to have their own righteousness...2nd example; God gives Christians His righteousness...

[bdeaner]

No problem! I’m enjoying the back and forth! May God bless you and keep you until next time.

[Iscool]

The Church is the BODY of CHRIST. Christ is God. What is the difference?

The difference is Jesus Christ is not the Body any more than the church is the Head...Jesus Christ is the Head...Born again believers are the Body/the church...

[Iscool]

When a person acts in persona Christi, they become a channel through which the Lord acts materially and instrumentally in the world, as He willed it.

Sounds like a scene from Harry Potter...You got some scripture that proves that???

[Mr Rogers]

bdeaner!

Matthew 5:26 “I tell you solemnly, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.”

Here Jesus is talking about a debt the dead must pay for their sins in order to enter Heaven. There is no escape from Hell, so again, there must be some third state—neither Heaven nor Hell—call it purgatory—in which that debt is paid.

---

What it says is:
“ 21 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.”

That isn’t talking about Heaven! Otherwise we would need to “Come to terms quickly with your accuser...” who is SATAN!

Jesus is using earthly terms to show that we cannot merit salvation. This is the first of 6 sections rejecting the teachings of the Pharisees.

For immediately prior, we read, “20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. [Jesus continues] 21 “You have heard that it was said...”

The passage from Peter would take longer, and I won’t get to it tonight.

[Iscool]

Do you claim to have authority to interpret the Bible infallibly?

It's not a matter of interpretation...It's not even a matter of understanding...It's a matter of belief...

[CTrent1564]

bedeaner: Here is some quick thoughts on Purgatory.

Mr. Rogers, in documenting the Doctrine of Purgatory, I am only documenting that it is a Catholic Doctrine that is rooted in Scripture and Tradition, and not out of left field. In addition, the concept of Purgatory is linked to the Catholic Doctrine of Justification, which is different from the Baptist, Reformed, etc view. as Grace in Catholict theology transforms the human person and objectively makes on Holy and restores us back to the image of God created in Genesis.

St. Augustine wrote in his classic work City of God that temporary punishments due to sin are suffered by some in their earthly life, and some after death, and some both now and then, but all punishments before the last and final judgment of Christ spoken of in the Creed, that he will come again in Glory to Judge the Living and the Dead. It was St. Augustine who first used the term “purgatory”, which later would be more formally defined based on Sacred Scripture and the Liturgical Rites of the early Church, confirmed by the Church Fathers.

In Catholic Doctrine, it is between the particular judgment and Final judgment that the soul gets purified from all impact of sin, what the Church calls Purgatory, which is a concept in Scripture.

So, when we see Christ state that only the pure of heart shall see God (cf. Mt 5:8) and that “nothing unclean shall enter heaven” (c.f. Rev 21: 27), the Church understands this to be pointing to purgatory.. The Catechism specifically (CCC 1031) refers to Mt 12:31-32, which states that some “sins will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come” and St. Paul in 1 Cor. 3:15 states that “but if someone’s work is burned up, that one will suffer loss; the person will be saved, but only as through fire”. A point here is that the Latin word purgation means to “pass through fire”, which is where the word purgatory comes from. The whole passage from 1 Cor 3:12-15 also helps out as it speaks of the day, when all works will be disclosed, referring to the final judgment. Faith being tested through fire is also mentioned in 1 Pet 1:7.

Other passages consistent with the Doctrine of Purgatory include Luke 12:59 where Christ says you will not get out until you paid the last penny. We also see in 1 Pet 3: 19 we see that “Christ went to speak to the spirits in prison” and later in 1 Pet 4:6 we read “For this is why the gospel was preached even to the dead that condemned in the flesh in human estimation, they might live in the spirit in the estimation of God”. While these passages don’t prove purgatory, they do imply a spiritual state that is not hell or Heaven. Finally, we also read 2 Mac 12:46 that “prayers were offered for the dead”, which of course is in the Catholic and Orthodox OT canons, but not Protestant.

In summary, the doctrine of purgatory is consistent with the Catholic understanding of Grace and Sin and is supported by Sacred Scripture. In addition, the Sacred Tradition of the Church, as confirmed by the Church Fathers also supports the doctrine of Purgatory as prayers for the dead all clearly taught by the Fathers.

[Religion Moderator]

Do not make this thread "about" individual Freepers. That is a form of "making it personal."

Discuss the issues all you want, but do not make it personal.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so very much for sharing your testimony, your insights and especially those beautiful Scriptures, dear brother in Christ!

I only have two points to add.

First, only those who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit are His adopted children. Notice the first verse also testifies of the Trinity: Spirit, Spirit of God, Spirit of Christ.

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. – Romans 8:9

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. - Romans 8:15

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. - John 1:12-13

The second point concerns the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus commands us to "be" perfect. We cannot "do" or "think" or "say" perfect things. But we can "be" perfect by abiding in Him because He is perfect.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more [than others]? do not even the publicans so?

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. - Matthew 5:44-48

I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every [branch] that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. - John 15:1-5

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. – Colossians 3:3

To God be the glory, not man, never man.

[Semper Mark]

Thank you for your reply CTrent1564

I'm just a dumb old country boy, but I believe what you just told me more or less is...we ain't all that bad.

“So Catholic and Eastern Orthodox theology does not use “sinful nature” for this is rooted in one of Calvin's 5 points called “Totally Depraved” or man is totally evil. Rather, Catholic’s see a man as wounded by original sin and fallen from the original stature that he had in Genesis 1, but not totally sinful and not totally depraved.”

You can put a little salve on a wound and it will heal, but our problem demanded that the Son of Glory come into this world and die a horrible death on the cross. And I'm not referring to the beatings and the ridicule, I'm talking about the transference of sins from us to him and then the justice of a Holy God being poured out on Him. Imagine, billions and billions of eternities in hell being poured out on him. He, who knew no sin was made sin for us.

Have you ever contemplated the cross? If we had not been “totally sinful” and not “Totally Depraved”...

...wouldn't that have required less of a sacrifice?

[Marysecretary]

No, he had a fine catholic upbringing and even went to catholic school. You guys can always find some excuse, can’t you?

[CTrent1564]

Markos33:

I am a commmitted Catholic, yet I do recognize that at least with confessional Protestants, at least the ones who embrace the Creeds of the Church, have much in common with me, as an orthodox Catholic, with respect to Christology, etc, and on the moral questions of the day are many times natural allies in the cultural battles, than say some of my dissident Catholic brethren, who I still love by the way, but they need to turn away from their liberation liberal theology nonsense.

Again, my point here was to only point out the Catholic Doctrine is not rooted in “works of the law”, which over and over again, some folks here interested in polemics continue to say, but works in the context that I cited above rooted in Love of God and Neighbor, which are part of and due to faith, and both are because of God’s Grace.

So yes, you all ain’t all that bad. Also, are you a Southerner and perhaps an SEC football fan.

[bdeaner]

even went to catholic school.

Well, that explains it perfectly. The liberals took over the Catholic schools in the 60's and 70's. HORRIBLE catechesis.

The converts know Catholic doctrine better than cradle Catholics. Cradle Catholics fell through the cracks within the past several decades of the Church. The Church has finally begun to develop better catechesis for cradle Catholics and adults of the Church who were not properly trained in Catholic doctrine. A lot of cradle Catholics don't even understand the basics of the Mass, e.g. the Real Presence. Sad.

[Mr Rogers]

So, when we see Christ state that only the pure of heart shall see God (cf. Mt 5:8)

How do you become pure in heart? By doing good deeds? Yet no man is justified by the Law. It is when you become a new creation that you are "made perfect forever", consistent with “nothing unclean shall enter heaven” (c.f. Rev 21: 27). Nothing about Purgatory.

The Catechism specifically (CCC 1031) refers to Mt 12:31-32, which states that some “sins will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come”

What it says is, "31 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come."

This passage immediately follows people claiming Jesus is working, not by the power of God, but the power of Satan "24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."

Those who believe Jesus works from the power of Satan have committed the unforgivable sin, by refusing to recognize that Jesus is of God.

and St. Paul in 1 Cor. 3:15 states that “but if someone’s work is burned up, that one will suffer loss; the person will be saved, but only as through fire”. A point here is that the Latin word purgation means to “pass through fire”, which is where the word purgatory comes from. The whole passage from 1 Cor 3:12-15 also helps out as it speaks of the day, when all works will be disclosed, referring to the final judgment.

Please look at what it does NOT say. It does NOT say believers will pass thru the fire, but rather, that their ministry will be tested. How?

"But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it [what he has built] is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

Faith being tested through fire is also mentioned in 1 Pet 1:7.

What it says is, "In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, 5who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

Our faith is tested, but not by fire, and we are not put to fire as punishment of 'temporal sins'! We are refined - but he is talking about here on earth "now for a little while".

Not long after I became a Christian, my Dad died in Vietnam (http://vailbs.com/mom__dad). That was a trial to my faith, and it refined it. But it was NOT purgatory!

Luke 12 is like the passage I discussed in Matthew 5. It hardly establishes Purgatory.

I'll try to deal with the passages in 1 Peter later. It is 10PM here in Arizona, and my bedtime.

[Semper Mark]

“So yes, you ain't all that bad”

Think about it, if you knew me like God knows me, we wouldn't be corresponding right now.

And if I knew you like God knows you...we're that bad.

But you don't, and I don't, so we'll leave it at that.
You're very intelligent and I like to read your writings,
even though we don't agree on every thing.

By the way...what does condemned mean? Go Vols!

[Mr Rogers]

“Catholic’s see a man as wounded by original sin and fallen from the original stature that he had in Genesis 1, but not totally sinful and not totally depraved.”

That point was made in Bainton’s “The Reformation of the 16th Century’ - read it last night! Now to bed!

[Marysecretary]

This wasn’t the sixties or seventies. It was the 50’s. He want to Christian Brothers Academy.

[bdeaner]

I have more where those came from! ;) But let me elaborate a bit on the verses from Matthew.

Matthew 5:22
But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, "You fool!" shall be liable to the hell of fire.

Here is what St. Francis de Sales had to say about this passage:

"It is only the third sort of offence which is punished with hell; therefore in the judgment of God after this life there are other pains which are not eternal or infernal,--these are the pains of Purgatory. One may say that the pains will be suffered in this world; but St. Augustine and the other Fathers understand them for the other world. And again may it not be that a man should die on the first or second offense which is spoken here? And when will such a one pay the penalty7 due to his offence?...Do then as the anciet Fathers did, and say that there is a place where they will be purified, and then they will go to heaven above."

So, my exegesis of the Scripture is in pretty good company. But let's go on...

Matthew 5:25-26
Make friends 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; truly, I say to you, you will never get out till you have paid the last penny.
Note: Also see Luke 12:58-59.

Again, let's see what St. Francis de Sales has to say:

"Origen, St. Cyprian, St. Hilary, St. Ambrose, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine say that the way which is meant in the whilst thou art in the way [while you are going with him to court] is not other than the passage of the present life: the adversary [accuser] will be our own conscience,... as St. Ambrose expounds, and Bede, St. Augustine, St. Gregory [the Great], and St. Bernard. Lastly, the judge is without doubt Our Lord...The prison, again, is...the place of punishment in the other world, in which, as in a large jail, there are many buildings; one for those who are damned, which is as it were for criminals, the other for those in Purgatory, which is as it were for debt. The farthing [penny]...are little sins and infirmities, as the farthing is the smallest money one can owe.

Now let us consider a little where this repayment...is to be made. And we find from most ancient Fathers that it is in Purgatory: Tertullian, Cyprian, Origen,...St. Ambrose, St. Jerome...Who sees not that in St. Luke the comparison is drawn, not from a murderer or some criminal, who can have no hope of escape, but from a debtor who is thrown into prison till payment, and when this is made is at once let out? This then is the meaning of Our Lord, that whilst we are in this world we should try by penitence and its fruits to pay, according to the power which we have by the blood of the Redeemer, the penalty to which our sins have subjected us; since if we wait till death we shall not have such good terms in Purgatory, when we shall be treated with severity of justice."

Again, this marvelous exegesis by St. Francis de Sales validates my reading.

But let's not stop there. Let's continue a little further with Matthew.

Matthew 12:32
And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

Here the Gospel according to Matthew again supports the Catholic doctrine of purgatory. If sins can be pardoned in the age to come (the afterlife), then, in the nature of things, this MUST BE in purgatory. We would laugh at a man who said that he would not marry in this world or the next (as if he could in the next--see Mark 12:25). If this sin cannot be forgiven after death, it follows that there are others which CAN BE. Accordingly, this interpretation was held by St. Augustine, St. Gregory the Great, Bede, and St. Bernard, among others. Again, as for as company goes, not too shabby.

[bdeaner]

Well I guess he's destined for purgatory...

lol. Just messin' with ya. ;)

[bdeaner]

Sounds like a scene from Harry Potter...You got some scripture that proves that???

2 Corinthians 2:10
Cui autem aliquid donastis, et ego: nam et ego quod donavi, si quid donavi, propter vos in persona Christi,