“Actually, it says nothing of the sort. Binding on earth/binding in heaven is FAR different from giving earthly priests, (sinful, fallen me just as the rest of us) the ability to forgive sins — which, by the way, is the SOLE purview of God Almighty.”
A gift which Christ granted to the Apostles, the power to forgive sins. This is what binding and loosing means.
“It doesn’t say a thing about having to go to “purgatory” to have the testing done.”
What do you think purgatory means? To cleanse by fire.
I don’t know what purgatory means because scripture doesn’t define it; the Roman Catholic Church does.
Re-read my post regarding being absent in the body. Also, as another poster pointed out, Jesus didn’t tell the thief that he was going to purgatory for a bit to get toasty and then he would see him later—
Hoss.