By what authority do you call it a lie? Your own interpretation? There are other interpretations that predate you and I that are much closer to the time of Christ. In fact, there are prayers for the dead written on the walls of the catecombs that date back to the Church's early beginnings. Given that this practice was demonstrably known and it wasn't condemned in Church councils shows that it is a very early and consistent teaching.
Consider Matt 12:32 where Christ refers to the sinner who "will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come" suggesting that there is forgiveness of sins even after death. Consider the words of St Paul in 1 Cor 3:15 where he explains what happens in judgement where each man's work is tried. What happens if his work fails the test? "He will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire". This loss can't be Hell because St Paul says the man will be saved and it can't be Heaven since there is no suffering (fire) there. 1 Peter 3:19 makes reference to a place in the afterlife that is neither Heaven nor Hell. Is it Purgatory? We don't know, specifically. However, to say that Purgatory is absolutely not Biblical is much too easy. There is room for a teaching authority to explain.
It is called a dichotomy. Either the thief on the cross was going to be with Jesus in paradise that day, or not. One or the other. Luke 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.
If the catholic teaching is true, then the thief would not be in paradise "today". Rather, the thief would have to go to some other place to be "perfected". You can't have it both ways.
And actual bible student wouldn't consider any such thing...
Mat 12:32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
This is not a reference to a person existing alive in one world and then dead in another world...This is speaking of people living in one age comparing them to other people living in another age...It is telling us the rule doesn't change from age to age...
And how do we know that...From studying the scriptures about the different ages...
Consider the words of St Paul in 1 Cor 3:15 where he explains what happens in judgement where each man's work is tried. What happens if his work fails the test? "He will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire". This loss can't be Hell because St Paul says the man will be saved and it can't be Heaven since there is no suffering (fire) there.
There isn't any physical suffering in 1Cor 3:15 unless you are a Catholic and pervert the scriptures, thus perverting the meaning...
1 Corinthians 3:15Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition (DRA)
15 If any man's work burn, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.
And it's your own Catholic bible that you pervert...Do you see the word 'through' in there anywhere??? No??? Then why do you add it???
Men in the passage are saved SO AS 'by' fire (a figure of, a type of)...NOT thru a fire...The fire burns up the bad works so they no longer exist to go on our record...That's how we are saved by fire...
1 Peter 3:19 makes reference to a place in the afterlife that is neither Heaven nor Hell. Is it Purgatory? We don't know, specifically.
Well we bible believers know, specifically...
The bible tells us Lazarus was there...You got any scripture that shows he was being burned??? No??? Imagine that...It is called Abraham's Bosom...Jesus had the KEY and when Jesus was headed up, he unlocked Abraham's Bosom and it has been wide open ever since...No one goes there now...
However, to say that Purgatory is absolutely not Biblical is much too easy. There is room for a teaching authority to explain.
There's not a bit of room for purgatory...The Catholic purgatory is based on perverting scripture, and not believing scripture...
They must be on the same basis as the church began, that of Scriptural substantiation.
Can you provide us even one example of a prayer to anyone else but God in Scripture? Except by pagans?
Can you provide us with even one instruction on prayer to Heaven in which we are to address anyone else but the Lord ("Our Mother, who art in Heaven...)? Physically asking others in this realm to pray for each other is not the same, and do not support to communication btwn the two realms.
Can you provide us with even one example of created beings being able to hear and respond to all the prayers addressed to them? Angels and elders offering prayers as a memorial at the time of judgment does not do it.
Can you provide us with even one example of created beings from Heaven and earth communicating to each other without both having to be in the same realm somehow?
In fact, there are prayers for the dead written on the walls of the catecombs that date back to the Church's early beginnings.
And there were souls being baptized for the dead, and souls forbidding to marry, and to not eat meat, and other aberrations. Do Caths imagine if someone did something then it is holy tradition?
Given that this practice was demonstrably known and it wasn't condemned in Church councils shows that it is a very early and consistent teaching.
That is just the problem, that of accretion of errors being perpetuated as tradition since the church becomes the supreme authoritative infallible source, not Scripture.
Consider Matt 12:32
It has been, and shown to be refer to the resurrection.
Consider the words of St Paul in 1 Cor 3:15 where he explains what happens in judgement where each man's work is tried. What happens if his work fails the test? "He will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire".
But which only occurs at the Lord's return, (1Cor. 4:5; 2Tim. 4:1,8; Rev.11:18; Mt. 25:31-46; 1Pt. 1:7; 5:4) versus purgatory, which has souls suffering upon death. This fact alone disallows 1 Cor. 3 from referring to purgatory.
And the believer is not saved because he suffered this loss, but despite it. And the loss is not personal defects, but the souls he built the church with. See here .
1 Peter 3:19 makes reference to a place in the afterlife that is neither Heaven nor Hell. Is it Purgatory? We don't know, specifically.
It does not say is not Hades, but like Abraham's Bosom, (LK. 16:19ff) it likely was a compartment of Hades, while the only souls which are there were lost souls, such as were disobedient in Noah's day when the all were evil and only Noah and family found grace.
However, to say that Purgatory is absolutely not Biblical is much too easy. There is room for a teaching authority to explain.
Rather, to say that Purgatory is absolutely not Biblical is where the only clear evidence leads, but as that is superfluous to Rome, to say that Purgatory is Biblical is easy for her, as she is her own autocratic authority.