Catholic Teaching on Purgatory – with Rev. Fr. Mark Gova.

By Demetria Banda

Tell us about yourself

I am Rev. Fr. Mark Gova from St. James, Chilomoni Catholic Parish in the Archdiocese of Blantyre. I am a third born child in a family of six. Currently, I am working as Teacher and Formator at St. Peter’s Senior Seminary in Zomba. This is the place where Major Seminarians study for their Bachelors of Arts in Theology as they prepare themselves to become priests for all the dioceses in Malawi.

You have mentioned that you are at St. Peter’s Senior Seminary what do you teach there?

Here at St Peter’s Senior Seminary, I teach courses in Dogmatic Theology. This is my area of specialisation as I have a Licentiate in Dogmatic Theology obtained in the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Pontificia Universita della Santa Croce) in Rome, Italy. This field of Theology is that which deals with the scientific search on the revealed truths of faith in which the church believes. And one of the topics that is interesting in our field is that which you asked me to discuss with you – purgatory.

 Now what can you tell us about Purgatory. What is it?

Purgatory is in simple terms a state or a place for final purification. The word Purgatory itself comes from the Latin word Purgare which means to purify. This is as the Church believes a place or state of final purification for the soul of an individual who has died not in the state of mortal sin but also not in the state full of grace as to merit entry into heaven. As such these people who have died like that go through a period of purification and that is what is known as purgatory.

Clarify on the possible places that a soul goes after death.

The Catholic Church teaches that the soul that has died in the state of grace – meaning without sin and after having confessed their sins will go to heaven. And heaven is in this case a state of being in communion with God; being in communion with Jesus, Christ. Reading the book Eschatology by the theologian of our time, Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI) “heaven is the participation in the new mode of existence in Christ and thus the fulfilment of what baptism began in us”. Secondly, the soul that dies in the state of mortal sin goes to hell and hell is the state of deprivation from seeing the face of God. And according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church article number 1035, “The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, “eternal fire.” The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.” These are the souls that are damned and the souls of those that have chosen to deprive themselves of the face of God.  Thirdly, we have purgatory which is a place of final purification for the souls of those that die in venial sins.

When was the teaching on Purgatory formally proclaimed? And what does it exactly say?

The Church has from time immemorial believed in the existence of purgatory. And this can be traced when we go through the practice of the early Church whose believers indeed believed that when a person dies there is a possibility of praying for them so that they move to heaven. However, the official declaration of Purgatory dates back to the Council of Florence in 1439AD and also to the Council of Trent in 1563AD. The Council Fathers of the Council of Florence decreed that “if those who are truly penitent die in the love of God before having satisfied by worthy fruits of penance for their sins of commission and omission, their souls are cleansed by purgatorial punishments. In order that they be relieved from such punishments, the acts of intercession of the living faithful benefit them, namely, the sacrifices of the Mass, prayers, alms, and other works of piety that the faithful are to do for the other faithful according to Church practice.” In the same way, the decree of the Council of Trent confirms of the existence of Purgatory.

Who goes to Purgatory?

The Church teaches with reference to the Catechism of the catholic Church article number 1030 that “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.” Meaning that Purgatory is that place or state in which the souls are prepared in a special way to be in full grace to see God face to face.

How long does a person stay in purgatory?

It is very difficult for me to say how long a soul can stay in Purgatory precisely. However, the Church believes that a soul stays in purgatory for as long as the supreme judge, God Himself deems that soul completely purified to be able to see Him face to face. This is because God is holy and requires a holy life of his people and can only be seen by those that are holy. And this is why even we hear the following scriptural passages: “0 Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy mountain? Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from the heart” (Psalm 14:2) and also that “Nothing unclean shall enter it [the New Jerusalem], nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Revelation 21:27)

Is there a connection between the theology of Purgatory and the practice of praying for the dead done by Catholics?

Yes, there is. It is good to know that when one dies, they can no longer repent on their own. All that remains for them is that they should be rewarded for their actions. If good their reward is heaven; if evil their reward is hell and if they are in the slight state of grace but with some stains of sin then they go to purgatory. That is, the dead cannot do anything for themselves but the living can do something for them. It is here that we need to know that the church is said to be in three states: The triumphant church which is those people that have done good and are already in heaven seeing God face to face, then there is the Suffering Church which is for those in hell and those under purification in purgatory and finally we have the Pilgrim Church which is all those that remain in this life. Therefore, because the Triumphant, Suffering and Pilgrim Churches are one with just differences in their states they still can pray for one another. The church in heaven is that of Saints whom we invoke in our prayers. And the Pilgrim church can pray for those in the suffering church but it must be noted that the souls that can only be saved are those that are in purgatory and not in hell because in purgatory they are undergoing purification. Our prayers help that they be purified and that they be deemed worthy to go to heaven.

Does this practice of praying for the dead have a basis in the Sacred Scriptures?

Yes, there is a basis. The clearest text speaking about the possibility of postmortem purification in the Old Testament is to be found in the second book of Maccabees (12:40 – 45). The text speaks of the suffrages offered by the leader of the Israelite troops, Judas Maccabeus, in favour of soldiers who had fought bravely against their adversaries in defense of God’s chosen nation, but in the hour of battle had sought assistance from pagan divinities through superstitious practices. “Then under the tunic of each one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear …. And they turned to supplication, praying that the Sin that had been committed might be wholly blotted out” (2 Mc 12:40-42). This and other New Testament allusions 1 Corinthians 3: 10 – 15, Matthew 5: 25 – 26 show that there is a possibility of purification of one’s soul after death. Thus, as the scriptural texts justify the possibility of praying for the dead, they also at the same time justify the existence of a postmortem purification which the Church calls Purgatory.

How can you put all this in a summary?

The Catholic Church teaches of the existence of Purgatory which is a state that a soul that dies in a state of grace but with some stain of sin will undergo purification before being made worthy to be able to see God face to face. This is the faith of the Church that justifies her practice of praying for the dead. This practice has its basis both in the tradition of the Church as well as in Sacred Scriptures and is what Catholics do as they manifest their faith.