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Q&A Home > P > Purgatory How about purgatory? What can you say about Rome's dogma? How do you explain 1 Cor 3:11-15, is it not purgatory? We do not believe in purgatory. The soul of the departed righteous and penitents goes to Paradise, and the wicked, unrepentant, and unbelievers goes to Hades until Judgment Day when all will be judged at the Lord's Second Coming.
Please read Luke 16:19-31, 23:43; Revelation 6:11, 20:11-15; and http://wiscopts.net/spiritual-library/305.
This excerpt is from a lecture adapted from 'Why Do We Reject Purgatory?' by H.H. Pope Shenouda III:
St. Paul said, "If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." (1 Cor 3:15) – Does this fire refer to the purgatory? No, it does not for the following reasons: This fire is for works and not individuals "the fire will test each one's work" (1 Cor 3:13). This fire is for testing not tormenting. This fire will be on the Last Day "for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire" (1 Cor 3:13) while the alleged fire of purgatory is supposedly prior to the Last Day. This fire will cause loss "if anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss" (1 Cor 3:15) while the fire of purgatory allegedly purifies the faithful and prepares them to go to heaven. The words "he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire" signify that this person will be scarcely saved – "If the righteous one is scarcely saved, where will the ungodly and sinner appear?" (1 Pet 4:18) – This symbolic fire brings to mind what was said about Joshua the high priest during his life on earth, "Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?" (Zech 3:2)
Also read:
http://www.suscopts.org/messages/lectures/eschlecture7.pdf.
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