The Roman Catholic Church holds that the dead who do not deserve hell but who are not yet ready for Paradise can have their sins purged in purgatory and then ascend from there to Paradise. Their sufferings in purgatory can be reduced by the prayers and penances of loved ones.

 The Catechism of the Catholic Church is explicit about purgatory: “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.” — Catechism of the Catholic Church (New York: Doubleday, 1995), p. 291. It states, too, that their suffering can be alleviated by the prayers of their loved ones as well as by other acts on behalf of the dead. “The Church also commends almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead.” — Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 291.

 Read Ecclesiastes 9:10, Ezekiel 18:20-22, and Hebrews 9:27. How do these passages refute the theory of purgatory?

 The dogma of purgatory combines the pagan notion of a burning hell with the pagan practice of praying for the dead. This dogma is unacceptable for those who believe in the biblical teachings 1. that the dead remain resting unconsciously in their graves (Eccles. 9:10); 2. that the righteousness of one fallen human being cannot be transferred to another fallen human being (Ezek. 18:20-22); 3. that our only Mediator is Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 2:5); and 4. that death is followed by the final judgment, without any second chance to repent from the pitfalls of this life (Heb. 9:27).

 An even more serious implication is how the antibiblical theory of purgatory distorts God’s own character. Indeed, “Satan’s work since his fall is to misinterpret our heavenly Father. He suggested the dogma of the immortality of the soul.... The idea of an eternally burning hell was the production of Satan; purgatory is his invention. These teachings falsify the character of God, that He shall be regarded as severe, revengeful, arbitrary, and not exercising forgiveness.” — Ellen G. White, Manuscript 51 (Dec. 10), 1890. Instead of the dead asleep, awaiting Christ’s return, this view says they’re in purgatory, suffering there until someone manages to get them out.