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Purgatory, in Roman Catholicism, is the purification of souls that have died in a state of grace before entry into heaven. It is also the place[1][2][3][4] in which this purification or punishment takes place. Catholics believe that Purgatory is experienced only by those souls judged by God at the moment of death to be destined for heaven, and only by those that are not yet perfectly holy. Purgatory involves temporal punishment for sin[5], which is entirely different from the eternal punishment of the damned in hell.[6]
The concept of Purgatory originated from ideas about purification after death in the ancient world among Jews and Christians. Medievalist Jacques Le Goff dated the "birth" of Purgatory to the High Middle Ages, when it was conceived as a single distinct place named Purgatory.[7] Other scholars have adopted a less strict definition. The concept is linked directly to the practice of prayer for the dead and the sense that not everyone who died without being condemned was yet ready for the eternal perfection of heaven.[1] Important theologians, including St. Augustine and St. Gregory the Great, contributed to the understanding of the soul’s purification after death, and by the twelfth century Purgatory had emerged as a fully developed concept,[8] achieving formal doctrinal definition at the Councils of Lyon (1245, 1274), Florence (1439), and Trent (1545-63).
The doctrine contributed greatly to Christian spirituality, ritual, piety, and imagination, giving rise to various devotions and literary works.[9] Historically, descriptions of purgatory have emphasised the natural and supernatural bonding between the living and the dead – the belief that the souls in Purgatory were part of the church of the redeemed, and prayer for the dead, became a principal expression of the ties binding the Christian community together.[10] The teaching became "a powerful symbol of all that the holiness of God requires of man and also of His mercy and His love for men."[1]
Non-Catholic Christians have differing interpretations of the concept. Eastern Orthodox Christians pray for the dead, but teach that after the soul leaves the body it waits for Christ's final judgment.[11] They regard the Roman Catholic view of purgatory and related penitance as needlessly innovative.[12][13] Protestant reformers of the 16th century came to reject the doctrine, especially because of its relationship with the granting of indulgences. Today, few protestants believe in purgatory.