Fountain of Reason

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” Luke 14:26 Before you set off on this journey of being a disciple of Jesus intending to evangelize, it is essential to sit down and consider the pros and cons, the route required and the nature of it, the hazards, the joys, the sorrows, and the hope. So, listen to the wisdom of Jesus the grandson of Ben Sira: “ My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal. Be sincere of heart, be steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes. Cling to him and do not leave him, so that you may be honoured at the end of your days.   Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient, since gold is tested in the fire, and the chosen in the furnace of humiliation. Trust him and he will uphold you, follow a straight path and hope in him ....

I have read your answer to the question " What does the Bible say About Purgatory " and I wanted to make a comment; I saw no provision for "Comments". The Catholic Encyclopedia work on Purgatory which you referred to has provision for "Comments". You wrote: Jesus died to pay the penalty for all of our sins ( Romans 5:8 ). Isaiah 53:5 declares, “But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” Jesus suffered for our sins so that we could be delivered from suffering. To say that we must also suffer for our sins is to say that Jesus’ suffering was insufficient. To say that we must atone for our sins by cleansing in Purgatory is to deny the sufficiency of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus ( 1 John 2:2 ). The idea that we have to suffer for our sins after death is contrary to everything the Bible says about salvation . Does it mean, then, that s...