I always thought that we couldnt do enough penance for our sins so Jesus had to die. So if Jesus died for our sins wouldn't that nulify the need for a purgatory?
"I always thought that we couldnt do enough penance for our sins so Jesus had to die. So if Jesus died for our sins wouldn't that nulify the need for a purgatory?"
Ah yes, another of the head-scratching Catholic philosophies.
We cannot save ourselves, only God can do that. But we can cooperate with him in healing ourselves.
I analogize: if one has a severe heart attack requiring surgery it is impossible for one to save one's own life. A surgeon has to do that.
After the surgery, one is able to work with the surgeon in recovering, by following his directions for recuperation and making sacrifices in order to become whole and hale again.
When God gives us His grace we are dead in our sins and He brings us back to life. But we are still wounded and impure due to the lingering aftereffects of sin. But God wants us to cooperate with Him in bringing our soul back to health and He makes sure, through His grace, that we are able to wholly purify our soul and repair it before He brings us into His kingdom.
Think of Purgatory as a hospital recovery room. Think of justification as that life-saving operation no patient can perform for himself and sanctification as that monitored program in which the patients works with his doctor in recuperating.
I don't understand this way of thinking.
So, if Jesus already died for our sins, we are going to heaven. There is not hell.
Therefore, we can do whatever we want?