Dante also described Purgatory. It had very little scriptural warrant but which greatly increased the spiritual influence of the Roman Catholic Church (because one's fate was not settled at death) and gave rise to many abuses, since the soul's time in Purgatory could supposedly be shortened by the earthly sale of "indulgences."
What is interesting is that the notion of survival after death arose so early in human history.
Dear Blogkeeper,
ReplyDeleteAlso inaccurate here is the notion that one's fate was not settled at death. Entrance into Purgatory is settled. Once you've made it through, you will be in heaven. There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding about the nature of purgatory.
C.S. Lewis thought of it as a place to "get spruced up" before entering into heaven.
shalom,
Steven