Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Shouldn't The Pope Empty Purgatory and Limbo?

For Laura who responded to an earlier post. Thesis 82 of Luther's 95 thesis is as follows; 82. To wit: -- "Why does not the pope empty purgatory, for the sake of holy love and of the dire need of the souls that are there, if he redeems an infinite number of souls for the sake of miserable money with which to build a Church? The former reasons would be most just; the latter is most trivial."

It's a shame that the Roman church continues to burden the consciences of it members with the folly of buying themselves or their loved ones way into heaven! I don't care if it is the fortieth anniversary of VaticanII. This doctrine demonstrates that nothing has changed in five hundred years.

Also, from the Smalcald Articles III,
24] Here now the Holy See at Rome, coming to the aid of the poor Church, invented indulgences, whereby it forgave and remitted [expiation or] satisfaction, first, for a single instance, for seven years, for a hundred years and distributed them among the cardinals and bishops, so that one could grant indulgence for a hundred years and another for a hundred days. But he reserved to himself alone the power to remit the entire satisfaction.
25] Now, since this began to yield money, and the traffic in bulls became profitable he devised the golden jubilee year [a truly gold-bearing year], and fixed it at Rome. He called this the remission of all punishment and guilt. Then the people came running, because every one would fain have been freed from this grievous, unbearable burden. This meant to find [dig up] and raise the treasures of the earth. Immediately the Pope pressed still further, and multiplied the golden years one upon another. But the more he devoured money, the wider grew his maw.
Later, therefore, he issued them [those golden years of his] by his legates [everywhere] to the countries, until all churches and houses were full of the Golden Year. 26] At last he also made an inroad into purgatory among the dead, first, by founding masses and vigils, afterwards, by indulgences and the Golden Year, and finally souls became so cheap that he released one for a nickle.

Dr. Luther wrote this as part of his last will and testament back in 1537 to insure that no one could take his positions on Rome, or anything else for that matter, out of context. The more things change....

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