The Cross and Purgatory

Piero di Cosimo, Crucifixion of Christ (1510)

If you understand the message of the Cross, you’ll see why Purgatory makes sense but also why it’s appealing to want to deny it. St. Peter didn’t want to hear about Jesus being glorified through suffering (Matthew 16:21-22), and he didn’t want to hear about how he would be glorified through suffering, either (John 21:17-21). But as St. Paul reminds us, we have been made “fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” Our glorification is through the Cross (His and ours) or nothing at all.