Soul-Making by Grace: Purgatory's Past, Present, and Future - Softcover

Hendzel SJ, Matthew S.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1666754242 ISBN 13: 9781666754247

Publisher: Pickwick Publications, 2024

Synopsis

Purgatory holds a precarious position in the afterlife beliefs of most Christians. Often viewed as a doctrine that is held only by Roman Catholics, purgatory has historically been maligned by its detractors as unbiblical, theologically problematic, and a product (and source) of superstition. Moreover, it would appear that belief in purgatory has declined in the faith-lives of Catholics as well, many of whom now seem keen to forget the fears and anxieties that its existence might have raised for them about the afterlife.
In response to such criticisms and concerns, this book argues that purgatory can indeed be a constructive and hope-filled component of any Christian understanding of the afterlife. In examining the history of the doctrine, it seeks answers that explain purgatory’s recent descent into obscurity. However, it also pursues present insights that can shed new light onto how purgatory might find renewed relevancy.

About this title

About the Author

Matthew Hendzel, S.J., (PhD) has worked as a spiritual director at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre in Guelph, Ontario, and now serves as a secondary school campus minister in Montreal.

Edition details

• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1666754242
• ISBN 13: 9781666754247
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 240