Purgatory???

Purgatory as it's traditionally defined in Roman Catholic theology is a false doctrine I aboslutly reject.  And since Medieval Catholics coined the term you can kind of say that means I reject the concept altogether.

But there is a tendency in Protestant and Evangelical circles to use the word "Purgatory" to smear any suggestion that how the After Life and the Resurrection works isn't as simple as "Good go to Heaven and Bad go to Hell", however that view of the After Life comes from Zoroastrianism not The Bible.  But since Purgatory is a Catholic term, in circles often raised to think the Pope is the Antichrist suggesting a vaguely Catholic association is a good scare tactic.  And that includes using it against aspects of the arguments of Universal Salvation, like when we quote Malachi 3 as teaching that the Fire of God is for purifying and purging, and Matthew 5 and Luke 12:19 being clear that God's punishment isn't endless..

The problem with the Medieval Catholic Purgatory doctrine was how they used it as a form of Spiritual Extortion.  Telling people their loved ones are in Purgatory and in need of lots of Prayers to help them get out.  And so people would pay the Church money for special prayer services.

This is also the issue behind debates about "Praying for the Dead".  Someone outside Christianity might be confused why that's even controversial.  When we discus the doctrine of Prayer for the Dead, Protestants and Evangelicals are opposing the notion that the dead need our prayers to help them into Heaven, they believe our eternal destiny is decided once we die.  And I now believe in Universal Salvation so there is nothing to worry about at all.  Praying to say Goodbye if that helps you deal with your grief is not what we're talking about.

This Catholic Purgatory doctrine only really began to develop with certain teachings of Augustine of Hippo and Pope Gregory The Great.  But the term as we know it wasn't coined till the 12th Century.

Attempts by Catholic Apologists to find precedent for Purgatory in Pre-Nicene or even Pre-Augustine Early Church Fathers include Tertulian's view of the after life built on his flawed understanding of the Luke 16 parable and the Fifth Seal in Revelation 6.  And vaguely similar views from Irenaus which all agree no one reaches their final destination till the final Judgment.  And others talking about Fire purifying souls of Sin, often drawing on 1 Corinthians 3:11-15, which is specifically about believers who are Saved but their bad works are consumed by fire.

Basically, the same teachings of the Church Fathers I looked to as a basis for my old Independent Baptist style Free Grace Eternal Security soterology.  But now as an Evangelical Universalist the Biblical Passages behind them I view as supporting the teaching that even the Fires of the Lake of Fire are a Fire of purification.

1 Corinthians 3:15 was important to how I made my old Eternal Security argument even before I knew it had been tied into the Purgatory doctrine by Catholics.  It proves that references to believers facing ramifications for their sins doesn't mean they lose Salvation.  Along with my arguments for the Outer Darkness and Hebrews 6 being about loss of Inheritance and thus being outside New Jerusalem.

However the Achilles Heel to my old Soterology that I wasn't aware of at the time since no one made the argument to me, is the repeated references to a backsliden or apostate believer's judgment being worse then a non believer's.  That's an implication of Matthew 18:34, and the clear teaching of Luke 12:47-48 and some things said in 2 Peter and Jude where Apostasy is viewed as the theme.  And Jesus talking about Tyre and Sidon not having it as bad on the Day of Judgment as the Israelites who heard his message and rejected it.  1 Timothy 5:8 is another witness to that.

You can't reconcile that with a belief that unbelievers face Eternal Endless Torment while believers are definitely promised our Judgment will be temporary and not undo our Salvation.

All this is another reason that Universal Salvation is the most coherent interpretation of the fullness of The Scriptures.