Throughout history Christians have prayed for the dead. This book challenges Protestants, who seldom pray for the dead, to begin doing so, and Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, who pray only for the Christian dead, to include the unsaved as well. Gould discusses the meaning of prayer for final consummation of all things, growth of the blessed in heaven, purification of the imperfect in purgatory, and salvation of the unsaved in hell--identifying the necessary conception of the afterlife required by each particular prayer. He also reflects on the spiritual value of prayer for the...

Throughout history, Christians have prayed for the dead - both for continual growth of the faithful and for their advancement from purgatory, though not for the deliverance of the unsaved from hell. Understanding Prayer for the Dead defends all three kinds of prayer. It challenges Protestants, who seldom pray for the dead, to begin doing so - and Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, who pray only for the Christian dead, to include the unsaved as well. James B. Gould addresses the biblical credentials of prayer for the dead and provides a historical overview of such prayers from ancient...