LIMBO

Heaven, Hell and sin

The Roman Catholic church teaches that there are two main permanent locations or states after death: Almost everyone will spend eternity in either Heaven or Hell. The existence of these places or states is supported by many dozens of Biblical passages. A person's eventual destination is determined by their salvation status at the instant of their death.

Most people die as adults. When they were newborns, they suffered from original sin. However, an infant is saved from this state at baptism. Once a person reaches the age of accountability, any future mortal sin can cause them to lose their salvation, so that they would be sent to Hell at death. However, by confessing their sin to a priest in the Sacrament of Penance, if one is genuinely committed to never repeat the sin, one's salvation is restored.

The theological problem

Although the concepts of salvation, Heaven, Hell and sacraments form a clear and consistent belief system, there are some instances in which they do not seem to fit:

There are persons who have died without having been baptized:

A fertilized ovum, morula, zygote, embryo or fetus are all regarded by the Roman Catholic church to be a full human being. Thus they are all subject to that original sin that the entire human race inherited from Adam and Eve. If they were to die due to natural causes or an abortion, then they would die under a state of sin; they would not be eligible for acceptance into Heaven. On the other hand, they would not have had the opportunity or knowledge to commit an actual sin, so they would not seem to be eligible for Hell either.

A newborn who died before being baptized would be in the same situation.

There are those who died before baptism was available:

Persons who lived before Jesus Christ would not have been able to take advantage of baptism and the church's sacraments, because neither existed when they were alive.

Other individuals may be in a similar state:

	A person suffering from autism, or others who suffer from an inability to communicate might not be able to engage in the Sacrament of Penance.
	A mentally disabled individual may also be able to engage in the Sacrament of Penance, or to understand the nature of sin.

Resolution of the problem

The Roman Catholic church does not take an official stand on their fate, but holds out hope that some path to Heaven will be possible:

	The Second Vatican Council stated, in Gaudium et Spes 22: "For since Christ died for all (Rom. 8:32)...we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partners, in a way known to God, in the paschal mystery."
	The Catechism of the Catholic Church states in CCC 1261: "As regards children who have died without baptism, the Church can only entrust them to the mercy of God, as she does in her funeral rites for them. Indeed, the great mercy of God, who desires that all men should be saved, and Jesus' tenderness toward children, which caused him to say, 'Let the children come to me, do not hinder them' [Mark 10:14, cf. 1 Tim. 2:4], allow us to hope that there is a way of salvation for children who have died without baptism. All the more urgent is the Church's call not to prevent little children coming to Christ through the gift of holy baptism".
	The Catechism of the Catholic Church also states in CCC 1257: "The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation...The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude...God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism..." Just because the Church is unaware of any other means does not necessarily mean that such means are not available.
	In the 16^th century, Cardinal Cajetan speculated that unbaptized newborns, fetuses, etc people may benefit from a "vicarious baptism of desire." i.e. even though an actual baptism may not have occurred, it might have been desired by the parents, or the church or by someone else. A "desired baptism" might have the same power as a real sacrament.
	In the 19^th century, theologian Heinrich Klee speculated that God might enlighten the infant at the instant of death and enable them to make a decision for or against God.

About Limbo

The Church has not made a clear statement on the fate of the souls of newborns, etc., who die before reaching an age or state of accountability. However, since souls are indestructible, they must be present in some state or location. Many Catholic theologians and clergy have speculated that they go to an actual place or state of existence, which has been traditionally been called "Limbo". A Catholic dictionary states that "The great majority of [Roman Catholic] theologians teach that such children and unbaptized adults free from grievous actual sin enjoy eternally a state of perfect natural happiness, knowing and loving God by the use of their natural powers. This place and state is commonly called Limbo." ₆The word is derived from the Latin word "lumbus" which means a fringe, edge, hem or border. It implies that Limbo is neither in Heaven or Hell, but is an in-between location or state of being.

The "Limbo of the Fathers" is not mentioned in the Bible, but is believed to be a state or place for the souls of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and other believers who died before Christ's ascension. They may have qualified for Heaven on the basis of their holiness during life, or on the basis of attaining holiness through painful discipline in Purgatory. However, they must wait in this Limbo until the time of the Final Judgment when they will be admitted to Heaven. Meanwhile, they generally believed to be in a state of happiness. Limbo is this state/location mentioned in the Apostles' Creed where Jesus Christ is said to have visited in the less than 2 days between his death and resurrection.

The "Limbo of children" (a.k.a. Limbo, Linbus Infantium, Puerorum) is believed by many contemporary Roman Catholics to be a state where "unbaptized children and adults who die without committing grievous actual sin, enjoy perfect natural happiness." They are excluded from Heaven. Although belief in Limbo is common, the Roman Catholic church has never formally proclaimed its existence. Some Church leaders have commented on the fate of unbaptized infants:

	St. Gregory of Nazianzus (circa 329 - circa 390) commented in Orat., XL, 23 that infants dying without baptism "will neither be admitted by the just judge to the glory of Heaven nor condemned to suffer punishment, since, though unsealed [by baptism], they are not wicked." This was the common view of the early Church Fathers.
	St. Augustine of Hippo (354 - 430) convinced the Council of Carthage (418 CE) to reject the concept of limbo "of any place...in which children who pass out of this life unbaptized live in happiness." According to the Catholic Encyclopedia: "St. Augustine and the African Fathers believed that unbaptized infants share in the common positive misery of the damned, and the very most that St. Augustine concedes is that their punishment is the mildest of all." i.e. they go to Hell for eternal punishment, but are not as badly treated as other inmates.
	St. Anselm (1033 - 1109 CE) supported St. Augustine's belief that "unbaptized children share in the positive sufferings of the damned [in Hell]." ₃
	Peter Abelard (1079 - 1142) deviated from St. Augustine by rejecting material torment (poena sensus) and retained only the pain of loss (poena damni) as the eternal punishment of unbaptized infants for their original sin.
	St. Thomas Aquinas (circa 1226 - 1274) was the first major theologian who broke with St. Augustine by speculating that Limbo was a place or state of perfect natural happiness.
	Later writers, {e.g. Griolamo Savonarola (1452 - 1498) and Ambrose Catharinus (16^th century)} believed that "the souls of unbaptized children will be united to glorious bodies at the Resurrection." ₃
	In the late 18th century, a group known as the Jansenists reverted to St. Augustine's belief and rejected the idea of Limbo. In response, Pope Pius VI wrote Auctorem Fidei (1794), which condemned their teaching as being "false, rash, and injurious to Catholic education" because they denied the existence of a place "which the faithful generally designate by the name of limbo for children."
	Some contemporary theologians have suggested that aborted fetuses may be considered martyrs and are therefore saved "through the Baptism of Blood."

Since only baptism can give a child certain access to Heaven, the Church teaches the importance of infant baptism for every child. In 1958, the Holy Office (once the Inquisition and now the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith) was critical of some believers who delayed baptism because of their belief in Limbo. They concluded: "Therefore this Supreme Congregation, with the approval of the Holy Father, warns the faithful that infants are to be baptized as soon as possible..." (Acta L, 114).

Fr. L.E. Latorre comments: "Children should be baptized within the first weeks after birth. Children in danger of death should be baptized without delay. Catholic parents who neglect or unreasonably put off for a long time the Baptism of their children commit a mortal sin. It would be a mortal sin, for example, to delay or postpone indefinitely the Baptism of a child in order to save-up or prepare for a big feast, a great worldly show, with dances and dinners and what not. Or, to delay the Baptism in order to wait for the coming of a VIP godparent." ₇

The lack of a definitive statement by the church of the fate of unbaptized infants (or others incapable of experiencing a mortal sin) results in great distress among parents whose child has died before being baptized.

Revelation from the Virgin Mary:

A Roman Catholic web site, the Shrine of Our Lady of the Roses, publishes "Directives from Heaven." These are excerpts culled from what which the Shrine believes are "...messages (over 300) given by Heaven to the world over the past twenty-five years. There are currently seventy-five in publication. Each Directive is targeted toward a specific subject which Heaven has willed to enlighten and instruct the world on." One of the Directives deals with abortion and contraception. It contains the following message which the Shrine believes came from the Virgin Mary on 1987-OCT-02.

LIMBO
"And what, My children, are We going to do with all the aborted babies? O My child, I know you feel as I do, for I can see the great distress on your face. What are we going to do, My child? Do you understand when they come to Us, they must go to Limbo? They are in Heaven, a happy place, but they cannot see God. " ₉

If this is an accurate message, then it confirms the existence of Limbo. It also represents an additional example of the transferability of sin by punishing the innocent for the sins of others. This theme runs throughout the Bible. In this case, the fetus is punished by never being allowed to see God, in response to the woman's decision to have an abortion -- an act considered to be a mortal sin by the Roman Catholic Church.

Protestant belief about Limbo

To our knowledge, no Protestant or Eastern Orthodox denomination accepts the concept of Limbo. None even offers it as a possibility. They believe that the souls of babies who die before baptism, and some others, are in the presence of God.

At the time of the Reformation, John Calvin (1509 - 1564) rejected Limbo. He based his beliefs on the principle of Predestination. He believed that God decides in advance which individuals will be eternally saved and which will be eternally lost. This would be true not only for adults but also for infants and children who had died before reaching the age of accountability: some would go to Hell while others would go to Heaven.

Ulrich Zwingli (1484 - 1531) disagreed. He was opposed to the concept of the "necessity of baptism to infant salvation." He taught that "all elect children who die in infancy are saved whether they are baptized or not, whether pagan or Christian."

The Westminster Confession (Chapter X, Section 3) states "Elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated and saved by Christ." ₄This was interpreted by some as meaning that there are elect infants who go to Heaven and unelect who go to Hell. The Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. cleared up this confusion by issuing a Declaratory Statement in 1903 which stated, in part,: "We believe that all dying in infancy are included in the election of grace, and are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit, who works when and where and how He pleases."

Other Protestant leaders agree with the Presbyterian position:

	Presbyterian Charles Hodge, 19th century preacher and author of Systematic Theology : "The common doctrine of evangelical Protestants is...all who die in infancy are saved."
	Presbyterian Lewis Chafer: "It may be definitely asserted...that infants who die before accountability begins are saved."
	Baptist William L. Pettingill: "I am convinced that unaccountable children are saved by the blood of Christ"
	Brethrenite Harry Ironside: "Little ones who die go to be with Christ."
	Independent M. R. DeHaan: "Little children who die in infancy are [never] lost." ₈

References

"The Catholic FAQ: Salvation and Grace," at http://www.newadvent.org/faq/faq024.htm
R.C. Broderick, Ed., "The Catholic Encyclopedia," Pages 349 & 350.
Kevin Knight, "The Catholic Encyclopedia" at: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09256a.htm
Fr. W.P. Saunders, "Whatever append to Limbo?," at: http://www.stmarynewlondon.org/wwwboard
Allan Turner, "The five points of Calvinism examined," 1998-NOV-23, at: http://allanturner.com/calbk_5.html
D. Attwater ed., "A Catholic Dictionary (3rd edition)," Page 292.
Fr. L.E. Latorre, "Guidebook for Baptism," at: http://www.domestic-church.com/CONTENT.DCC/19990901/
Jerry Priest, "Did my baby go to heaven?," at: http://www.bju.edu/faith/vol4num5/baby.html
"#23 Abortion," Directives from Heaven, Our Lady of the Roses web site at: http://www.roses.org/directives/direct23.htm