Salvation Of Prenatals, Infants And Young Children Resource

[kafka]

So my basic understanding at this point is that all prenatals, infants, and young children who die without a formal baptism of water are non-formally or mystically given the baptism of blood. The Limbo Infantium is not an upper fringe of Hell like it has been mistakenly speculated in the past, it is rather an upper fringe of Purgatory where the little ones go to develop, learn, and finally meet Jesus and Mary before being assumed into Heaven. The Limbo of Hell is where those adults who die in the state of original sin without any actual mortal sins and without having received a formal baptism of water or non-formal (mystical) baptism of desire or blood go to suffer their eternal weeping over not having sought God and received a state of sanctifying grace (Matthew 25:30). But God is the Father of the little ones who are orphaned from their parents in an untimely death by whatever means God permitted. These prenatals, infants, and young children will not weep because they are innocent. They never had the opportunity to seek a state of sanctifying grace, they never lost any talents or anything becaue they were never given the opportunity. Rather they were given death and Jesus chooses to save them from the Cross.

Some basic points before I briefly run through everything I have in mind including Divine Revelation and Magisterial quotes.

There is no third and final resting place for anyone period. Purgatory will be destroyed after the souls are emptied out for the general judgment:

Revelation
{20:13} And the sea gave up the dead who were in it. And death and Hell gave up their dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
{21:1} I saw the new heaven and the new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and the sea is no more.

The sea is Purgatory. First it is emptied and then it is destroyed with the passing away of the first heaven and first earth.

And Jesus explicitly taught two final places. They can be summed up as one the New Heaven and New Earth (and by extension New Universe), and two the New Hell. But here is the separation from Matthew:

{25:31} But when the Son of man will have arrived in his majesty, and all the Angels with him, then he will sit upon the seat of his majesty.
{25:32} [b]And all the nations[/b] shall be gathered together before him. And he shall separate them from one another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
{25:33} And he shall station the sheep, indeed, on his right, but the goats on his left.
{25:34} Then the King shall say to those who will be on his right: ‘Come, you blessed of my Father. Possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
. . .
{25:41} Then he shall also say, to those who will be on his left: ‘Depart from me, you accursed ones, into the eternal fire, which was prepared for the devil and his angels.
. . .
{25:46} And these shall go into eternal punishment, but the just shall go into eternal life.”

The little ones are justified before they die their unjust and untimely deaths without a formal baptism of water; by means of a mystical non-formal baptism of blood freely given to them in an act of supreme love, mercy, justice and omnipotence that can only come from God:

{2:4} who wants all men to be saved and to arrive at an acknowledgment of the truth.
{2:5} For there is one God, and one mediator of God and of men, the man Christ Jesus,
{2:6} who gave himself as a redemption for all, as a testimony in its proper time.

Second point is that there is no such thing as happiness apart from God. Any Catholic Christian who thinks this must be out of his mind. God created Adam and Eve with the likeness, i.e. the state of sanctifying grace. We are made for God and we cannot be happy apart from Him and apart from the culmination of sanctifying grace which is the beautific union and vision resulting in an eternal overflow of happiness in the will and intellect. This happiness is supernatural and natural and will eventually subsume our entire person in the Resurrection when we will hopefully shine like the sun like Jesus predicted we would.

Third point. We as Catholics know that baptism is necessary for salvation:

Second Vatican Council: For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, Himself a man, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim. 2:45), "neither is there salvation in any other" (Acts 4:12). Therefore, all must be converted to Him, made known by the Church's preaching,[b] and all must be incorporated into Him by baptism and into the Church which is His body.[/b] For Christ Himself "by stressing in express language the necessity of faith and baptism (cf. Mark 16:16; John 3:5), at the same time confirmed the necessity of the Church,[b] into which men enter by baptism, as by a door.[/b] (Ad Gentes, n. 7, interior quote from Lumen Gentium, n. 14)

So for the prenatals, infants, and young children to be saved they require baptism wherein they receive sanctifying grace. Sanctifying grace is always salvific no matter how it is attained. There are only three types of baptism: water, desire and blood. Here we are dealing with the ones who do not receive a formal baptism of water. So that leaves open a non-formal mystical baptism of desire or blood. The prenatals (including Mary, John the Baptist, possibly Saint Joseph and the prophet Jeremiah all sanctified in the womb with sanctifiying grace), the infants including the Holy Innocents, and the young children who were never able to make a knowing choice in full cooperation with an actual grace are all, I repeat are all unable to make free knowing choices, therefore this rules out the possibility for a baptism of desire. This leaves one possibility: a mystical and non-formal baptism of blood.

Normally a baptism of blood occurs when a person dies for the sake of the Christian Faith, however the Magisterium has not ruled out the possibility that a baptism of blood cannot extend to other cases, and the Magisterium in my opinion never will because the only way the non-formal baptism of Mary, John the Baptist, and likely Saint Joseph and Jeremiah could be sanctified and justified from the womb (and for Mary from conception) is a baptism of blood, and these examples drawn from Divine Revelation support the pious opinion that God can and does effect for all prenatals, infants, and young children who are in need of it a baptism of blood, cleansing original sin, infusing sanctifying grace, uniting them to Jesus' death on the Cross and saving them.

These examples are the topic of the next post, but there is yet another example that this merciful act of God is possible: the Incarnation. Jesus incarnated Himself in the state of sanctifying grace, and he certainly has the power to bestow it to any person at any moment in time and at any place without exception, since:

“all that Christ is – all that he did and suffered for all men – participates in the divine eternity, and so transcends all times”. (CCC, 1085)

much more by the end of the night.

Edited May 24, 2011 by kafka

[kafka]

[b]Four Examples from Divine Revelation[/b]

Dei Verbum: This plan of revelation is realized by deeds and words having in inner unity: the deeds wrought by God in the history of salvation manifest and confirm the teaching and realities signified by the words, while the words proclaim the deeds and clarify the mystery contained in them. (n. 2)

The following are four examples supporting the speculative theological opinion that I think will soon be taught by Magisterium (and perhaps already is taught by the Universal Magisterium) that prenatals, infants, and young children are saved in spite of not receiving a formal baptism of water. These deeds wrought by God support the pious opinion that the little ones are given a mystical non-formal Baptism of blood at least before the moment of their premature deaths where there is no formal baptism of water provided for them by another human person.

[b]Immaculate Conception[/b]

The Immaculate Conception was Mary's baptism:

"We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful."

To be preserved free from all stain of original sin is to be preserved free from the greatest harm and disorder brought about as an effect of the sin of Adam and Eve, that is lack of santifying grace. Mary was created with sanctifying grace. The Immaculate Conception was her baptism, one that is unique and greater than all of our baptisms, but she still received what we all receive in baptism, that is sanctifying grace. She was from conception a child of God, a member of the Church and saved by Jesus Christ. The Immaculate Conception was not effected by a formal ceremony of water and words, therefore Mary's type of baptism was non-formal or mystical. Her Immaculate Conception occurred at the first moment of her existance. She did not have any prior desire or concurrent desire since she obviously was not able to exercise free will and intellect. Therefore her unique type of baptism was not a baptism of desire. This leaves a unique type of Baptism of blood.

Mary's Immaculate Conception, which was in one sense a unique Baptism of blood, endowing her with sanctifying grace from the first moment of her existance, proves that innocent prenatals, infants, and young children are able to receive sanctifying grace up to the last moment of their existance in a Bapstism of blood. And I certainly think God does effect this when necessary, e.g. no formal baptism of water is given to them (this last phrase should be taken for granted at this point).

And Mary was not only given a unique baptimsm in her Immaculate Conception, she was also given confirmation all in the same instant:

{70:6} In you, I have been confirmed from conception. From my mother’s womb, you are my protector. In you, I will sing forever. (Psalms)


[b]The Visitation[/b]

Yet another example of a non-formal mystical Baptism of blood in the Visitation. First the Angel's prediction:

{1:13} But the Angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth shall bear a son to you. And you shall call his name John.
{1:14} And there will be joy and exultation for you, and many will rejoice in his nativity.
{1:15} For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.

The Angel Gabriel predicts that John the Baptist will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother Elizabeth's womb. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be holy with the full effect of love-faith-hope and seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Holy Spirit implies that the person is in the state of sanctifying grace. Therefore John the Baptist was given a Baptism of blood in the womb of Saint Elizabeth. This event wrought by God in salvation history and expressed in Sacred Scripture implies that prenatals, infants, or young children may receive a Baptism of blood up to the moment of their premature death. Their impending death unites them to the death of Jesus on the Cross and draws out sanctifying grace for these soon to be orphans which the Father will gather up into His Kingdom.

The same principle which Pope Innocent III taught in defense of an Infant formal Sacrament of Baptism can be applied to the prenatals, infants and young children:

"We say that a distinction must be made, that sin is twofold: namely, original and actual: original, which is contracted without consent; and actual, which is committed with consent. Original, therefore, which is committed without consent, is remitted without consent through the power of the sacrament. . .

John the Baptist contracted original sin without consent and was remitted of original sin without consent by a Baptism of blood conferred when he was a prenatal in the womb of Saint Elizabeth. The same occurs for prenatals (or infants and young children) whose impending death God sees and so unites them to the death of Jesus on the Cross which participates in the Divine Eternity and so transcends and all times and places, drawing out sanctifying grace for the little ones who need it to be saved forever in a sweep of Love, Justice and Mercy that is our God.

[b]The Holy Innocents[/b]

{2:16} Then Herod, seeing that he had been fooled by the Magi, was very angry. And so he sent to kill all the boys who were in Bethlehem, and in all its borders, from two years of age and under, according to the time that he had learned by questioning the Magi.
{2:17} Then what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled, saying:
{2:18} “A voice has been heard in Ramah, great weeping and wailing: Rachel crying for her sons. And she was not willing to be consoled, because they were no more.”

The third witness against the Pharisees is the holy Innocents. The Church has always called them holy. To be holy implies a state of sanctifying grace. Actual graces make our acts holy, sanctifying grace make our entire person holy. The Holy Innocents had no baptism of wather and they were not old enough to exercise free will and intellect, therefore they were given a Baptism of blood. They did die for Christ, but they never knowingly chose to die for Christ and in one sense their deaths are not different than all the other premature and unjust and untimely deaths of prenatals, infants, and young children which are brought about as a consequence of severe sins. Therefore the holy Innocents are a witness to the prenatals, infants and young children, who die without a formal Sacrament of Baptism, having been given a state of sanctifying grace, prior to the moment of their premature deaths, in effect uniting them to Jesus on the Cross, cleansing original sin, and saving them.

[b]Jeremiah the Prophet[/b]

God elected Jeremiah the Prophet, from Old Testament times, for a unique prophetic mission frought with great difficulties, trials, troubles, etc. God is Eternity, so he of course knew the greatness of Jeremiah's mission and so he sanctified Jeremiah from the womb, from the prophecy of Jeremiah:

{1:4} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{1:5} “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. And before you went forth from the womb, I sanctified you. And I made you a prophet to the nations.”

Now Jeremiah obviously had no ability to exercise free will and intellect in the womb and so God reveals to Jeremiah what He did to him, that is he sanctified him from the womb just as it was implied with John the Baptist who was filled with the Spirit from his mother's womb! To be sanctified is to be made holy. One's own self, one's person is only made holy with sanctifying grace. Sanctifying grace is for being, actual grace is for doing, but Jeremiah was not doing in his mother's womb. Therefore Jeremiah was conferred a Baptism of blood in his mother's womb. God gave him sanctifying grace sooner since his mission was great and frought with difficulty. To be in the state of sanctifying grace sooner is better than to not be in the state of sanctifying grace for God effects a turning of the soul-body-spirit of that person in grace toward Himself and the effect is powerful even in one who cannot act.

{1:6} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am a boy.”
{1:7} And the Lord said to me: “Do not choose to say, ‘I am a boy.’ For you shall go forth to everyone to whom I will send you. And you shall speak all that I will command you.

Now notice the context. Jeremiah is just a boy when God is speaking to him in this passage. God prepared Jeremiah from a very early age and this included a Baptism of blood, a sanctification from his mother's womb, when he was just a prenatal. Yet another example and witness in favor of the prenatals, infants, and young children.

[b]Saint Joseph from a Private Revelation[/b]

The following is a private revelation but I will add it here anyway. Saint Joseph was given the mission of foster father of Jesus Christ, the Word Incarnate. Saint Joseph was the spouse of the holiest human person there will ever be. Saint Joseph is certainly great and he suffered greatly because he knew of the impending death of Jesus on the Cross and he also knew that there was nothing he could do to prevent it. He also knew of the sorrows of Mary, knowing he would not be there to console her in a time of need. This greatness is answered by the Just, Merciful, Loving God who desired Joseph for this unfathomable mission in a Baptism of blood from the womb of his mother, to prepare his person for this grand life:

In private revelations to Sister Mildred Mary Neuzil, the Virgin Mary appeared under the title of Our Lady of America, the Immaculate Virgin. On some occasions, Saint Joseph also appeared, and he spoke to her, saying:

“It is true my daughter, that immediately after my conception, I was, through the future merits of Jesus and because of my exceptional role of future Virgin-Father, cleansed from the stain of original sin.”

Saint Joseph is cleansed from original sin, that is given a state of sanctifying grace immediately after his conception but not at the instant of conception like Mary is in the Immaculate Conception. Continuing:

“I was from that moment confirmed in grace and never had the slightest stain on my soul. This is my unique privilege among men.”

“My pure heart also was from the first moment of existence inflamed with love for God. Immediately, at the moment when my soul was cleansed from original sin, grace was infused into it in such abundance that, excluding my holy spouse, I surpassed the holiness of the highest angel in the angelic choir.”

“My heart suffered with the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Mine was a silent suffering, for it was my special vocation to hide and shield as long as God willed, the Virgin Mother and Son from the malice and hatred of men.”


Conclusion: All prenatals, infants, and young children, who die without formal Baptism, however do in fact die in a state of grace, having been given sanctifying grace, just as Saint Joseph was given sanctifying grace, just as Jeremiah the Prophet, just as the Holy Innocents, John the Baptist and above all Mary, the all beautiful child of God and Mother of the Church were all given sanctifying grace. This non-formal mystical conferrence of grace to the prenatals, infants and young children is a type of Baptism of blood.

[kafka]

I'm running out of juice. And this is my last night here so this might be it.

[b]The Theological Commission of Blessed John Paul II[/b]

Blessed John Paul the II was of course holy, but he was also a very learned man. He was familiar with all the Magisterial teachings, and with all the Magisterial expressions found in documents, since he of course copiously quoted them in his encyclicals. He was familiar with the workings of the Magisterium since the full charism of Magisterium was infused into his soul. He understood the distinction between infallible and non-infallible teachings of Popes and Ecumenical Councils. He understood that a Pope can only teach infallibly by meeting all five criteria of papal infallibility and that this existed even before it was defined by Vatican I. He understood the development of doctrine, and the fact that prior Popes could err when not meeting the five criteria of papal infallibility, but never significantly enough to lead the flock away from the path of salvation. He understood that the modern Church is wiser and more doctrinally sophisticated than the Church as it existed one thousand years ago by virtue of all the Councils and Encyclicals and teachings of Universal Magisterium, Living Tradition and Living Scripture.

So why would he commission a team of theologians to explore the fate of babies who are not given the formal Sacrament of Baptism? I cannot judge his exact intention but normally when a Pope does something like this, he does it to support the workings of the Magisterium. Popes are not mediums of God and they do not work like seyonces. The are living human persons with a great inherent quality infused into them known as a charism of Magisterium. They are the representative of Jesus Christ leading a Church with now almost a billion members, many of whom are wondering in modern times about this problem of the prenatals, infants and young children who are increasingly being slaughtered in this severely evil, brutal and complex world. So why would Blessed Pope John Paul II commission theologians to help him if he did not in fact already see something in Tradition-Scripture-Magisterium? If he did not already experience something in prayer? If he did not already experience the sensum fidelium of millions of members who know these little ones are in fact saved and who often pray for them?

Here is the result of the theological commission which I think will ultimately offer a future Pope or Council help in infallibly teaching the truth of this matter:
http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=7529

[b]Please read this work done by eminent theologians before you read the pharasaical posts of online Catholics who love to be heavy handed with their Magisterial quoting. They do not have a clue what they are doing, and they are proving themselves most unworthy Catholics.[/b]

Some quotes:

'Second, taking account of the principle lex orandi, lex credendi, the Christian community notes that there is no mention of limbo in the liturgy. In fact, the liturgy contains a feast of the Holy Innocents, who are venerated as martyrs even though they were not baptized, because they were killed "on account of Christ."'

'There has even been an important liturgical development through the introduction of funerals for infants who died without baptism. We do not pray for those who are damned. The Roman Missal of 1970 introduced a funeral Mass for unbaptized infants whose parents intended to present them for baptism. The church entrusts to God's mercy those infants who die unbaptized.'

'Damnation, however, is deserved, because it is the consequence of free human choice.10 The infant who dies with baptism is saved by the grace of Christ and through the intercession of the church even without his or her cooperation. It can be asked whether the infant who dies without baptism but for whom the church in its prayer expresses the desire for salvation can be deprived of the vision of God even without his or her cooperation.'

9. The lack of any positive teaching within the New Testament with respect to the destiny of unbaptized children does not mean that the theological discussion of this question is not informed by a number of fundamental biblical doctrines. These include:

(i) God wills to save all people (cf. Gn 3:15; 22:18; 1 Tm 2:3-6), through Jesus Christ's victory over sin and death (cf. Eph 1:20-22; Phil 2:7-11; Rom 14:9; 1 Cor 15:20-28).

(ii) The universal sinfulness of human beings (cf. Gn 6:5-6; 8:21; 1 Kgs 8:46; Ps 130:3), and their being born in sin (cf. Ps 51:7; Sir 25:24) since Adam, and therefore their being destined to death (cf. Rom 5:12; 1 Cor 15:22).

(iii) The necessity for salvation of the faith of the believer (cf. Rom 1:16) on the one hand and of baptism (cf. Mk 16:16; Mt 28:19; Acts 2:40-41; 16:30-33) and the Eucharist (cf. Jn 6:53) administered by the church on the other hand.

(iv) Christian hope goes utterly beyond human hope (cf. Rom 4:18-21); Christian hope is that the living God, the Savior of all humanity (cf. 1 Tm 4:10), will share his glory with all people and that all will live with Christ (cf. 1 Thes 5:9-11; Rom 8:2-5,23-25), and Christians must be ready to give an account of the hope they have (cf. 1 Pt 3:15).

(v) The church must make "supplications, prayers and intercessions... for all" (1 Tm 2:1-8), based on faith that for God's creative power "nothing is impossible" (Jb 42:2; Mk 10:27; 12:24,27; Lk 1:37) and on the hope that the whole creation will finally share in the glory of God (cf. Rom 8:22-27).

[b]The Council of Carthage of 418[/b] rejected the teaching of Pelagius. It condemned the opinion that infants "do not contract from Adam any trace of original sin, which must be expiated by the bath of regeneration that leads to eternal life." Positively, this council taught that "even children who of themselves cannot have yet committed any sin are truly baptized for the remission of sins, so that by regeneration they may be cleansed from what they contracted through generation."40

It was also added that there is no "intermediate or other happy dwelling place for children who have left this life without baptism, without which they cannot enter the kingdom of heaven, that is, eternal life."41 This council did not, however, explicitly endorse all aspects of Augustine's stern view about the destiny of infants who die without baptism.

In the developments of medieval doctrine, the loss of the beatific vision (poena damni) was understood to be the proper punishment for original sin, whereas the "torments of perpetual hell" constituted the punishment for mortal sins actually committed.47 In the Middle Ages the ecclesiastical magisterium affirmed more than once that those "who die in mortal sin" and those who die "with original sin only" receive "different punishments."48 [note: but the prenatals, infants and young children do not die with original sin only since they are given a Baptism of blood conferring salvific sanctifying grace]

In the bull Auctorem Fidei (1794), the pope condemned as "false, rash, injurious to the Catholic schools" the Jansenist teaching "which rejects as a Pelagian fable [fabula pelagiana] that place in the lower regions (which the faithful call the limbo of children) in which the souls of those departing with the sole guilt of original sin are punished with the punishment of the condemned, without the punishment of fire, just as if whoever removes the punishment of fire thereby introduces that middle place and state free of guilt and of punishment between the kingdom of God and eternal damnation of which the Pelagians idly talk."53

Papal interventions during this period, then, protected the freedom of the Catholic schools to wrestle with this question. They did not endorse the theory of limbo as a doctrine of faith. Limbo, however, was the common Catholic teaching until the mid-20th century.

27. Prior to the First Vatican Council and again prior to the Second Vatican Council, there was a strong interest in some quarters in defining Catholic doctrine on this matter. This interest was evident in the revised schema of the dogmatic constitution De Doctrina Catholica, prepared for the First Vatican Council [b](but not voted upon by the council)[/b], which presented the destiny of children who died without baptism as between that of the damned, on the one hand, and that of the souls in purgatory and the blessed, on the other: "Etiam qui cum solo originali peccato mortem obeunt, beata Dei visione in perpetuum carebunt."54

28. In the preparatory phase of Vatican II, there was a desire on the part of some that the council affirm the common doctrine that unbaptized infants cannot attain the beatific vision and thereby close the question. The Central Preparatory Commission, which was aware of many arguments against the traditional doctrine and of the need to propose a solution in better accordance with the developing sensus fidelium, opposed this move.

Because it was thought that theological reflection on the issue was not mature enough, the question was not included in the council's agenda; it did not enter into the council's deliberations and was left open for further investigation.56

29. The Catholic Church's belief that baptism is necessary for salvation was powerfully expressed in the Decree for the Jacobites at the Council of Florence in 1442: "There is no other way to come to the aid [of little children] than the sacrament of baptism by which they are snatched from the power of the devil and adopted as children of God."57 This teaching implies a very vivid perception of the divine favor displayed in the sacramental economy instituted by Christ; the church does not know of any other means which would certainly give little children access to eternal life.

[b]However, the church has also traditionally recognized some substitutions for baptism of water (which is the sacramental incorporation into the mystery of Christ dead and risen), namely, baptism of blood (incorporation into Christ by witness of martyrdom for Christ) and baptism of desire (incorporation into Christ by the desire or longing for sacramental baptism).[/b]

During the 20th century, some theologians, developing certain more ancient theological theses, proposed to recognize for little children either some kind of baptism of blood (by taking into consideration the suffering and death of these infants) or some kind of baptism of desire (by invoking an "unconscious desire" for baptism in these infants oriented toward justification or the desire of the church).58 [Add me to the list for baptism of blood]

This gave rise among theologians to a renewed reflection on the dispositions of infants with respect to the reception of divine grace, on the possibility of an extrasacramental configuration to Christ and on the maternal mediation of the church.

30. It is equally necessary to note among the debated questions with a bearing on this matter that of the gratuity of the supernatural order. Before the Second Vatican Council, in other circumstances and regarding other questions, [b]Pius XII had vigorously brought this to the consciousness of the church by explaining that one destroys the gratuity of the supernatural order if one asserts that God could not create intelligent beings without ordaining and calling them to the beatific vision.60[/b]

31. Without responding directly to the question of the destiny of unbaptized infants, the Second Vatican Council marked out many paths to guide theological reflection. The council recalled many times the universality of God's saving will which extends to all people (1 Tm 2:4).61 All "share a common destiny, namely God. His providence, evident goodness and saving designs extend to all humankind" (Nostra Aetate, 1, cf. Lumen Gentium, 16).

continued on next post. . .

Edited May 24, 2011 by kafka

[kafka]

More quotes from the theological commission authorized by Pope Benedict XVI

1.7. Issues of a Hermeneutical Nature
32. The study of history shows an evolution and a development of Catholic teaching concerning the destiny of infants who die without baptism. This progress engages some foundational doctrinal principles which remain permanent and some secondary elements of unequal value. In effect, revelation does not communicate directly in an explicit fashion knowledge of God's plan for unbaptized children, but it enlightens the church regarding the principles of faith which must guide her thought and her practice.

A theological reading of the history of Catholic teaching up to Vatican II shows in particular that three main affirmations which belong to the faith of the church appear at the core of the problem of the fate of unbaptized infants. (i) God wants all human beings to be saved. (ii) This salvation is given only through participation in Christ's paschal mystery, that is, through baptism for the forgiveness of sins, either sacramental or in some other way. Human beings, including infants, cannot be saved apart from the grace of Christ poured out by the Holy Spirit. (iii) Infants will not enter the kingdom of God without being freed from original sin by redemptive grace.

33. The history of theology and of magisterial teaching show in particular a development concerning the manner of understanding the universal saving will of God. The theological tradition of the past (antiquity, the Middle Ages, the beginning of modern times), in particular the Augustinian tradition, often presents what by comparison with modern theological developments would seem to be a "restrictive" conception of the universality of God's saving will.63

In theological research, the perception of the divine will to save as "quantitatively" universal is relatively recent. At the level of the magisterium this larger perception was progressively affirmed. Without trying to date it exactly, one can observe that it appeared very clearly in the 19th century, especially in the teaching of Pius IX on the possible salvation of those who, without fault on their part, were unaware of the Catholic faith: Those who "lead a virtuous and just life, can, with the aid of divine light and grace, attain eternal life; for God, who understands perfectly, scrutinizes and knows the minds, souls, thoughts and habits of all, in his very great goodness and patience, will not permit anyone who is not guilty of a voluntary fault to be punished with eternal torments."64 This integration and maturation in Catholic doctrine meanwhile gave rise to a renewed reflection on the possible ways of salvation for unbaptized infants.

34. In the church's tradition, the affirmation that children who died unbaptized are deprived of the beatific vision has for a long time been "common doctrine." This common doctrine followed upon a certain way of reconciling the received principles of revelation, [b]but it did not possess the certitude of a statement of faith or the same certitude as other affirmations whose rejection would entail the denial of a divinely revealed dogma or of a teaching proclaimed by a definitive act of the magisterium. [/b]The study of the history of the church's reflection on this subject shows that it is necessary to make distinctions.

In this summary we distinguish first statements of faith and what pertains to the faith; second, common doctrine; and third, theological opinion.

35. a) The Pelagian understanding of the access of unbaptized infants to "eternal life" must be considered as contrary to Catholic faith.

36. b) The affirmation that "the punishment for original sin is the loss of the beatific vision," formulated by Innocent III,65 pertains to the faith: Original sin is of itself an impediment to the beatific vision. Grace is necessary in order to be purified of original sin and to be raised to communion with God so as to be able to enter into eternal life and enjoy the vision of God.

[b]Historically, the common doctrine applied this affirmation to the fate of unbaptized infants and concluded that these infants lack the beatific vision. But Pope Innocent's teaching, in its content of faith, does not necessarily imply that infants who die without sacramental baptism are deprived of grace and condemned to the loss of the beatific vision;[/b] it allows us to hope that God, who wants all to be saved, provides some merciful remedy for their purification from original sin and their access to the beatific vision.

38. d) The bull Auctorem Fidei of Pope Pius VI is not a dogmatic definition of the existence of limbo: The papal bull confines itself to rejecting the Jansenist charge that the "limbo" taught by scholastic theologians is identical with the "eternal life" promised to unbaptized infants by the ancient Pelagians. Pius VI did not condemn the Jansenists because they denied limbo, but because they held that the defenders of limbo were guilty of the heresy of Pelagius. By maintaining the freedom of the Catholic schools to propose different solutions to the problem of the fate of unbaptized infants, the Holy See defended the common teaching as an acceptable and legitimate option without endorsing it.

40. In summary: The affirmation that infants who die without baptism suffer the privation of the beatific vision[b] has long been the common doctrine of the church, which must be distinguished from the faith of the church.[/b] As for the theory that the privation of the beatific vision is their sole punishment to the exclusion of any other pain, this is a theological opinion despite its long acceptance in the West. [b]The particular theological thesis concerning a "natural happiness" sometimes ascribed to these infants likewise constitutes a theological opinion.[/b]

49. The Synod of Quiercy (853) asserts: "Almighty God wishes all men without exception to be saved [1 Tin 2:4], although not all are saved. The fact that some are saved, however, is a gift of the Savior, while the fact that others perish is the fault of those who perish."74

Spelling out the positive implications of this statement as regards the universal solidarity of all in the mystery of Jesus Christ, the synod further asserts that "as there is no man who was, is or will be whose nature was not assumed in him [the Lord Jesus Christ], likewise there is no one who was, is or will be for whom he did not suffer, even though not everyone [factually] is redeemed by his passion."75

75. d) People everywhere are scandalized by the suffering of children and want to enable children to achieve their potential.104 In such a setting the church naturally recalls and ponders anew various New Testament texts expressing the preferential love of Jesus:

•"Let the children come to me... for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven" (Mt 19:14; cf. Lk 18:15-16, "infants").
•"Whoever receives one such in my name receives me" (Mk 9:37).
•"Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (Mt 18:3).
•"Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Mt 18:4).
•"Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea' (Mt 18:6).
•"See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven" (Mt 18:10).
So the church renews her commitment to show Christ's own love and care for children (cf. Lumen Gentium, 11; Gaudium et Spes, 48, 50).

77. The development of an ecclesiology of communion, a theology of hope, an appreciation of divine mercy, together with a renewed concern for the welfare of infants and an ever-increasing awareness that the Holy Spirit works in the lives of all "in a way known to God" (Gaudium et Spes, 22), all of these features of our modern age constitute a new context for the examination of our question. This may be a providential moment for its reconsideration. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, the church in its engagement with the world of our time has gained deeper insights into God's revelation that can cast new light on our question.

78. Hope is the all-embracing context of our reflections and report. The church of today responds to the signs of our own times with renewed hope for the world at large and, with particular regard to our question, for unbaptized infants who die.105 We must here and now give an account of that hope (cf. 1 Pt 3:15).

[b]In the last 50 years or so, the magisterium of the church has shown an increasing openness to the possibility of the salvation of unbaptized infants, and the sensus fidelium seems to have been developing in the same direction.[/b] Christians constantly experience, most powerfully in the liturgy, Christ's victory over sin and death,106 God's infinite mercy and the loving communion of the saints in heaven, all of which increases our hope. There the hope that is in us that we must proclaim and explain is regularly renewed, and it is from that experience of hope that various considerations can now be offered.

79. It must be clearly acknowledged that the church does not have sure knowledge about the salvation of unbaptized infants who die. She knows and celebrates the glory of the Holy Innocents, but the destiny of the generality of infants who die without baptism has not been revealed to us, and the church teaches and judges only with regard to what has been revealed. What we do positively know of God, Christ and the church gives us grounds to hope for their salvation, as must now be explained. [I would answer this that it is implicitly revealed and the Magisterium can draw out implicit truths from Divine Revelation and definitively teach them]

[kafka]

and more:

83. cf) At all times and in all circumstances, God provides a remedy of salvation for humanity.111 This was the teaching of Aquinas,112 and already before him of Augustine113 and Leo the Great.114 It is also found in Cajetan.115

Pope Innocent III specifically focused on the situation of children: "Far from us the thought that all the small children, of whom such a great multitude dies every day, should perish without the merciful God, who wishes no one to perish, having provided for them also some means of salvation.... We say that two kinds of sin must be distinguished, original and actual: original, which is contracted without consent, and actual, which is committed with consent. Thus original sin, which is contracted without consent, is remitted without consent by the power of the sacrament [of baptism]."116

Innocent was defending infant baptism as the means provided by God for the salvation of the many infants who die each day. We may ask, however, on the basis of a more searching application of the same principle, whether God also provides some remedy for those infants who die without baptism. There is no question of denying Innocent's teaching that those who die in original sin are deprived of the beatific vision.117 What we may ask and are asking is whether infants who die without baptism necessarily die in original sin, without a divine remedy.

87. c) It is also possible that God simply acts to give the gift of salvation to unbaptized infants by analogy with the gift of salvation given sacramentally to baptized infants.118 We may perhaps compare this to God's unmerited gift to Mary at her immaculate conception, by which he simply acted to give her in advance the grace of salvation in Christ.

94. Baptism for salvation can be received either in re or in voto. It is traditionally understood that the implicit choice for Christ that adults who are not actually baptized can make constitutes a votum for baptism and is salvific. In the traditional view such an option is not open to infants who have not attained the use of free will. The supposed impossibility of baptism in voto for infants is central to the whole question.

Hence, many, many attempts have been made in modern times to explore the possibility of a votum in the case of an unbaptized infant, either a votum exercised on behalf of the infant by its parents or by the church,126 or perhaps a votum exercised by the infant in some way.127

[b]The church has never ruled out such a solution, and attempts to get Vatican II to do so significantly failed because of a widespread sense that investigation of this matter was still ongoing and a widespread desire to entrust such infants to the mercy of God.[/b]

3.5. Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi
100. Before Vatican II, in the Latin church there was no Christian funeral rite for unbaptized infants, and such infants were buried in unconsecrated ground. Strictly speaking, there was no funeral rite for baptized infants either, but in their case a Mass of the Angels was celebrated and of course they were given a Christian burial. Thanks to the liturgical reform after the council, the Roman Missal now has a funeral Mass for a child who died before baptism, and there are also special prayers for such a situation in the Ordo Exsequiarum.

Though the tone of the prayers in both instances is noticeably cautious, it is now the case that the church liturgically expresses hope in the mercy of God, to whose loving care the infant is entrusted. This liturgical prayer both reflects and shapes the sensus fidei of the Latin church regarding the fate of unbaptized infants who die: lex orandi, lex credendi. Significantly, in the Greek Catholic Church there is only one funeral rite for infants, whether baptized or not yet baptized, and the church prays for all deceased infants that they may be received into the bosom of Abraham, where there is no sorrow or anguish but only eternal life.

[b]Our conclusion is that the many factors that we have considered above give serious theological and liturgical grounds for hope that unbaptized infants who die will be saved and enjoy the beatific vision.[/b] We emphasize that these are reasons for prayerful hope, rather than grounds for sure knowledge. There is much that simply has not been revealed to us (cf. Jn 16:12). We live by faith and hope in the God of mercy and love who has been revealed to us in Christ, and the Spirit moves us to pray in constant thankfulness and joy (cf. 1 Thes 5:18).


Notes
The theme "The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Without Being Baptized" was placed under the study of the International Theological Commission. In order to prepare for this study, a committee was formed comprised by Msgr. Ignazio Sanna, Rev. Basil Kyu-Man Cho, Rev. Peter Damien Akpunonu, Rev. Adelbert Denaux, Rev. Gilles Emery, Of, Msgr. Ricardo Ferrara, Msgr. Istvan Ivancso, Msgr. Paul McPartlan, Rev. Dominic Veliath, SOB (president of the committee) and Sister Sarah Butler, MSTB. The committee also received the collaboration of Rev. Luis Ladaria, SJ, the secretary general of the International Theological Commission, and Msgr. Guido Pozzo, the assistant to the ITC, as well as other members of the commission. The general discussion on the theme took place during the plenary sessions of the ITC held in Rome in October 2005 and October 2006. This present text was approved in forma specifica by the members of the commission and was subsequently submitted to its president, Cardinal William Levada, who upon receiving the approval of the Holy Father in an audience granted on Jan. 19, 2007, approved the text for publication.

And that is it for me. Tired. Grace and peace to all, even Fides et Ratio (though I hope he corrects his ways)

[Fides_et_Ratio]

Before I address some other issues, can you clarify this for me... are you saying that Mary was not sacramentally baptized?

[dairygirl4u2c]

even if Mary wasnt sacramentally baptized it wouldnt matter cause its said she was born w out sin. she wouldnt need it. as some say jesus didnt need it... it was more a formality to him, as itd seem to be for her

but clearly this is and was brewing into debate table material

Edited February 14, 2013 by dairygirl4u2c

[Nihil Obstat]

but clearly this is and was brewing into debate table material

Yes, clearly. That is why it only had one reply apart from OP, and why it sat inactive for over a year.

If I wanted to spend an hour reading theology, no offense, it certainly would not be on Phatmass.