Hello. I had a miscarriage a year ago. My son was 36 weeks. When I had a local priest come to the hospital he stated that my son would not be baptized nor blessed since he had passed. I truly hope and believe my son is with our Lord but I can't stop feeling guilty that nothing was done ie blessed with holy water We did buried him but no funeral mass done because our parish priest said it was not necessary. Please explain the teachings of original sin regards to the pre born. Thank you

Dear Diana

I cannot believe the priest's abysmal attitude toward your son in your hour of grief. He should be ashamed.

I hope that this website will move you to at least understand that the Lord touched your lives with your son and your son is now at peace with the Lord. Please read what the Theological Commission had to say in a document that is approved by Pope Benedict XVI: http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=7529

Please note that The Rev. Luis Ladaria, a Jesuit who is the secretary-general of the Commission said "We can say we have many reasons to hope that there is salvation for these babies." He said that we cannot know their fate with any certainty because Scripture is largely silent on the matter. The report itself stated that there were:

"... serious theological and liturgical grounds for hope that unbaptized infants who die will be saved and brought into eternal happiness [with God in Heaven]. ...these are reasons for prayerful hope, rather than grounds for sure knowledge."

The report noted that:

"People find it increasingly difficult to accept that God is just and merciful if he excludes infants, who have no personal sins, from eternal happiness, whether they are Christian or non-Christian."

It stressed that its conclusions should not be interpreted as questioning original sin, or "used to negate the necessity of baptism or delay the conferral of the sacrament." It urges that parents should have their children baptized because this sacrament is the way that salvation is revealed. 4,5

COPYRIGHT 2013

Click here to send this Question and Answer to a friend