All pro-lifers believe that abortion is a terrible crime. They know the Truth and are not ashamed to say, “Abortion is murder.” It may sound harsh to some; it may appear to be uncompassionate. “After all, a woman might not think that she is committing murder.” Or, “She may not want to do it but is compelled through poverty or shame. It’s a hard decision, which only she can make.” Arguments such as these are made to dismiss the hard fact that abortion is murder. If pro-lifers spoke this way for any reason, the cause for life would be finished. No good can come from falsehood; the bold Truth without compromise is essential for the success of the pro-life cause.
      And yet in the name of compassion a terrible evil has entered the pro-life cause. It comes from a falsehood that lessens the enormity of the crime and, if left to stand, will do untold harm. In fact, if this error is not uprooted, pro-lifers might as well pack up their placards, stop their protesting and abandon the cause, for God will not stand with error and without God, all is lost. This error claims in effect that abortion is equivalent to “angel making.”
      Some pro-lifers are teaching that each abortion sends a child to Heaven. “Don’t worry,” they say to a woman who has aborted her child, “your baby is in Heaven.” This false claim may console for a while but may likely be the source of the next abortion. Using such a falsehood is like the Church telling sinners that there is no Hell or doctors telling homosexuals that there is no such thing as aids.
      Suppose a woman on the brink of saving her child, overhears this deviation from Truth and decides to “send her child to Heaven” rather than to force it to face the hardships of being illegitimate, or “unwanted,” or “poverty stricken.” All of a sudden, it may appear to her that she does have a legitimate choice.
      Reason and logic tell us that abortion mills are not sending babies to the Beatific Vision—if so, Satan would do all in his power to ban abortion. The Truth that has been taught from the beginning of the Church is that, unbaptized babies are banned from Heaven and sentenced to Limbo, a place where they will never see the face of God.
      Poor aborted babies are sentenced to pay the penalty of Original Sin, which we all inherited from Adam and Eve. The punishment is not hell fire, reserved for personal, actual sins, but the deprivation of seeing and being with God. “We all sinned in Adam.” Every descendant of Adam is conceived with Original Sin on his or her soul, every descendant of Adam except, of course, the “Son of Adam,” Our Lord—Who could have no part of sin—and she who is “The Immaculate Conception,” Our Lady. Heaven is a supernatural place, which requires a supernaturalizing of the soul to obtain it. “This however, cannot be effected otherwise than by Baptism.” (Catechism of Trent)
      St. Fulgentius teaches us to, “Hold most firmly and never doubt in the least that not only men having the use of reason, but even infants who, whether they begin to live in the womb of their mothers and die there, or whether they have been born of their mothers and pass from this world without the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, which is given in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, are punished: [that is, excluded from Heaven.]”
      Pope St. Zosimus confirmed the Council of Carthage which declared: “If anyone says that it might be understood that, in the kingdom of Heaven, there will be some middle place or some place anywhere that infants live who departed this life without Baptism, without which they cannot enter into the kingdom of Heaven which is eternal life: Let him be anathema.”
      The Faith unravels if we don’t hold this most firmly: No need of Baptism leads to no need of redemption, to no Christ on the Cross! We cannot please people at the expense of the Holy Faith. “Shall we make void the Gospel? Shall we void the words of Christ? Shall we promise you what He refuses you?” says St. Augustine.

Not a New Issue
      How then do ye comfort me in vain, whereas your answer is shown to be repugnant to Truth? (Job 21:34)
      The Church has always grappled with the problem of consoling mothers whose babies have died before Baptism. How to comfort the mother of a stillborn child is never easy. How to explain God’s love and mercy in light of countless miscarriages over the centuries is difficult. Yet, the Church and her saints have never sacrificed the Truth to make a mystery palatable and easy to accept.
      Although various saints have speculated on what Limbo is like, never have they denied its existence. It is part of the infallible, ordinary teaching of the Church because of its unanimity and universality from ancient Doctors of the Church, such as St. Augustine, back to the words of Our Lord: “The universal and absolute necessity of Baptism Our Savior has declared in these words: Unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost he shall not enter the kingdom of Heaven. (John 3:5) (Catechism of Trent) The Church has always been of the mind to tell grieving parents to trust in Him, accept His Will and remember that He is merciful.

Where Does All This Fit in for Pro-lifers?
      Is this uncompassionate, uncon–soling, and undesirable information? Should it be kept from mothers who have aborted their children? Can the Truth be a force of negative value? Can it be that the Truth is something to keep hidden under a bushel basket? No, it might not be advisable to confront someone with the Truth when they are not ready to listen, but when they are ready, the Truth is always charitable. King David prayed in Psalm 39: Withhold not Thou, O Lord, Thy tender mercies from me: Thy mercy and Thy truth have always upheld me.
      People tend to see the world looking through the wrong end of the telescope; namely, we think of man as being much better than he actually is. The erroneous idea is that man is so good that he does not really need the graces of the sacramental system (for which Christ paid an incalculable price on the Cross). Only serial killers are really bad people and the rest of us will go to Heaven because we’re essentially good. Students of Church History will recognize this fallacious thinking as a resurgence of the ancient heresy of Pelagianism: Man is brought into existence without Original Sin and perfectly capable of getting to Heaven through his own goodness. “The Pelagians condemn their children to eternal death by refusing them Baptism.” (Council of Carthage)
      Again, Our Redeemer paid a tremendous price to gain for us sanctifying grace within the sacramental system. He established a Church to safeguard the sacraments, those channels of grace. This was done in vain if nobody needs them and vain, too, are His words, I am the vine; you are the branches: he that abides in Me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5) Amen, amen I say to you: Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you shall not have life in you. (John 6:54) Sacramental Communion keeps us in the state of grace after Baptism.
      Man’s goodness clearly depends upon his participation in Jesus’ life, the life of sanctifying grace.
      Where is the mercy of God for the aborted babies in all of this seemingly strict justice? If the telescope is turned around correctly we recognize that God is merciful in reserving a special place for them where they enjoy the most perfect natural happiness although they are stained with Original Sin.
      St. Vincent Ferrer, the Greatest Preacher of all Time, explains: “Just as we do not envy an eagle because wings do not pertain to us, so the babies do not envy the supernatural place of Heaven because it does not pertain to them. If ever touched, however, with this water, sanctifying grace is infused in the soul, God dwells therein, Original Sin is wiped away, and the child becomes a member of the Church and an heir to Heaven.”
      When a remorseful mother inquires about her aborted child, she should be told the Truth. Truth brings humility: a clear understanding of God’s greatness and our nothingness, a realization of the magnitude of any offense against Him and a readiness to accept the consequences of our sin and His terms of forgiveness. The Truth, furthermore, has grace attached to it, which can lead to a lasting and sincere repentance. We do not want to deprive the poor mother of the necessary grieving attached to the tremendous loss. God’s mercy extends so far to that mother that she can be completely forgiven with the aid of Confession and she can be with God in Heaven where there will be perfect bliss with no tears and no regrets. All will be perfect. All things work unto good for those who love God, says St. Paul. The Church has everything to offer those of good will who seek Him with a contrite heart.

How about the New Catechism?
      Recent catechisms of the Church explain that the infant dying without Baptism can hope for the mercy of God. This is not a contradiction of Church tradition because as we have explained above, Limbo is a merciful part of God’s salvific plan. “The present or ‘current’ teaching of the Church does not admit of a development that is either a reversal or a contradiction.” (Pope John Paul II)

What About the Holy Innocents?
      Lest there be any confusion over the entrance into Heaven by the innocent children slain by the order of Herod, suffice it to say that they were cleansed according to the Old Law under the rite of circumcision and therefore in a state of justification. Baptism of Water prescribed under the New Law did not commence until later: “The time when the law of Baptism was made also admits of no doubt.... After the Resurrection of Our Lord, when He gave to His Apostles the command to go and ‘teach all nations: baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,’ the law of Baptism became obligatory on all who were to be saved.” (Catechism of Trent)
      Another misunderstanding is that the aborted babies are martyrs, but this is not so. The Holy Innocents did die in the place of Christ, but unwanted babies die mostly through selfishness.

Does Holy Water Help?
      Sprinkling holy water on mothers about to enter an abortion mill sends demons into flight, but it does not effect the Sacrament of Baptism. Water must physically touch some part of the baby’s body.

Let’s Unite in Truth, Prayer and Action.
      We are embarking upon the first year of this third millennium and the evils of abortion and contraception are not only still with us, to the great dishonor of God, but the problem is getting worse! With the arrival of RU486 in this country, the number of aborted babies will increase. Space does not permit the discussion of other avalanches of evil brought on by contempt for life, such as doctors frequently killing cancer patients with overdoses of morphine.
      Let’s try something new: Let’s try uniting in Truth about the abortion issue. What may seem unimportant to man is very important to God. He loves Truth—it is an extension of Himself. Believing in God’s revelations certainly matters to Him and makes a difference. Denial of Limbo undermines the basic tenets of Christianity as shown above. Beneath the surface of the collapse of morals is a lack of faith. And while doctrinal discord prevails in the Church, fewer converts are made. Let’s not hide the Truth; it brings conversion; it brings surety, stability, unity, peace and glory to God.
      Let’s act on a united front: The reality of this issue should inspire us to work harder. Go to the mills and pray as often as your state in life allows. Do counseling if you have the gift. Don’t compromise at the polls. Hold the Truth, and as Our Lady of Fatima requested, say the Rosary and perform acts of penance.