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Dec. 1st, 2005
Limbo dancing
Dec. 1st, 2005 04:41 pmI'm sure that like me you were all excited to learn that the new Pope is considering abolishing Limbo.
I find this a bit of a puzzle. When Limbo first entered church doctrine in the Middle Ages, it was put across as "at last we've worked out what's happened to the souls of virtuous pagans, unbaptized babies and so on". So how can you just abolish it? Where are they now going to say those souls are? Or can they possibly admit that the whole thing's a bit of an absurd intellectual exercise best forgotten about? And if so, what about transubstantiation, the immaculate conception, the trinity and all the other intellectual exercises, enforced compliance with which has caused so much death, suffering etc?
I find this a bit of a puzzle. When Limbo first entered church doctrine in the Middle Ages, it was put across as "at last we've worked out what's happened to the souls of virtuous pagans, unbaptized babies and so on". So how can you just abolish it? Where are they now going to say those souls are? Or can they possibly admit that the whole thing's a bit of an absurd intellectual exercise best forgotten about? And if so, what about transubstantiation, the immaculate conception, the trinity and all the other intellectual exercises, enforced compliance with which has caused so much death, suffering etc?