Baptism and Limbo - what's the connection ?

Well, on the this Sunday when we remember the Baptism of Our Lord, Father Mark asked us to consider where we had got to with regard to a number of misconceptions surrounding our Catholic faith. OK - time for a little theology: -

Limbo was concocted in the 13th century as a solution to the theological conundrum of what happened to babies who died before they were christened. According to doctrine, they could not go to heaven because their original sin had not been expunged by baptism. Yet they had not harmed anyone, so they scarcely deserved purgatory, let alone hell.
Limbo also proved a useful solution to other problems, such as where to put holy people who lived before Christ and who had no chance of baptism.
Pope John Paul II was deeply troubled by limbo and had it dropped from the church's 1992 catechism. He asked the International Theological Commission, which advises the Vatican, to take up the issue.
When he was still a cardinal, Pope Benedict XVI said he was in favour of dropping the concept and on April 22 2007, the advisory body known as the Commission released a document entitled "The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die without Being Baptized."
The document stated its conclusion as follows:
'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. 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. 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.
What has been revealed to us is that the ordinary way of salvation is by the sacrament of baptism. None of the above considerations should be taken as qualifying the necessity of baptism or justifying delay in administering the sacrament. Rather, as we want to reaffirm in conclusion, they provide strong grounds for hope that God will save infants when we have not been able to do for them what we would have wished to do, namely, to baptize them into the faith and life of the Church. '

Still with me ?

Well that was what Father Mark basically said.....

Musically, we were one organ and one guitar. Where are you guys ? However, we enjoyed a very joyous liturgy culminating in a rousing rendition of 'Give me joy'

Entry: - Meekness and majesty

Gloria: - Gloria !

Alleluia: - Plymouth Alleluia
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Open your ears, open your eyes, open your hearts, to hear God’s word.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Offertory: - Blessed be God

Holy Holy: - Newquay mass (ii)

Mem Accl: - Lord by Your cross and resurrection

Amen: - Amen, we lift our hearts

Lamb of God: - Newquay mass (ii)

Communion: - Be still for the presence/Father we adore You

Recessional: - Give me joy in my heart