It's about time. With all sincere respect to the many fine, devout people who believe in the Catholic Church's doctrines, I think the Church was arrogant, cruel and manipulative to make people believe that babies went anywhere other than Heaven in the first place. I'm sorry to say this, and no doubt I'll be downrated to hell and back for doing so, but the Catholic Church, imho, has inflicted more sheer misery on humanity than any other agency in the world. This centuries-old idea about babies being stuck in limbo forever is another example. The Church's reversal on that one is way, way, too late in coming, but at least they finally did reverse. It breaks my heart to imagine the millions of good, honest, faithful people who've suffered needlessly because they believed that babies who died before baptism went into limbo. Of all the misinformation that's flooded the world about God, that one takes the cake. I believe in God, but I also believe the Catholic Church has made Him into the image it wants people to have of God, for reasons totally unrelated to God.

First am not catholic... Just so ya know... Second I lost a baby & I FIRMLY believe that an unborn baby or a baby that is born and dies goes back to God.... God as I see him wont throw away a babys life because the child is not capable of sin... I pity the Catholic leadership for thier bad docterine and ideas...

So does that mean being a still born baby is actually a good thing, because you just get to go straight to heaven and not have to put up with the living hell that is life? That's not fair. There's gotta be some kind of catch.

I think it's a needed update to the doctrine. It was created with the good intention of stating that the babies were worthy of heaven but still had original sin, which the 2nd coming would erase. However, I think the church and people in general have relaxed their view a bit on original sin. I'm sure many orthodox Catholics will not be pleased, though. It makes me wonder about another doctrine I could never get behind; that of papal infallibility. How could one ppppope be right and another with an opposing view also be right? Are are they just human after all?

I grew up in the Catholic church; but, I never believed in limbo nor purgatory, thank God. But my family does believe in both doctrines. I am so glad that the church has reversed this teaching; but, it is a little too little too late. The Church in America is dying. When the Vatican Council II people die there will no longer be a Catholic church in the US and Rome is doing nothing what so ever about it. It's a down right shame. The church says and does nothing about perverted priests, abortion supporting politicians, and the loss of it's youth in their thousands; but, decides a doctrine that isn't supported by the Bible in any way is wrong. Go figure.

Does the Catholic Church still believe in limbo, a place for unbaptized babies to go if they die without baptism? The Catholic Church never "believed" in limbo. The existence of limbo for unbaptized infants is not part of divine revelation, but rather was and is an educated theological "guess." The term was coined by St. Augustine of Hippo and literally means "fringe." This came about because God has not chosen to reveal what happens to deceased unbaptized infants. We know that baptism is absolutely necessary for salvation (John 3:5) because God revealed this. We also know that something called "baptism of desire" is possible. Since unbaptized infants seem incapable of any "desire" or act of their will, theologians have speculated throughout the ages about their destiny in this context St. Augustine thought that it would be an offense against God's justice to suppose He would allow such creatures to suffer any pain, but that rather God places such infants in a state of "natural," but not supernatural happiness for eternity. This he called "limbo." Other theologians say that God's "universal salvific will" (1 Timothy 2:4) includes unbaptized people who do not have the use of reason when they die and that they enjoy supernatural happiness by some means we do not now know. Catholics are free to believe or disbelieve in limbo. What happens to unbaptized people who do not have the use of reason and who die in that state is an open question. Read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 1261. (btw Orthodox Catholic refers to the non-Roman branch of the Catholic Church so not under the umbrella of the Vatican(i.e. Greek Orthodox, etc)and is rarely used anymore as a designation. I think you meant Taditional or UltraTraditional (i.e Conservative)Catholics (I personally am a Liberal Catholic)