Many people have called our children that we have miscarried "angels," which made us realize that many people do not understand what angels are. I looked up the definition of "Angels" in the Catholic Source Book (awesome book by the way) and it reads:
"Heavenly beings, genderless, of a fixed population, who neither marry nor are given in marriage; distinct from saints (which humans may become); mentioned nearly 300 times in the Bible." pg. 117
So, I wanted to clear things up a little. I mean no disrespect to those who find comfort in thinking of their children as angels, but this is simply not the truth, and the truth is what will truly console us. The truth is that we, with God, gave them their humanity; the only way they can be our children, our flesh and bone, is through their humanity. Our babies had a gender, they may become saints, they are distinct from angels, and they are beautiful own purpose and being. To call my child an angel is to deny that the child is truly mine, my flesh, for angels do not have flesh, do not have parents.
We can believe that, if we desire their baptism, God will take them to heaven when they day and they will be saints. The church also proclaims that we may hope for heaven for all babies who have died without baptism, despite the parents' desire to have them baptized. So this is where our hope and consolation lie, in knowing our little baby has become a saint. To quote the Catholic Encyclopedia:
"Vatican II says that saints are those who are joined to Him "in sharing for ever a life that is divine and free from all decay" and "have found true life with God" (GS 18); they "share in his life and glory" (AG 2) and "share in his happiness" (GS 21)."
How beautiful and consoling to think of our children in this way!
1 comment:
Great post. Thank you for the clarification. :)
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