Free will and children

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DetectiveNiko

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From my understanding, children can’t differentiate between good and evil until a certain age (I think this is also mentioned in the Bible itself )
Now theres several problems that this makes like how far can adults “brainwash” children into believe what in essence is evil to be good and etc, my main problem is how children that die , this includes fetuses, choose salvation ? I don’t find it just to say all of them to instantly go to heaven (It would be nice if they did) ,
as that creates problems like some people need to pick between good and evil, while some people get the privilage of not picking so. So how do brainwashed people or children pick between hell and heaven ?
Does God give grace and with that knowledge of the beatific vision despite their age, or is it something else ?
I also heard that the church used to teach about Limbo being a possibility, but that then makes extra problems to like is God not able to create a world where all people can choose right and wrong within their first lifetime and etc.
 
The Bible does not say what happens to children that die before the age of reason. Because of this the Church is not able to say where those children go. Catholics can have their own beliefs on this, but others may not agree. I believe everyone needs to make a choice between good and evil, so children that die too young (including abortion) are somehow given the opportunity to choose by Jesus/God. That raises the question of how they can make this choice if they are still children after death.

Maybe there is some growth for children after death in purgatory, so they can make this decision. Maybe it is like the angels where they are given all the knowledge and wisdom they need to make a decision. The only thing I am pretty sure of is that they get to make a choice. God is infinitely wise, so I cannot see some sort of Limbo where innocents go who never got the chance to choose. God will ensure they get to make a choice somehow.

One thing we do know from the Church and Bible is that culpability for a sin depends on a person having the full knowledge that what they are doing is evil. Children who do evil because of brainwashing do not have full knowledge, so they would not be culpable for the full weight of the sin. In addition, children before the age of reason cannot commit any personal sin, so only original sin could keep them from heaven.
 
Infants never made a choice for evil.

You may wish to read the following Vatican document in full

http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/c...aith_doc_20070419_un-baptised-infants_en.html

Excerpts

7……“Grace is totally free, because it is always a pure gift of God. Damnation, however, is deserved, because it is the consequence of free human choice.”

Excerpt from no. 75
I think the most powerful words reference in the documents reveals how the judge of souls Himself, Jesus (Matthew 25, verses 31-46,) 'judges/perceives little innocent children

": “Let the children come to me…for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 19:14; cf. Lk 18:15-16, ‘infants’); “Whoever receives one such in my name receives me” (Mk 9:37); “unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 18:3);"87. c)
  1. c) It is also possible that God simply acts to give the gift of salvation to unbaptised infants by analogy with the gift of salvation given sacramentally to baptized infants.[118]We may perhaps compare this to God’s unmerited gift to Mary at her Immaculate Conception, by which he simply acted to give her in advance the grace of salvation in Christ.
2)."The Church, faithful guardian of the way of salvation, knows that salvation can be achieved only in Christ, by the Holy Spirit. Yet, as mother and teacher, she cannot fail to reflect on the destiny of all human beings, created in the image of God,[2] and especially of the weakest. Being endowed with reason, conscience and freedom, adults are responsible for their own destiny in so far as they accept or reject God’s grace. Infants, however, who do not yet have the use of reason, conscience and freedom, cannot decide for themselves… From a theological point of view, the development of a theology of hope and an ecclesiology of communion, together with a recognition of the greatness of divine mercy, challenge an unduly restrictive view of salvation. In fact, the universal salvific will of God and the correspondingly universal mediation of Christ mean that all theological notions that ultimately call into question the very omnipotence of God, and his mercy in particular, are inadequate.

9 Intro) " in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992), the theory of limbo is not mentioned. Rather, the Catechism teaches that infants who die without baptism are entrusted by the Church to the mercy of God, as is shown in the specific funeral rite for such children. The principle that God desires the salvation of all people gives rise to the hope that there is a path to salvation for infants who die without baptism (cf. CCC, 1261)…”.
 
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Well, I do believe that kids before they are able to reason would not have all the issues that cause us to avoid God.
 
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