Repose of an aborted child

[twf]

I can’t see why there would be any issue with this… but do people arrange Mass intentions for the repose of a specific aborted child? Very tragically, a woman I know very well recently had an abortion. I’ve arranged Mass intentions many times before, but I’m not sure how to approach it in this case…“the repose of the unborn child of so and so?” Adding to this…probably can’t name names as that goes in the bulletin…but I very much want a Mass offered for this child who never had a chance to live. Thoughts?

 

[Tis_Bearself]

I’m sure they can put it in as a “Special Intention” without naming names. Alternatively, if you arrange it through Missio (you can do this through Facebook Messenger) or similar mission website, you can type what you want in for the intention and tell them to not send a card.

P.S. Might be good to make it for mama and baby, if it’s not going to be printed in any parish bulletin. Like if you arranged it through the Missions you could write in, “Jane Jones and her unborn child” and Jane would never find out about it (presumably you won’t be sending her a Mass card). I’m sure Mama needs the help of a Mass probably even more than the poor dead innocent baby does.

 

[DeniseNY]

You could probably speak to your pastor privately about it. It doesn’t have to be printed in the bulletin.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I didn’t think the Church offered Masses for the repose of the soul of children below the age of reason, which an aborted child certainly is. If a child below the age of reason is baptized (which an aborted child certainly is not), they are assumed to go straight to heaven. In fact, in the very sad case of newborn twins who died shortly after birth (and had been baptized) at a traditionalist chapel I attended, the priest simply led the faithful in reciting the Divine Praises. If a child is not baptized, its fate is unknown, but there are only two alternatives — either the child is taken straight to heaven, no prayers or Masses needed, or it goes to the eternal, naturally happy state of limbo, and no prayers or Masses could change that.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Traditionalist parish aside, the Catechism encourages us to pray for the salvation of unborn children who die without baptism, which would include having a Mass said.

1283: With respect to children who have died without Baptism, the liturgy of the Church invites us to trust in God’s mercy and to pray for their salvation.

Mass for Unbaptized Children Who Die | EWTN

The EWTN article says in pertinent part,

With respect to the advisability of offering the Mass for the “salvation” of unbaptized infants, No. 1283 invites us to pray for their salvation.

Since the Mass is also an intercessory prayer, then it should be possible, in general terms, to offer the Mass for such an intention even though we may not yet be theologically sure of what the concept of salvation might be in this particular case.

With respect to funerals for such children, the article says

Because of the mystery involved, the celebration of funeral rites for an unbaptized child usually requires the permission of the local bishop who considers the pastoral circumstances involved (see Canon 1183.2 of the Code of Canon Law).

It may be that the bishop decided not to allow a funeral for the unbaptized child in question for some reason in the case you mention where the priest just said the Divine Praises.

But twf isn’t seeking to have a funeral for the baby, he just wants to have a Mass said for it. So that should be fine.
If his parish chooses to give him a hassle (Doubtful), he can ship the intention off to the missions where it will almost certainly be accepted without question.

 

[Greenfields]

We have the Feast of the Holy Innocents on the 28th of December, our priest used to always include the babies that died before birth in our mass as far as I remember .

 

[HomeschoolDad]

Traditionalist parish aside, the Catechism encourages us to pray for the salvation of unborn children who die without baptism, which would include having a Mass said.

1283: With respect to children who have died without Baptism, the liturgy of the Church invites us to trust in God’s mercy and to pray for their salvation .

Not to nitpick, but the Catechism says “children”. It does not specify whether they are born or unborn, or whether they were of the age of reason or not.

The twin babies who died a day or two after birth had been baptized. The Divine Praises were either part of the regular Sunday Mass, or recited before or after — that’s been almost 35 years ago and I don’t recall. I have to think that the priest observed whatever funeral rubrics existed prior to 1962 for infants. This was an SSPX-affiliated chapel that operated outside the aegis of the diocese in which it was located.

If the Church is okay with prayer for unbaptized infants, then I am okay with it, including making it the intention of a Mass.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

The twin babies who died a day or two after birth had been baptized. The Divine Praises were either part of the regular Sunday Mass, or recited before or after — that’s been almost 35 years ago and I don’t recall. I have to think that the priest observed whatever funeral rubrics existed prior to 1962 for infants. This was an SSPX-affiliated chapel that operated outside the aegis of the diocese in which it was located.

Well, then the entire case would seem to have zilch to do with what we are discussing in this thread.

OP is asking about

• having a Mass (not a funeral) said
• for an unbaptized baby
• under the post-Vatican II rubrics, the current (not old 1917) Code of Canon Law and current official Catechism
• promulgated by the Latin Church.

Your example seems to involve

• some kind of funeral rite
• for baptized babies
• under pre-Vatican II rubrics and rules
• done by SSPX who 35 years ago were not in communion with the Church at all (I think Lefebvre was still alive at that time).

So it’s really apples and oranges, and your example isn’t relevant to the OP’s situation.

However, as the International Theological Commission in The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Before Being Baptized wrote,

1. Before Vatican II, in the Latin Church, there was no Christian funeral rite for unbaptised infants and such infants were buried in unconsecrated ground. Strictly speaking, there was no funeral rite for baptised infants either, but in their case a Mass of the Angels was celebrated and of course they were given a Christian burial.

So the “Mass of the Angels” is likely what you saw going on, assuming the SSPX were following pre-Vatican II rubrics.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

HomeschoolDad:

The twin babies who died a day or two after birth had been baptized. The Divine Praises were either part of the regular Sunday Mass, or recited before or after — that’s been almost 35 years ago and I don’t recall. I have to think that the priest observed whatever funeral rubrics existed prior to 1962 for infants. This was an SSPX-affiliated chapel that operated outside the aegis of the diocese in which it was located.

Well, then the entire case would seem to have zilch to do with what we are discussing in this thread.

I think it was at least an ancillary topic and had some value to it. I would also add that the father of these babies displayed a truly Catholic sense if ever I saw such a thing, he was talking after Mass (I did not attend the funeral rites) about how he was thankful they died baptized and without sin, that they went straight to heaven — who among us could have that said of us? — and that they wouldn’t have to deal with all of the problems that people endure when they go through childhood and the rest of life. Being thoroughly earthbound and worldly at the time, up to my ears in sin, of course I was scandalized beyond belief — “how can he talk like that?” — but looking back, I can see that he was exactly right. His powerful Catholic and Christian witness helped me to see matters in the light of eternity when our own child was miscarried. I do not know whether my emergency baptism of our child “took” — there were no discernible remains — but even if it didn’t, and if our child went to limbo, I praise God that His perfect will was done, and that there is no suffering.

I will leave it at that, lest I go further “off-topic” than I already have. The reader can decide whether my comments are worthwhile or not.