Anathema! Pope Condemns the Limbonian Heresy!

Yahoo! News reports that Pope Benedict has “buried the concept of Limbo” in a 41-page paper released by the International Theological Commission last Friday. Yahoo! News says that the International Theological Commission’s report “was seen as most likely the final word” on the topic of Limbo. However, over on Jimmy Akin’s blog, Jimmy laments that the media coverage of the report’s release has been sloppy and too eager to sensationalize. He links readers to an article on Catholic News that gives a more accurate account of what the document’s release means.

The Commission is not part of the teaching magisterium of the Church and cannot make any defining statement on what is or what is not doctrine. The Commission’s report makes no attempt to define the validity of the theory of Limbo. It only observes a move towards a more "nuanced understanding" of how people are saved through the Church.

That’s sort of too bad. I think “Limbonian Heresy” would have made a good name for a heretical teaching. That's why I've left the title to this post unchanged even though it's technically false.

And if you're not convinced yet, just consider this: the International Theological Commission totally could have had all sorts of fun with the fact that "Limbo" is also the name of a popular Jamacian party activity. They should have pointed this out. Imagine the puns they could make with the juxtoposition of one of the circles of Hell and a game that finds out "how low can you go?" I have no idea why they did not seize the opportunity.

I can tell you this much: a few things are gonna change once I'm Pope.