As you've probably heard by now, the most recent incarnation of the Pope is to (or has he already? I can't be bothered to look it up, quite frankly!) disavow all Catholic association of the concept known as Limbo. (Not the dance, sadly.) Limbo is not to be confused with Purgatory, although it's just down the block. Limbo is where the souls of unbaptized babies and good pagans who lived before the time of Christ go to hang out for the rest of eternity. I always pictured them as just floating around in a black and white eternity, as colour was reserved for Heaven or Hell. (In Purgatory, you get colour on the weekends). When I noticed the Papal announcement in the paper, I couldn't help but read the headline to my recently Catholic-ized Mom. She said, "What's limbo? Besides the damn dance I can't do?" So, I told her. "Oh," she said. "Wait--how did you know about limbo?"
"Why, from George Carlin, of course, Mother!" I truthfully replied, for how else do non-Catholics get their interpetations of the Catholic worldview? Read a Catholic Bible? Ha! That would make sense.
Anyway, I'm going to miss limbo, even though all the souls in limbo are now given a one-way ticket to heaven. Which reminds me--limbo is being ousted because it is "only a hypothesis"--hmmm---so can we think of what else is just a hypothesis? Like, oh, let's see...God? Hell? Original sin?
2 comments:
I had never heard of George Carlin before, but not only is he hilarious, but what he says is so obviously true it's not funny!!
Will definitely keep an eye on him in future.
Hadn't heard about the limbo thing either. Er, who gets to decide that then? Did he get a fax from God, with the latest updates? Why do people believe this crap?!!!
Yet of course, if someone sees a flying saucer, they're obviously deluded...
Suprizingly, George Carlin isn't well known in England--so when I lived there, I could astound the locals by quoting old George Carlin routines! (Whoops...now the secret is out...)
Actually, the hypothesis of limbo was a sort of folk tale that caught on and had never been a more solid part of the Catholic doctrine. (Like there being three wise men, when I don't think the Bible actually gave any specific number). Pope John Paul 2 was going to say, "Y'know, isn't it about time we do something about this limbo idea?" but died before he could make the announcement.
I'm not sure what the official Catholic viewpoint on UFOs are, though. I don't think they're in the Catechism ;-)
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