Sir, - Is Peter de Rosa (August 21st) simply being his usual mischievous self in implying that unbaptised souls cannot go to heaven? Commonsense (and nothing in current Catholic teaching says otherwise) suggests that God, who "wants everyone [conceived] to be saved", ensures that all aborted (naturally and unnaturally) souls go straight to heaven. If only because they hadn't opportunities to do or not to do things to require hell or purgatory.
However, his muddled thinking draws attention to a related Catholic muddle. It is that which has Catholics concerned about aborted babies whose souls are in heaven, and apparently unconcerned about abortionists (direct and indirect) whose souls are in danger of enduring severe purgatory pain. I say "apparently" as, though some of us pray for them, our clergy do not provide a community way for doing so via, say, Mass "Prayers of the Faithful". - Yours, etc.,
Sandford Road,
Ranelagh, Dublin 6.