ARE ALL WHO DIE IN INFANCY SAVED? (Revisited)

ARE ALL WHO DIE IN INFANCY SAVED?

The issue of what happens to those who die in infancy can be emotional. Dealing with infants can be like dealing with fire or sticks of dynamite; all ought to be handled with tenderness and the utmost of care. A verse of the Scottish poet, Robert Burns’ satirical poem about a so-called Calvinist he calls Holy Willie quickly springs to mind and strikes a piercing but painful note in the ears and hearts of those born of the Spirit. The poem is called Holy Willie’s Prayer:

When frae my mither’s womb I fell,

Thou might hae plungèd me in hell,

To gnash my gums, to weep and wail,

In burnin’ lakes,

Where damnèd devils roar and yell,

Chain’d to their stakes…

 

Do Calvinists really believe that any dying infants go to Hell? Surely all Christians who have suffered the loss of an infant or a little child believe that the Bible gives ample comfort that they will see them again in glory. The 1619 Canons of Dort in Article 1:17 sums up what Calvinists believe regarding their children who die infancy:

 

Since we are to judge the will of God from His Word, which testifies that the children of believers are holy, not by nature, but in virtue of the covenant of grace, in which they together with the parents are comprehended, godly parents have no reason to doubt of the election and salvation of their children whom it pleaseth God to call out of this life in their infancy.[1]

 

Holy Willie is William Fisher (1737-1809). He was an elder in the Mauchline Kirk Session. His body lies buried in Ochiltree cemetery. Therefore, he was not just some windmill in Burns’ mind that he tilted at because of what he perceived to be Fisher’s hypocrisy. It would seem (at least according to the words Burns put in his mouth) that Fisher disagreed with Article 1:17 quoted above.

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On a personal note,  three or so years ago, a family asked me to attend Lady Cilento children’s hospital, to be with them as they unplugged the life-support for their infant. There was weeping and wailing! Subsequently, I conducted the funeral service. I even broke into song mid-sermon, (as much for my comfort as theirs). I broke into singing a verse of a song I remember singing in church at Christmas as a child, Away in a Manger. Even back then I loved the thought that Jesus loved the little children, that He loved me!

“Be near me Lord Jesus, I ask You to stay

Close by me for ever, and love me, I pray.

Bless all the dear children in Your tender care,

And fit us for heaven, to live with You there.”

Not long after that, at the same hospital, I was in attendance just before the delivery of a child who was only expected to live a few hours, and was there when the child died. I conducted a wee memorial service at the hospital to comfort the grieving family. As painful as it all was for me, I was fortified by the Spirit working with His Word in my heart. I thanked God that I had studied the subject, the result of which was the writing of a wee book on it, Are All Who Die in Infancy Saved? I believe that the Bible teaches that all who die in infancy are probably saved. What comfort!

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[1] Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom, Volume III, The Evangelical Protestant Creeds, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Sixth Edition, 1996, p. 585.