Living in Limbo

Limbo has traditionally been viewed as a place between heaven, on the one hand, and purgatory and hell, on the other, to which the patriarchs, who lived under the old law, and babies who died before being baptized into the Christian faith have been consigned. Like purgatory, it is a dark place but not deprived of grace. Now that the Roman Catholic Church has declared that limbo is not an official church teaching, the idea of limbo has been freed from ecclesiastical constraints and available for reflection on the human condition on this side of the grave.

Living in Limbo by Donald Capps and Nathan Carlin focuses on the acute limbo situations that are an integral part of human life, including the vicissitudes of growing up, of forming committed relationships, of finding employment and staying employed, of undergoing life-threatening illnesses, and of experiencing dislocation and doubt. Using cases and examples of real-life persons, the book identifies the forms of distress likely to occur throughout the duration of the limbo experience, and it also identifies the internal and external resources that individuals draw upon as they cope with the stresses and uncertainties of living in limbo.

Drawing on the traditional view, especially reflected in Christian art, that Christ descends into limbo to comfort and liberate its occupants, Living in Limbo comes down on the side of hope versus despair. In reading about other limbo dwellers, readers will meet themselves-or someone they love and care about-and will be encouraged by the very fact that they are not alone. Although it is not a pleasant place to be, limbo is not a place of solitary confinement, and one derives strength and resilience from the presence of the others.


""In this stimulating work we are invited to look at the margins of our lives for those disorienting experiences that often remain unexplored. By identifying common limbo experiences and their core elements the authors assist us in navigating a dimension of life that is very often neglected. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a concrete understanding of these complex life experiences.""
--Phil C. Zylla
Academic Dean and Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology
McMaster Divinity College

""With a trove of compelling and vivid narratives of lived experience, Donald Capps and Nathan Carlin illustrate quite powerfully the possibility of cultivating a spirit of hopefulness and resilience even when our lives are most acutely in a state of confusion and disorientation. Through the creative application of the resources of the Christian faith, this book effectively addresses, with compassion and humor and wisdom, the many different states of 'limbo' familiar to all of us.""
--Kirk A. Bingaman
Assistant Professor and Director of Pastoral Care and Counseling
Fordham University

""This book breathes new psychological and religious life into the ancient theological doctrine of 'Limbo,' recently disowned by the Catholic Church. Readers will find new sources of hope, insight, and solidarity in the limbo situations of people struggling to find their way along this journey we call life.""
--Thomas R. Cole
McGovern Chair in Medical Humanities
University of Texas--Houston Health Science Center Medical School


Donald Capps (1939-2015) was William Harte Felmeth Professor of Pastoral Theology (Emeritus) and Adjunct Professor at Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Striking Out (Cascade Books, 2011), At Home in the World (Cascade Books, 2013), Still Growing (Cascade Books, 2014), and The Resourceful Self (Cascade Books, 2014). He is coauthor with Nathan Carlin of Living in Limbo (Cascade Books, 2010) and The Gift of Sublimation (Casca