As someone asked above, is there a soul when there is no brain/mind/thought process?
No soul?
Since we don’t know the answer but the Lord does, I guess the best course would be to treat him like any other baby with intrinsic dignity and worth. And pray for him and his family.
Folks can presume that these children have no feelings, aren't "people", or have no soul.
He only lived for 6 months, but he did respond. When the nurses came near him, his heart rate accelerated. When Mom or Grandma came near him, his heart rate normalized and his limbs relaxed. He anticipated the pain of the tests to come; anticipation denotes awareness.
He most definitely had feelings, and when you held him, you could sense the little soul inside of him. He would turn towards you, grab for your shirt or finger, and snuggle in when you kissed him. Imprisoned in a body that would not sustain him, but he was definitely there.
Before he was born, I would have agreed with some other posters that children like this are just vegetables. I saw the absolute best in my sister-in-law during that time, the strength of her love, and my nephew's daily battle to LIVE. It changed my heart completely, and I am now firmly pro-life.
I know someone who has a severely brain damaged child. I've seen that the boy will respond to physical discomfort, but I haven't seen anything which indicates an emotion. His mother is sure he has them.
God bless them all. The children wouldn't survive without absolute devotion to their care. I don't know how the parents do it.
This child is the “least of them” that Jesus spoke of.
What ever you do to them, you do to me.