Rename a database column

Hi all,
We had to change a column name in a database we are using.
The IS packages that used that old column name of course fell over.
Not wishing to reset them all up I simply replaced the old column name with the new one in all the XML files in the project
Now this seems to have worked. But surely it cannot be that simple.
Am I missing something ?
Anyone ever done anything like this ?
I know it is bad practice but it really was a needed change to accommodate a production change.
Many thanks