La place des mondes invisibles dans la vie spirituelle des enfants

Children have a natural tendency to move effortlessly between different worlds – being present in this material world and drifting in and out of other, less tangible ones. At any moment in the day, they may be absorbed in a book and the next they say they have been talking to their deceased grandparent, then they transform into an astronaut, flying into outer space in rocket. Drifting in and out of worlds, some of which are invisible to adults does not stop when night falls. There, children visit different places in their dreams while they sleep – some real, others mystical, where sometimes they also meet deceased pets and people they have loved. Adults often consider such ventures to be realms of the imagination and yet for children, these invisible spaces are often very real.

To fully understand children and their claims of encountering the deceased, it is essential to recognise them as holistic beings. The most common ways of framing children lie in the physical, biological, psychological, social, emotional and cultural. Yet one of the most overlooked aspects is the spiritual: a dimension which is central to finding meaning and purpose in life. This chapter considers what we mean by ‘the spiritual’ and explores how children’s encounters with the deceased in two different states of consciousness – dreaming and waking – can reflect this aspect of children’s being. Suggestions for how adults can support young people and their encounters are offered from a spiritual perspective.