The Spiritual World: Talks for Children by George de Charms

14.  Children in Heaven (1)

In the other world there are not only men and women - grown-up people; but there are also little children - children of all ages from wee little babies to big boys and girls.

Now these children in the other world do not remain children. They grow up, even as children on earth grow up. Indeed they grow much more rapidly than you children who are here in this world. If a little baby goes to the other world, not many years pass before he or she has grown to be an angel. … There are many angels, especially mothers, who love children so very much that they find the greatest happiness in caring for them, in teaching them, and in leading them nearer to the Lord. Indeed the presence of little children gives joy and delight to all the angels of heaven. … You all know of some children who have been called by the Lord into heaven; and if you will think of these children whom you knew and loved while they were in the world, you will learn something about them from what I am going to tell you.

Not only do little children who go to heaven give delight to the angels; but they receive such joy and happiness as we who are on earth cannot be given. As soon as they enter the other world they are given an angel mother to take care of them. She is so beautiful, and her love for them is so strong that they at once love her, and find happiness and joy in her presence. She takes them to one of those heavenly mansions of which we have learned, where everything is resplendent with gold and silver, and precious stones. There they can receive everything that is necessary to make them happy. They have toys to play with - both in the house where they have their own playroom and outside among the trees and flowers of the heavenly gardens. There they find other children of their own age, whom they quickly come to know and love. They play all kinds of games together, with balls, and such games as you play here, besides many others that you do not know.

But all their life is not play. As they grow older they study and learn, and at the right age they go to school, even as you do here. They do not think of this, however, as hard, or as something that is distasteful. In fact, they enjoy their work even more perhaps than their play; for the things they learn impart to them a marvelous delight, and the way in which they learn them is so pleasant that they are often sorry when the time comes for the school to close for the day. They are taught especially by what are called representations. These are like pictures, or plays that are living.

…Suppose you were given a lesson in history, and were to learn about knights who lived in olden times, as described in Sir Walter Scott's poems; and instead of just reading that poem,…suppose that the teacher would take you outside, and there you would see everything that is spoken of in that poem actually taking place. Scene after scene would take place around you, just as if you had been there at the time. And the angel by your side would point out things that you otherwise might not see, and would ask you questions that would make you realize the meaning of it all. You yourselves would feel the enthusiasm of those gallant knights. You would feel the love that made them fight and risk their lives to save some beautiful maiden, or to serve their beloved king, or to correct some injustice that had been done, and punish the evil doer. …That is … the way the children in heaven are taught. Especially are they taught the things of the Lord's Word in this way. They actually see Abram journeying across the desert, with all his flocks and herds, to come into the Land of Canaan, at the Lord's command.

They actually see Eleazar kneeling at the well in the land of Syria, and praying to the Lord that the one who is to be the wife of Isaac might come out and ask a drink of him. They see Gideon leading the children of Israel against the Midianites; they see them break the pitchers in which their lights were concealed; they hear the loud blast of the trumpets, and the shout of the Israelites, and behold their enemies fleeing in fear before them. All this becomes as living as if they had been present at that far distant time. And all the while the angel teacher is telling them what it means - what the Lord wants them to learn by it - and their hearts are stirred with love to Him, and they long to go forth and do valiant deeds in His service for the salvation of people. But this they cannot do until they have learned wisdom and have grown up to be angels.

So you see what a wonderful life little children live in the other world. We shall learn more about this in another chapter, so that you may see how they also have their temptations and trials, even as we do here.

Perhaps you wonder why all the delights of heaven are not given to little children on earth. Perhaps you think it strange that the Lord should select certain little children and bless them with this glorious life of the other world, while He has left you to pursue the longer and harder way on earth. But this also is of the Lord's mercy; for you can perform a use for the Lord when you go to the other world for which only your life on earth can prepare you. By taking the longer way you are preparing yourselves to know a greater and more wonderful happiness in heaven than you could be given if you were not so prepared. And the Lord says in the Writings that those who stay here - if they are faithful to the things of the Lord's Word; if they learn to love the Lord, and to fulfill the work that He gives them to do here from day to day - will be given a great reward of everlasting happiness and use - as great as that which the little children who grow up in heaven can know.

And furthermore, as the New Church grows, He will be able to give more of that heavenly happiness even to little children here on earth. You yourselves are able to know and to love the things of heaven which give great delight to the angel children in a way that other little children are not. And you must grow up determined to make good use of that which you have received - determined to bring more of that heavenly happiness to your children than you have known; and to spread the benefits of it to more and more children throughout the world. This is the thing that ought to inspire you and rouse your love to the Lord and your love for His Church, for by means of His Church He is going to restore to the human race - and even to little children - a fair measure of that heavenly happiness which has been lost through all the ages of evil and darkness into which the wickedness of the human race has plunged the world.

Lesson: Mark 10: 13-16.

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