Who are the children
that arrive at our
schools every day?
In my already long
experience of
educational work with
children - during 38
years of professional
activity - I cannot help
noticing and admitting
that today's children
are nothing like the
children at the
beginning of my career.
My comment is usual and
constantly repeated by
my professional
colleagues and certainly
also common to other
educators from other
geographical areas and
even different
countries.
Undeniably, time does
not stop and we could
not expect that the
advances would not take
place and not reach our
children, thus
differentiating them
from the generations
that preceded them.
However, it is with some
surprise that we still
see how quickly
evolution has been
taking place, in recent
times. It seems it does
not give us time to
adapt to the constant
changes that parade
before our astonished
eyes. Everything passes
in acceleration mode
and, with regard to
human intelligence,
customs, ideas, and
changing values, this is
no less true than in the
field of technologies,
science and intellectual
knowledge.
We can easily see this.
It demands from us, the
older generation, an
enormous effort and
capacity to adapt and
update ourselves. We can
clearly see that this
was not necessary in the
time of our
grandparents, not even
our parents. If we do
not follow this
orientation, we will not
only feel but we will
also be regarded out of
step with the objectives
of our young people and
children. Moreover, we
will no longer be able
to fulfill our role as
parents, teachers,
educators, guidance
counselors in the path
of life. and of
fulfilling well the
great duty of leading
the current generation
of reincarnated spirits
on Earth to God. Spirits
that were entrusted to
us and for which we will
have to give account to
the Superior Powers.
However, what kind of
spirits are these
anyway?
For who got here a few
years ago, are there,
indeed, so many
differences between them
and us? Would their
goals and ours, be so
different when we
decided, or were
advised, to reincarnate?
If we consider them from
a more general point of
view, that is, the
reason for
reincarnation, certainly
not. We all reincarnate
for the same reasons. We
want to evolve, learn in
contact with matter,
renew feelings, acquire
values, redeem mistakes,
compensate injustices,
eliminate defects and
acquire new virtues. We
have paths of atonement
and trials to go,
progress to acquire,
from a moral, spiritual,
intellectual point of
view. They are common
objectives, although
differentiated, which
have to do with the
options and needs of
each one of us.
Nevertheless, if we look
at these differences
between today and
yesterday's children
from a more specific
point of view, which
involves individual
capacities and
evolutionary goals, we
are led to admit that
these differences are
more significant. It
becomes evident that the
children who arrive at
schools today, and who
are the same ones who
arrive at the family
environment through
reincarnations, present
themselves with higher
intelligence. To all
this we add a more
accurate power of
observation and
discernment, and a
greater capacity for
argumentation. It is as
if they knew from an
early age what they
want. As well as where
they should lead their
will and thought strong
convictions, a strong
and more directed
personality, a greater
ability to willingness
towards adults, and many
other aspects that
differentiate them from
the children we were.
Moreover, the values
they reveal seem to us
to be somewhat different
from those we are used
to finding in children
of the same age. There
is an increasing
sensitivity to
humanitarian and
environmental issues,
showing interests and
concerns that were
removed from ours when
we were the same age. It
is true that, in our
schools, there has been
an increasing concern to
develop in students
values of citizenship
and co-responsibility in
relation to the fate of
our planet and its
inhabitants. However, is
the sensitivity shown by
our children just a
positive consequence of
our educational efforts?
Would we not have
already used those same
strategies, without such
obvious results? I do
believe so.
Why now? Why these
children? The world
comments and seeks
explanations. We hear
about “indigo children”,
“crystal children”, and
others, each group with
its characteristics and
specifications. We will
not define each of these
categories because such
an analysis does not fit
in this work. However,
let us try to reflect a
little, based on the
knowledge that the
Spiritist Doctrine
provides us. Spirits say
that our world is
already going through a
transition phase and
that the time is getting
closer and closer to
ascending to the
category that follows
that of Atonement and
Evidence, and that will
allow us to experience
the possibility of being
a world of Regeneration.
This is a difficult and
time-consuming
transition phase, as it
requires a great deal of
preparation and a change
in attitudes and values.
It also requires a
gradual alteration of
the spiritual climate on
the planet, including
the less material
ranges, inhabited by
disembodied beings, but
still connected to
Earth. It is easy to
understand that this is
not a job to be done
overnight. We are not
alone in this ascension
purpose. We have the
fraternal support of
many friends from the
higher planes, who watch
over us and lovingly
fulfill the task of
advising us. They sense
the good, help us to
rise on the evolutionary
scale, in order to
deserve to live better
and happier times.
Spiritual friends also
tell us that entities of
all kinds are
reincarnating on Earth,
with the intention of
helping us to progress.
Each one of them brings
a specific task. If some
dedicate themselves to
science, technology,
material progress,
knowledge and
intelligence, others
help us in moral
progress, to acquire new
values, to change
attitudes, to let go of
harmful traditions and
customs. Others work in
the field of arts,
religions, civil rights,
laws and justice. We
could point out much
more here because
spiritual progress is
made from a little bit
of everything and the
field of work to be
carried out is very
vast.
In this immense harvest
of Jesus, which is our
terrestrial world, there
will be many Spirits
reincarnating today. All
of them with the most
varied tasks. If we
think about it, it is
not so surprising that
different children, with
different abilities and
intelligences, appear
before us in these
current times.
Can we conclude - from
all this observation -
that only Superior
Beings are currently
reincarnating? Are they
the Escol Spirits, those
who, in the form of
children, are entering
our family, our schools
and society? We will
continue to reflect on
this issue in future
articles, which will
continue this one,
because, always based on
the study of Spiritism,
there are several issues
that should concern us
when approaching a topic
that seems to us to be
of great importance in
understanding today. We
will also try to
address, in more depth,
the importance of
Spiritist education in
guiding these children.
Maria de Lurdes Duarte
is a teacher in the city
of Arouca, Portugal
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