Existential Concepts

• Existential concepts are often confusing for children. These are profound questions about the meaning of life, the existence of God, suffering, and death. Children sometimes wonder about how people know God exists, how they know what happens after death, and what will happen to their friends of different religions when they die. Existential questions such as these question the base of religious devotion and the purpose of life. These dilemmas are addressed by church beliefs and texts, but small children often have difficulty understanding these larger concepts.
  
  

Abstract Concepts

• Abstract concepts such as faith, heaven and angels can confuse children because they are not tangible. For example, a child cannot physically hold faith, because faith has no physical form. It is difficult children to fully understand how something can exist without a physical presence. Children often wonder where heaven is--and if it is in the sky, whether airplanes or rockets can reach heaven. Children are typically more literal thinkers, so when they are told that hell is below, they might wonder whether a hole dug deep would reach hell. These abstract concepts are more detail-oriented about specific Church beliefs and doctrines than the larger existential issues.
  
  

Physical Behavior

• Children are often confused about how to conduct themselves in church. They can find the format of the service or the prostration movements to be challenging. Sometimes they are confused about the process of the religious service, when to sing, when to stand, what to do while praying. Many specific church formats can confuse a child, so it can help to familiarize children with what will be physically expected from them before introducing them to church.
  
  

Liturgy

• The liturgy or the words of the service can also be a point of confusion for children in church. The priest's sermon might not be in the vernacular or cadence that a child is used to in secular life. The citation and reading of biblical passages can confuse children who have just begun reading, since some versions of the Bible are not written in contemporary English.