How Can Children Understand the Resurrection of Christ?

How Can Children Understand the Resurrection of Christ?

Interview with Fr. Konstantinos Athanasopoulos

MIRACLES ARE NOT "STORIES TO CONVINCE", BUT TESTIMONIES OF LIFE

By Eleni Vasilopoulou

Homes are celebrating. The churches ring their bells joyfully. “Christ is risen,” we say to our children, and they reply, “Truly He is risen.” From a young age they have been taught what each day of Holy Week means, the Resurrection of Christ, and the day of Pascha, when homes are filled with beloved people.

Christianity and Culture move along the same line. Fundamental values are taught in the kindergarten, where today, on the greatest feast of Christianity, I believe you should speak to your children! If you do not know how, the words of Fr. Konstantinos Athanasopoulos will help us — words that, beyond being priestly, are above all human and understandable.

— Christ is risen! How do we explain to young children the Resurrection of Christ?

The joy of the Resurrection is so great that many times we find it difficult to convey it simply, especially to children. And yet, children have a heart that understands more deeply than we think, provided we speak to them with truth and simplicity.

To speak to a young child about the Resurrection of Christ, difficult concepts are not needed. We can begin with something familiar: that Christ loves all people and came to earth to save us. We can tell them that some people did not understand Him and crucified Him, but Christ did not remain in death. Because He is the Son of God, He conquered death and rose again.

The Resurrection is not simply an event, but a great victory, because it showed us that evil and death do not have the final word.

With small children, use images they can understand — like darkness leaving and light coming, or a flower that “dies” in winter and comes back to life in spring. In this way, the Resurrection becomes something living and familiar.

— When a child asks, “since He died, how did He come back to life?”, what do we answer so that they understand?

When a child asks, “since He died, how did He come back to life?”, they are not asking for theological analysis, but for an answer that fits within their experience. We can tell them that Christ is not just a simple man; He is also God. And God has power over life and death. Just as He created the world and gave life to everything, so He could also conquer death. This is not something that happens to all people, but something unique, because Christ came to open a way for all of us.

We can also add that through His Resurrection He promised us that we too are not lost forever, but have hope of life near God.

A child does not need to understand everything; it is enough that they feel that what happened is full of love and hope.

When we speak about miracles, care and discernment are needed. If someone has experienced a miracle, the important thing is not to impress others, but to convey the gratitude and faith that was born within them.

Miracles are not “stories to convince,” but testimonies of life.

We can speak simply, without exaggeration, without pressuring the other person to believe. To say what happened, how we experienced it, and above all what changed within us. Because the greatest miracle is not only the event itself, but the transformation of the heart: peace, hope, trust in God.

The other person may accept or not accept what they hear, but the truth has its own power and works in the way and time that God knows.

— Wars, corruption, crimes and violence. We even face violence and delinquency among minors. What are we doing wrong?

As for the reality we see around us — wars, violence, corruption, even delinquency at young ages — it is not a simple issue explained by one cause. However, we can say that at a deeper level it is a distancing from God and from the values that keep a person inwardly alive.

When love is lacking, when there is no formation of the heart, no example within the family and society, then a void is created. And this void is often filled with violence, anger, and selfishness.
Especially in children and young people, the lack of a meaningful presence — of parents, teachers, spiritual people — leaves their soul uncovered. They live in a world full of images, speed, and influences, but often without stable foundations. It is not only a matter of “what others do wrong,” but also of what is missing: time, listening, genuine interest, a living example of faith and ethos.

The answer cannot be only the denunciation of evil. There must be a return to the good: to the family that loves and supports, to the Church that embraces without rejecting, to education that does not only transmit knowledge but cultivates character. When a child feels truly loved, that their life has meaning, and that there is light, then it is difficult for them to turn toward darkness.
The Resurrection of Christ is not only an event we remember, but an answer to all these things: that light can conquer darkness, that life can conquer death, that love can change the world — beginning from the heart of each one of us.

Source: Peloponnisos, April 11–12, 2026. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.