The Prayer Thread is a collection of teachings and practical prompts to help as we learn to pray in community. This text was originally delivered on April 24, 2024 as a short teaching at our online weekly prayer sit.
When I teach courses on discernment, and especially when we address the work of “good spirits” and “bad spirits,” as they are understood in the Ignatian tradition, the question always arises about whether beings in the invisible realm are “real.” Angels, demons, ghosts, ancestors—they form a large melting pot of mystery for those of us on the fleshly side of the veil.
I suspect that the questions, and subsequent doubts and confusion, come from a place similar to when we ask whether our prayers are real, or if they make any kind of actual impact on reality. I also observe that rationally-minded groups tend to dismiss beings in the invisible realm by relegating them to the narrow confines of psyche. As well, emotionally-sensed groups tend to exaggerate the influence of beings in the invisible realm by allowing fear and loss of personal autonomy to run amuck in shrouds of curses and hauntings.
Most simply, I would suggest that yes, the forces at work in the invisible realm are really real, much in the way that the Force of Love and the Source of Life, in which we align our fervent prayers, are also really real and constantly working on our behalf. My own sense is that the more we normalize the really real of the invisible realm, including the influence of angels, demons, saints, and ancestors, the more we will also deepen belief in the real impact and force of our prayer.
The influences and forces at work in the invisible realm are at once subtle enough that we do not perceive them with our usual awareness, and also forceful enough to make a real difference in the visible realm. May our practice of prayer increase our awareness of all things, held within the Oneness of spirit, and also strengthen the force of our connection with all beings, also held within the tender Love of Spirit.
