Can we be visited by friendly spirits?

[Joseph_Aubrey]

What is the Church’s view on deceased family’s “spirits” coming back to visit the living? Does the Church recognize this as possible? I would assume that my deceased relatives would not have the ability to visit me, because I feel like they would not want to scare their loved ones.

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

It is possible that God could allow a deceased loved one to “visit.” If I recall correctly, I believe that both C. S. Lewis and Sheldon Vanauken, an Anglican writer and a Catholic writer, both reported having been favored with such postmortem visits by their beloved wives. If such a favor was granted by God, we must presume that care would be taken not to cause fright. After all, angelic visits in the Bible usually open with a variation on “Be not afraid!” All that the Church says on the subject is that a Christian must not seek to initiate such contact with the deceased through occult means.