Seventh Sunday of Easter

Year B

Seventh Sunday of Easter

Images

Goodbye gifts

Praying for others

Points to note

This week follows on from the Ascension.  This Sunday’s session should then take this as the context.   Although the priestly prayer of Jesus in this reading takes place before crucifixion, he nevertheless is praying for the time that he will be going away.  It was his parting prayer for his friends whom he will have to leave behind when the Passion commences.

It is easy to refer the children to the goodbyes they have gone through and concentrate on how they express these goodbyes.

 

Gospel

Explain to the children that Ascension Thursday was celebrated last Thursday.  Ascension Thursday is forty days after Easter.  After Ascension, there are ten more days to Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit sent by God descended on the Apostles.  There were ten days therefore when the disciples were without Jesus and without the Holy Spirit.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

i will not leave you orphans, says the a Lord;

I will come back to you and your hearts will be full of joy.

Alleluia!

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

(Jn 17: 11-19)

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said:

“Holy Father,

keep those you have given me true to your name,

so that they may be one like us.

While I was with them, I kept those you have given me true to your name.

I have kept watch over them and not one was lost,

except the one who chose to be lost,

and this was to fulfill the scriptures.

But now I am coming to you and while I am still in this world

I say these things to share my joy with them to the full.

I passed your word on to them, and the world hated them,

because they belong to the world no more than I belong to the world.

I am not asking you to remove them from the world,

but to protect them from the evil one.

They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world.

Consecrate them in the truth; your word is truth.

As you sent me into the world, and for their sake I consecrate myself

So that they too may be consecrated in truth.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord

Discussion

Have you ever had a relative or friend who came from abroad to stay with your family for a while?  Let the children talk about who and what they did while they were here.

Can you tell us what did you do when they went away?  Say goodbye.  Begin to draw them out into the various ways people have a farewell:  perhaps, a dinner, a trip to somewhere fun, a shopping trip to buy something somebody wanted, etc.

Explain that in the reading, Jesus was going away.  Explain the Ascension and that the Apostles, who will be left bereft again the second time.  (Sometimes, when someone we like goes away unexpectedly, we get even more upset when they come back and go away again the second time.).  Discuss how the Apostles felt.

Explain that he was planning to send the Holy Spirit to be a comforter to Apostles.  He told them that the Holy Spirit will give them strength and courage to carry out his command for them to go and make disciples of all nations.  Discuss how they felt.

Maybe the Apostles were a little disappointed.  Jesus’ command to go out and baptise everyone was a bit of a difficult task and all they got was the promise of the Holy Spirit, which they probably didn’t know what it was (remember, this was before they received and knew the Holy Spirit on Pentecost day ten days after the Ascension).  But wasn’t the Holy Spirit such a great gift that it fulfilled all of Jesus’ promises and more.

Sometimes, when we get a gift that we did not understand, we put it aside.  Much later, we discover what the gift can do and we become a lot more appreciative, praising the wisdom of the person who gave us such a gift.  Sometimes, life is like that and we learn to treasure every gift we get, whether we think at that time it was useful or not.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Year B

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Theme

Love

Points to note

As mentioned in the leaflet for Easter 3, this is the destination of the four-week journey that John is leading us.  You may wish to read that leaflet to set this Sunday in context.

Some time ago, the Church changed the name of the Thursday in Holy Week from Maundy Thursday to Holy Thursday.  I always feel that we lost a little something in this change.  As a result, many Catholics today incorrectly assume Thursday of Holy Week as the celebration of the Last Supper.  That is actually celebrated on Corpus Christi.  In truth, the word Maundy comes from a Latin word, mandatum, which means command.  Maundy Thursday is, therefore, the Night of the Great Commandment.  Liturgically, the commandment here refers to the commandment to wash each other’s feet.  Hence, the reading for Holy Thursday.

But, there is another commandment, the one mentioned in this Sunday’s reading.  The one, according to John, Jesus gave to his disciples on the Thursday before he died.  In the other Gospel accounts, Jesus was asked to choose the greatest among the existing Jewish commandments.  To John, however, Jesus was not referring to existing Jewish commandments.  This is my commandment:  this is the one and only time that Jesus gave us his commandment:  Love one another as I have loved you.  There is a lot in this reading and you may want to reflect on it before you share with the children.

When discussing the concept of love, it is easy to lose focus and end up with very broad ideas instead.  It is critical to anchor the discussions on very concrete examples of action and the daily life events that children understand.  If possible, end up with commitments from the children on how they should make real in their lives what they have heard in the readings.

Liturgy

Explain to the children that John was probably the youngest of the Twelve Apostles; the only one not to be martyred and that he lived to a ripe old age.  In the Gospel he wrote, he always referred to himself as the beloved disciple.  So, this must really very much be someone who have felt the loving power of Jesus and knows he is loved by God.  The story goes that when he was teaching his own disciples at the end of his life, he was asked by one of them why he always talked to them about love and nothing else.  John stared out into the distance for a while and replied, “Because there is nothing else … but love … love … and love.”

Explain that this teaching took place at the Last Supper on the night before Jesus was crucified.  Explain that Jesus wanted to leave a gift to his disciples before he leaves them the next day.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Jesus said: “If anyone loves me he will keep my word,

and my Father will live him, and we shall come to him”

Alleluia!

Gospel

The Lord be with you.

All:   And with your spirit.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

All:   Glory to you O Lord

 (Jn 15: 9-17)

Jesus said to his disciples:

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you.

Remain in my love.

If you keep my commandments you will remain in my love,

just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.

I have told you this so that my own joy may be in you

and your joy may be complete.

This is my commandment:

love one another, as I have loved you.

A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends.

You are my friends, if you do what I command you.

I shall not call you servants anymore,

because a servant does not know his master’s business;

I call you friends,

because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father.

You did not choose me, no, I chose you;

and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last.

And then the Father will give you anything you ask in my name.

What I command you is to love one another.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Discussion

Has anyone ever made a birthday card or a Mother’s Day/Father’s Day card for Mom or Dad?  Did they like it?  Did they like it more than one that was bought in the shops?  Why?  Because the one you made was made with love, and love is the greatest gift of all!!

What other gifts of love have you given, received or heard of?  Allow examples from as many children as possible.  Gently identify in each example, there is a sacrifice.  Someone had to sacrifice some time & effort to make a card for Mom/Dad.

Discuss the greatest gift from Jesus and the sacrifice he made.  Discuss why he did so.

Remember we discussed in the past few weeks about obeying and following Jesus?  How had people in the past followed Jesus’ example of loving and sacrificing?  Martyrs of the past gave up their lives to tell others about Jesus, to stand up for what they believed in or, simply, to help someone else.  

Of course, we need not all die to show our love for others.  Priests and nuns give up their lives to join the ministries of the Church.  Lots of people give up days, months or years of their lives to help the needy in other countries (eg., with people suffering from Ebola), in hospitals, orphanages or the like.  Even giving up a few minutes to listen to a friend in trouble may sometimes be sacrifice enough.  And provided it is done in love, God will accept it as a gift to be cherished.

End with each child, if possible, giving an example of how he or she may sacrifice in obedience to Jesus’ commandment.

Second Sunday of Easter

Year A

Second Sunday of Easter

Theme

The Easter Story

Points to note

This Sunday’s story continues on from that of Palm Sunday.  As such, it is recommended that you refer to the leaflet for Palm Sunday.  Where the Passion story ends with Jesus being placed in the tomb, the Easter story picks up from early morning two days later.  What happens in the intervening period remains in the realms of the mysteries of faith.

The setting of the story changes.  The Passion story was one of a long continuous heavy drama.  The Easter story is one many short episodes pieced together.  The Passion story was threaded into one flowing narrative.  The Easter story seems more chaotic, with few connections between the episodes.  Perhaps, the Passion story is more reflective of God’s organised plan, while the Easter story is our story, of the disorganised mortals who were our ancestors in faith.

The mood of the story also changes.  The Passion story propels itself forward with by the force of its gripping drama.  If told well, the children should be tensed but riveted at the end of it.  The Easter story moves quicksilver-like from one episode to another.  On the one hand, the shortness of the episodes is more in line with the children’s attention span.  With one story after the other, the constant shifting in the story line may prove detrimental.  The storyteller must be prepared to lengthen the more exciting episodes or drop the less exciting ones.

The end to the story is also crucial.  The Passion story ended on a sombre note, perhaps even a defeatist note.  Even for those of us who know of the resurrection round the corner, we can’t but help feel downcast when we hear of Jesus entombed.  The Easter story, however, must end very positively.  The first bishops of our Church stand poised on the tidal wave of evangelising fervour that will one day engulf much of the world.  The end of the Easter story must paint a picture of the apostles bravely facing the unknown future, a hostile world, but also a great adventure about to begin.

Liturgy

As with Palm Sunday, the liturgy should be kept simple.

Story

As with Palm Sunday, I will not set the exact wording of the story but will outline the various episodes and indicate the parts that must be told in regular print.  Optional parts are in italics. 

The Easter story is basically contained in the last chapter in each Gospel (the last two in Jn).  You should read them for yourself if you are not too familiar.  Note however that the sequence of stories in each of the Gospels is a little different and you may have to work out the sequence into a unified story.  I have also included a few apocryphal stories about the apostles I have found interesting.  The only problem is when children ask where you got the apocryphal stories.  Well, you find your own answers to that one.

Easter morning: the empty tomb

Early Sunday morning when it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb.  This is not Mary the mother of Jesus. She found the stone at the door to the tomb rolled away, and looking inside, she saw that it was empty.  She ran off to tell the apostles.

Peter and John went to the tomb.  John ran ahead of Peter and got there first but he let Peter enter before him.  They saw the tomb empty and remembered that Jesus had told them that he would rise again.

Mary Magdalene and Jesus

Mary stood outside, weeping.  When she looked in, she saw two angels who asked why she was crying.  She replied that someone had taken her Lord away and she doesn’t know where they have put him.

When she went outside, she met Jesus but did not recognise him.  Thinking that he was the gardener, she asked where he had put Jesus.  Jesus called her by her name and she recognised Jesus.  Quote Jesus:  My sheep know me.  Jesus will always call us by our name, as God did with Abraham, Samuel and the others.  But Jesus told her not to cling to him but to tell the others the good news.  Discuss that if anyone had good news, wouldn’t they want to tell the other people?

Mary ran off to tell the apostles the good news, but nobody believed her!!  Well, would you?  If someone were to tell you that the chap who died last week was seen around, would you believe him?

Easter afternoon: the road to Emmaus

Two disciples went off on a journey to a nearby town, Emmaus.  Jesus came up to them but they didn’t recognise him.  Link this with Mary in the earlier story.  Jesus asked what they were discussing and they told him about the crucifixion and the reports that he had been seen but they were unsure about the reports.  Jesus explained to them the passages in the Bible about himself.  When they arrived at Emmaus, the two disciples invited Jesus to stay with them for supper.  When he broke the bread, they recognised him.  Link this with the words during the institutional narrative at mass, “Do this in memory of me”.  But he disappeared from their sight.

Easter evening: Jesus and Thomas

That evening, the apostles were all gathered in a locked room because they were afraid. Jesus walked through the door and had supper with them.  His first words to them were “Peace be with you”, the same words we use at mass.

Thomas was not there that evening.  When they told him about it, he refused to believe “Unless I put my finger into the holes in his hands and my hand into the hole in his side, I refuse to believe”.  The next Sunday, they were gathered likewise and Jesus walked through the door again.  Thomas fell at the feet of Jesus and proclaimed him “My Lord and my God”.  He was the first person to have called Jesus God.

Stories of the Apostles

Jesus stayed with the apostles for forty days before ascending to heaven.  Ten days later, he sent the Holy Spirit on them on Pentecost day.  Greatly strengthened, the apostles went out to the world and told them about Jesus. 

The following stories are not biblical:

The apostles drew lots to see where they would go.  Peter went to Rome and became the first bishop of Rome.  Once, when he was running away to escape from soldiers, he saw Jesus walking the other direction.  When he asked Jesus where he was going, Jesus replied that he was going to Rome to be crucified again.  Peter was so ashamed of himself that he ran ahead of Jesus and was arrested.  He told the soldiers that he should be crucified upside-down as he was not worthy to be crucified like Jesus.

Thomas was chosen to go to India.  He didn’t want to because it was so far away.  Jesus visited him in a dream, but still he told Jesus, “Anywhere Lord but India”.  The next morning, Jesus was at the harbour and asked the captain of a ship if he needed a slave, pointing out to him Thomas.  The captain called Thomas over and asked him if Jesus was his master.  When Thomas said yes, the captain said he had bought him and Thomas was going to India.  Thomas went and made many Christians there.

Of all the apostles, only John lived to an old age but in exile in the island of Patmos.  Andrew was crucified on an X-shaped cross in Greece. James was martyred in Spain and Matthew in Ethiopia.  Philip was crucified in Turkey.  Bartholomew was whipped to death in Armenia.  Simon and Jude were killed for the faith in Persia.

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Year B

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Images

Bearing fruit

Attachment to God

Mystical Body of Christ

Points to note

As mentioned in the leaflet for Easter 3, this is part of a four-week journey that John is leading us.  You may wish to read that leaflet to set this Sunday in context.

This passage is largely based on images.  We will have to be careful of the image we wish to put across.  It contains a powerful image of a vine to be pruned and burnt in the fire.  An overemphasis on disposal of the discarded vine in the fire may convey too negative an image.

There is an image there of a vine bearing fruit.  I suggest that we begin with this image, which is both easily understood and is positive.  Each one of us produces fruits and we must remember that this is due to God.  If we are no longer attached to God, we lose our fruit-bearing abilities.

Liturgy

Explain about the vine.  Get the children to describe how a vine looks like.

The vine is a common crop in Palestine where it grows luxuriantly.  In the first three years, however, a young vine is not allowed to bear fruit as this is seen as sapping the vine of nutrients in order to bear immature grapes instead.  It is therefore very drastically pruned.  Even when the vine is matured, branches that do not bear fruit are pruned for very much the same reasons.  This is often done twice a year.  A good vine therefore does not produce good grapes without drastic pruning.

The wood of the vine is too soft to be any good and is often collected to be burned in a bonfire.  It does not even qualify under the Law to be brought to the Temple as wood offering to be burnt at the altar fires.  So, burning it is purely to get rid of it.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Make your home in me as I make mine in you.

Whoever remains in me bears fruit in plenty.

Alleluia!

Gospel

The Lord be with you.

All:   And with your spirit.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

All:   Glory to you O Lord

 (Jn 15: 1-8)

Jesus said to his disciples:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.

Every branch that bears no fruit he cuts away,

And every branch that does bear fruit he prunes to make it bear even more.

You are pruned already, because of the word I have spoken to you.

Make your home in me, as I make mine in you.

As a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself, but must remain part of the vine,

neither can you unless you remain in me.

I am the true vine, you are the branches.

Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty;

for cut off from me you can do nothing.

Anyone who does not remain in me

is like a branch that has been thrown away – he withers;

these branches are collected and thrown on the fire, and they are burnt.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you,

you may ask what you will and you shall get it.

It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much fruit,

and then you will be my disciples.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord

Discussion

Do any of you have fruits?  Discuss the gifts that each child has.  It will be good to get them to share one.  We are not talking necessarily about talents here.  A loving disposition is also a gift.

Discuss how we each get these gifts.  Link them back to God as the source of gifts.

What do we do with the gifts that God gives us?  It is like the vine:  the fruit of the vine branch is put to good use.  Otherwise, the branch is taken away and burnt.

Notice that the branch will continue to bear fruit as long as it is attached to the vine.  Why?  What does the branch get from the vine to bear the fruit?  Nutrients such as water, minerals from the ground, fertiliser, etc.  Discuss what we need from God for our gifts to grow.  Emphasise the fact that the link with God is all-important.  Just as a hand cannot do the work of a hand if it is detached from the body, a vine cannot produce grapes if it is detached from the branches.  And we cannot be true witness to God's love if we are not attached to God.

Draw the parallel between the vine and the body.  With Jesus as the vine and we as the branches, this is very similar to our concept of the Body of Christ, with each of us as the body and Jesus as the head.  If the body is not together, nothing can be done.  Lead eventually to the term the Mystical Body of Christ.  Draw the parallels.

Palm Sunday

Year B

Palm Sunday

Theme

Jesus’ story

Points to note

Our faith is a faith of stories.  Before books were written, the faith was handed down in the form of stories by word of mouth from one generation to the next.  This was what was known as the oral tradition.  Biblical archaeologists tell us that the stories of Moses were written some six centuries after his death.  This was the written tradition, from which our Bible today came to be.  But until the stories were written down, they told and retold from parent to child, from teacher to pupil.  Story telling is also very much a part of our Asian heritage.  This is one thing we have in common with the Jews.

The oral tradition continues on today despite the growing dominance of the written word.  It is alive at each Jewish Passover meal, where it is required tradition for the youngest child in the family to ask why the meal is celebrated, the cue for the story of the first Passover to be told, complete with the ten plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea. 

It also continues on today in the Easter Vigil, where the seven readings that encapsulate the salvation history of our people, are told over the Easter fire.  In many ways, it reminds me of the story telling that takes place over a camp-site fire.  The Liturgy of the Word at the Easter Vigil is therefore the story telling session of the liturgical year.

But mostly, it finds greatest expression when a parent tells a child the Gospel story.  The faith is handed down another generation, and the tradition that has been handed down like a chain for 150 generations before us, has then found another link in the chain.

Liturgy

Twice a year, at Palm Sunday and at Good Friday, the Passion story is told.  As it is a long account, this is one gospel reading where the option of sitting for the Gospel is available.

The children’s liturgy for this Sunday is rather bare, as bare as the altar would be after the Holy Thursday Eucharist.  It has been stripped of all liturgical ornaments to make room for the Passion story.  It is hoped that if the story stands alone and is told well, for one Sunday in the year, it will take centre stage in the liturgy.

Gospel Acclamation

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory:

Christ was humbler yet, even to accepting death on a cross.

But God raised him high

And gave him the name which is above all names.

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory:

Gospel

I have not attempted to set the wording of the story to be told, but have left it up to you to tell it in your own way.  I have outlined the various aspects of the story and indicated the parts that must be told in regular print.  Optional parts are in italics.  You are encouraged to read the passion story yourself in Mk 14:1-15:47.

It can be a long story.  I have on occasions taken forty-five minutes to tell it.  To settle the children down, there may need to be some dialogue or interaction in the beginning.  Once they settle down, however, the drama of the story seems to propel itself forward.  There is something in the story that will keep children riveted.

As a story telling tool, the voice is crucial.  Try and use as wide a range as possible as you may need to play many characters.  Eye contact with the children at all times is also essential.  This means you must be able to tell the story from memory.  Perhaps a little rehearsal may be necessary.  For dramatic impact, use pauses at the dramatic points of the story.

Entry into Jerusalem

Jesus though King did not enter Jerusalem in glory but on a donkey.  Emphasise the difference in the concept of Christian leadership.  The people welcomed him with palms, which were normally used to welcome royalty in those days.

Last Supper

To keep the story moving, it is best not to touch on the doctrinal aspects of the Eucharist, which is best left to a session specifically devoted to it.  When Jesus predicted that one of them at the table would betray him, Peter declared he would stay with Jesus even if the others were to leave him.  Mention Judas leaving early to betray Jesus.

The Garden of Gethsemane and the Arrest

Emphasise the loneliness of Jesus when his disciples fell asleep praying.  Judas arrived and kissed Jesus on the cheek.  Contrast the arms of the soldiers with the non-violence of the disciples.  Jesus healed the ear of the servant that was cut off by one of the disciples.  Stress that the disciples including Peter ran away, leaving Jesus alone.

The Trial

Explain what a trial is and note that while most trials take place in the daytime, this one took place at night.  The Jews used lying witnesses to try and pass the death sentence on him but failed.  They finally convicted him on his claim to be God’s Son, which ironically was the truth.  Peter betrayed Jesus three times in the courtyard before the cock crowed.

Jesus before Pilate

The Jews do not have the authority to put anyone to death, so they sent Jesus to one who could:  the governor, Pontius Pilate.  Pilate questioned Jesus and found that he was not guilty.  He tried to release Jesus by offering to release a prisoner at the Passover.  The crowd chose Barabbas instead at the instigation of the priests and demanded that Jesus be crucified.  Note that this was the same crowd who welcomed Jesus with palms the week before.   Pilate’s wife had a bad dream all day about Jesus and urged him to have nothing to do 

with Jesus.  Pilate sent Jesus to Herod (not the same Herod who was around at the time of Jesus’ birth), the king in Galilee because Jesus was a Galilean.  Herod had hoped to see a miracle of Jesus but Jesus kept silence.  So Herod sent Jesus back.  Pilate tried to get the crowd to agree to release Jesus but failed.  So he took some water and washed his hands of the affair.

The Way to the Cross

Pilate ordered Jesus to be whipped forty times.  The soldiers made fun of him.  Then they made him carry his cross.  This is actually the cross beam and not the whole cross.  When Jesus arrived at the place of crucifixion, which is the upright pole in the ground, they will hoist him up and the cross beam as well.  He fell three times and they made a man, Simon of Cyrene, help him carry the cross.

The Crucifixion

They arrived at the place of crucifixion called Golgotha that means the place of the skull.  When they finished crucifying him, they cast lots for his clothing.  Above him was a sign that said ‘This is the King of the Jews’. The people standing by jeered at Jesus and asked him to save himself.  They crucified him between two thieves.  When one of them made fun of him, the other rebuked the first and asked for Jesus’ pardon.

Jesus died

Before he died, Jesus prayed to the Father that he forgive those who crucified him.  Finally Jesus dies and when he did, there was darkness in the sky and the earth quaked.  A friend of Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea took the body down and placed it in the tomb.  They did not bury him yet because everyone wanted to hurry home for the Passover.  The tomb was a cave with a boulder rolled over its front as a door.  They set soldiers to guard it.

Closing prayer

During Holy Week, the last week of Lent, there is no closing prayer as all masses during the week are considered part of one mass.