Fifth Sunday in Lent

Year B

Concepts

New life

No wheat unless the grain dies

Points to note

We have returned to using the Gospel reading.  This reading though does not contain the full reading in the Missal (vs 20-30) as I have left out those verses that have nothing to do with this week’s theme.  The imagery this Sunday is that of a grain of wheat that ‘dies’ but re-emerges as wheat.  You may wish to refer to the leaflet for the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year A for further reference.

Much of the symbolism of Lent is lost on those who live in the tropics.  Spring, the meaning of the word ‘Lent’, is the season when seemingly dead trees that have shed its leaves in winter come back to life and flowers blossom.  Spring is also the time when many animals like sheep and rabbits have their young (it gives them a longer time to grow strong before the onset of a cold winter), which is the idea behind Easter Bunnies.  If this is explained to the children, care must be taken to ensure that the children do not get confused or lose their orientation.

Liturgy

 

Gospel Acclamation

The Alleluia is not sung during the season of Lent. 

Glory to you O Christ, you are the Word of God!

If a man serves me, says the Lord, he must follow me;

wherever I am, my servant will be there too.

Glory to you O Christ, you are the Word of God!

Gospel

The Lord be with you.

All:   And also with you.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

All:   Glory to you O Lord

 (Jn 12: 20-30)

Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some pilgrims.  They approached Philip, who came from Bethsaida in Galilee, and put this request to him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”  Philip went to tell Andrew, and Andrew and Philip together went to tell Jesus.  Jesus replied to them:

“Now the time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

I tell you, most solemnly,

unless a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies,

it remains only a single grain;

but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.

Anyone who loves his life loses it;

anyone who hates his life in this world

will keep it for eternal life.

If a man serves me, he must follow me,

wherever I am, my servant will be there too.

If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.

This is the Gospel of the Lord

Dialogue

When you look at an egg, does it look alive?  Helps if you have an egg handy.  What happens if the mother hen sits on it for three weeks?  Discuss how things that look dead can come to life.  Any other examples?

In this reading, Jesus talked about a grain of wheat.  What do farmers do with a wheat grain?  Plant it.  What do we get out of it?  Wheat to make flour for bread.  If the farmer never planted it though, what would it be?  It would remain a grain of wheat.  Explain that is how Jesus tried to explain why he had to die on the cross.  Unless he dies, like the grain of wheat, nothing good will ever come out of it.

Jesus once called himself the resurrection and the life.  What did he mean by that?  Discuss how Jesus said that those who believe in him will never die but will live forever.  Explain that Jesus has promised us eternal life in Paradise.  For children less easily satisfied, you may need to use images of misery for death and images of happiness for life.

Discuss the significance of new life in baptism.  During baptism by immersion, the person to be baptised is immersed under water and re-emerges as a new person with a new life, a Christian.  After being baptised at the Easter midnight mass, the newly baptised neophyte lights his candle from the Paschal candle. 

For symbolism of new life, you may wish to refer to previous weeks’ leaflets, especially those of the Lenten readings in year A.  Also we all get Easter eggs, eggs to symbolise new life; and Easter bunnies, rabbits having their young in spring.

You may wish to link this up with real life.  Like Jesus having to go through death on the cross to give us new life, we often have to go through something difficult or even nasty, in order to achieve something we want.   For instance: exams; working hard to prepare a party; any other ideas?

Year A

Fifth Sunday in Lent

Images

Life of men

Points to note

We have returned to using the Gospel reading.  The account of the raising of Lazarus has a vividness that can only be captured by an eye-witness.  The richness of detail and action will also appeal to children.  To be viable as a children story however, an adapted short form of the reading is used.

The imagery used for the last three Sundays centres around the baptism.  For this Sunday, the imagery is rather abstract, that of life.  It is, of course, the ultimate goal of baptism.  An appropriate object, if one has been used in the last two Sundays, would be a flower. 

Much of the symbolism of Lent is lost on anyone who lives in the tropics.  Spring, the meaning of the word ‘Lent’, is the season when seemingly dead trees that have shed its leaves in winter come back to life and flowers blossom.  Spring is also the time when many animals like sheep and rabbits have their young.  If this is explained to the children, care must be taken to ensure that the children do not get confused or lose their orientation.

Liturgy

Acclamation before the Gospel

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;

Who ever believes in me will never die.

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

Reading

Explain to the children that Lazarus was a close friend of Jesus and he had two sisters, Mary and Martha.  Do they remember any story about them?  Refer to Lk 10:38-42, if necessary.

The Lord be with you.

All:   And also with you.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

(Jn 11: 1-45)

Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus sent this message to Jesus, “Lord, the man you love is ill.”  On receiving the message, Jesus said, “The sickness will not end in death but in God’s glory.”  Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, but yet when he heard that Lazarus was ill he stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the disciples, “Let’s go.”

On arriving at Bethany, Jesus found that Lazarus had died and had been in the tomb for four days already.  When Martha heard that Jesus had come she went to meet him and said, “If you had been here, my brother would not had died, but now I know that, even now, whatever you ask God, he will grant you.”  Jesus said:

       “I am the resurrection and the life.

       Anyone who believes in me will live even if he dies,

       and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.

       So you believe this?”

“Yes Lord,” she said.  Mary then went to Jesus, and as soon as she saw him she threw herself at the feet of Jesus, saying, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not had died.”  At the sight of her tears, Jesus said with a sigh that came straight from the heart, “Where have you put him?”  They said, “Lord, come and see.”  Jesus wept; and the Jews present said, “See how much he loved him!”  But there were some who remarked, “He opened the eyes of the blind man, could he not have prevented this man’s death?”  Still sighing, Jesus reached the tomb; it was a cave with a stone to close the opening.  Jesus said, “Take the stone away.”  Martha said to him, “Lord, by now he will smell; this is the fourth day.“  Jesus said, “Have I not told you that  if you believe you will see the glory of God?”  So they took away the stone.  Then Jesus lifted up his eyes and prayed:

       “Father, I thank you for hearing my prayer.

       I knew indeed that you always hear me,

       but I speak for the sake of all these who stand round me,

       so that they may believe that it was you who sent me.”

When he had said this, he cried in a loud voice, “Lazarus, here! Come out!”  The dead man came out, his feet and hands bound with bands of stuff and a cloth round his face.  Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, let him go free.”

Many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what he did believed in him.

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Dialogue

When you look at an egg, does it look alive?  Helps if you have an egg handy.  Make sure it is hard boiled of course.  What happens if the mother hen sits on it for three weeks?  Discuss how things that look dead can come to life.  Any other examples?

In the reading, was Lazarus dead?  Stress that Lazarus was dead for four days by the time Jesus arrived.  He was bound up like a mummy and place in a tomb.  Explain that the tomb was not like the cemeteries that we have.  It was a cave with a huge boulder rolled over its opening as a door. 

Jesus seemed to have taken his time to arrive at the home of Lazarus.  This was to make sure that he had a dead body to bring back to life so that everybody could see God’s glory.  If he had arrived early and Lazarus was still alive, he would only need to heal him and that wouldn’t be that great a miracle.  The Jews believed that the soul of a dead person will hang around the dead body for three days before finally going to the place of the dead.

How did Jesus bring Lazarus back to life?  By calling him out of the tomb.  Note the miracle within the miracle --- dead people cannot hear but Lazarus did.

Jesus called himself the resurrection and the life.  What did he mean by that?  Discuss how Jesus said that those who believe in him will never die but will live forever.  Explain that Jesus has promised us eternal life in Paradise.  For children less easily satisfied, you may need to use images of misery for death and images of happiness for life.  If you have the time, you may wish to explain the other symbolisms in the reading as found in the adults leaflets but make sure they are not beyond the children’s capacity to understand.

Discuss the significance of new life in baptism.  Recapitulate the lessons of the last two Sundays.  During baptism by immersion, the person to be baptised is immersed under water and re-emerges as a new person with a new life, a Christian.  After being baptised at the Easter midnight mass, the newly baptised neophyte lights his candle from the Paschal candle.  You may wish to refer to previous weeks’ leaflets.  Also we all get Easter eggs, eggs to symbolise new life; and Easter bunnies, rabbits having their young in spring.

BAPTISMAL PROMISES

Do you reject sin, so as to live in the freedom of God’s children?

I do.

Do you reject the glamour of evil, and refuse to be mastered by sin?

I do.

Do you reject Satan, father of sin and prince of darkness?

I do.

Do you believe in God, the father almighty, creator of heaven and earth?

I do.

Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead and is now seated at the right hand of the Father?

I do.

Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?

I do.

Fifth Sunday in Lent

Year C

Fifth Sunday in Lent

Images

Forgiving others

Points to note

This reading will need to be treated carefully to avoid any misinterpretation as is often alleged.  For starters, some facilitators may not be comfortable mentioning an adulterous woman to children: substitute with a sinner instead.  Some early Church authorities actually deleted this passage from the scriptures, partly on the grounds that it may be misinterpreted that Jesus condones sinning.  It is appropriate, therefore, to emphasise the fact that in the end, Jesus asked the woman not to sin anymore.

The reading this Sunday rounds off the thread of reconciliation running through this Lent.  It basically notes that those who condemn should be without sin.  Consequently, on a more positive note, we cannot ask to be forgiven if we do not ourselves forgive.  As in previous Sundays, you may wish to re-emphasise the lessons of Sundays past at the beginning of the discussion.  Also, use examples in children everyday lives.

Liturgy

Acclamation before the Gospel

Praise and honour to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

Seek good and not evil so that you may live,

and that the Lord God of hosts may really  be with you.

Praise and honour to you, O Christ!

 

Gospel

The Lord be with you.

All:   And also with you.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

All:   Glory to you O Lord

(Jn 8:1-11)

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.  At daybreak he appeared in the Temple again; and as all the people came to him, he sat down and began to teach them.

The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman along who had been caught committing adultery; and making her stand there in full view of everybody, they said to Jesus, “Master, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery, and Moses has ordered us in the Law to condemn women like this to death by stoning.  What have you to say?” They asked him this as a test, looking for something to use against him.  But Jesus bent down and started writing on the ground with his finger.  As they persisted with their question, he looked up and said, “If there is one of you who have not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Then he bent down and wrote on the ground again.  When they heard this they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest, until Jesus was left alone with the woman, who remained standing there.  He looked up and said, “Woman, where are they?  Has no one condemned you?”  “No one, sir,” she said.  “Neither do I condemn you,” said Jesus, “go away and don’t sin any more.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord

All:    Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Discussion

Begin by running through the lessons of past Sundays.

Discuss what happened and what they do when people get upset with one another -- parents with children, etc.  They don’t speak to each other, they refuse to share, etc.  Discuss whether Mom will remain upset with them forever.  Discuss how the children could help Mom get over her anger.  Discuss ways of making up – a hug, a kiss, saying sorry, be a good child.  Basically, we have to prove to Mom that we really mean it when we say we are sorry.  Explain the meaning of reconciliation - it means bringing together two persons who are away from each other.

Discuss how and why we make up with God.  The rite of reconciliation and saying sorry prayers.  Explain briefly the rite of reconciliation.  Explain that we have to be sincere when we go for our confession or when we say our sorry prayers.  What are the examples of sorry prayers?

We also should be willing to forgive others.  Sometimes, we do not make up with others after we fight with them.  Instead, we accuse them of starting the fight or other things.  As they always say, when you point your finger at someone else, three fingers point back at you.  Perhaps, instead of pointing at them, we could open our hands to shake hands with them.  That way, five fingers point at them but none back at us.

Remember the Our Father.  Run through the prayer and identify where the sorry bits of the prayer are.  Note that we ask God to forgive us as much as we forgive others.  This basically means that if we do not forgive others, then we are asking God not to forgive us.

You may wish to run through the parable of the unforgiving servant (Mt 18:23-35).

Fifth Sunday in Lent

LSW children

Year B

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Concepts

New life

No wheat unless the grain dies

Points to note

We have returned to using the Gospel reading.  This reading though does not contain the full reading in the Missal (vs 20-30) as I have left out those verses that have nothing to do with this week’s theme.  The imagery this Sunday is that of a grain of wheat that ‘dies’ but re-emerges as wheat.  You may wish to refer to the leaflet for the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year A for further reference.

Much of the symbolism of Lent is lost on those who live in the tropics.  Spring, the meaning of the word ‘Lent’, is the season when seemingly dead trees that have shed its leaves in winter come back to life and flowers blossom.  Spring is also the time when many animals like sheep and rabbits have their young (it gives them a longer time to grow strong before the onset of a cold winter), which is the idea behind Easter Bunnies.  If this is explained to the children, care must be taken to ensure that the children do not get confused or lose their orientation.

Liturgy

Gospel Acclamation

The Alleluia is not sung during the season of Lent. 

Glory to you O Christ, you are the Word of God!

If a man serves me, says the Lord, he must follow me;

wherever I am, my servant will be there too.

Glory to you O Christ, you are the Word of God!

Gospel

The Lord be with you.

All:   And also with you.

A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John

All:   Glory to you O Lord

 (Jn 12: 20-30)

Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some pilgrims.  They approached Philip, who came from Bethsaida in Galilee, and put this request to him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”  Philip went to tell Andrew, and Andrew and Philip together went to tell Jesus.  Jesus replied to them:

“Now the time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

I tell you, most solemnly,

unless a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies,

it remains only a single grain;

but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.

Anyone who loves his life loses it;

anyone who hates his life in this world

will keep it for eternal life.

If a man serves me, he must follow me,

wherever I am, my servant will be there too.

If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.

This is the Gospel of the Lord

Dialogue

When you look at an egg, does it look alive?  Helps if you have an egg handy.  What happens if the mother hen sits on it for three weeks?  Discuss how things that look dead can come to life.  Any other examples?

In this reading, Jesus talked about a grain of wheat.  What do farmers do with a wheat grain?  Plant it.  What do we get out of it?  Wheat to make flour for bread.  If the farmer never planted it though, what would it be?  It would remain a grain of wheat.  Explain that is how Jesus tried to explain why he had to die on the cross.  Unless he dies, like the grain of wheat, nothing good will ever come out of it.

Jesus once called himself the resurrection and the life.  What did he mean by that?  Discuss how Jesus said that those who believe in him will never die but will live forever.  Explain that Jesus has promised us eternal life in Paradise.  For children less easily satisfied, you may need to use images of misery for death and images of happiness for life.

Discuss the significance of new life in baptism.  During baptism by immersion, the person to be baptised is immersed under water and re-emerges as a new person with a new life, a Christian.  After being baptised at the Easter midnight mass, the newly baptised neophyte lights his candle from the Paschal candle. 

For symbolism of new life, you may wish to refer to previous weeks’ leaflets, especially those of the Lenten readings in year A.  Also we all get Easter eggs, eggs to symbolise new life; and Easter bunnies, rabbits having their young in spring.

You may wish to link this up with real life.  Like Jesus having to go through death on the cross to give us new life, we often have to go through something difficult or even nasty, in order to achieve something we want.   For instance: exams; working hard to prepare a party; any other ideas?