Liturgical Seasons and Biblical Events
The Baptism of Jesus
(entry by Caroline Lindholm)
Here is an animation of all the readings for this Sunday:
Topics of discussion with your children:
– The first reading tells us of a voice that cries out in the wilderness, “prepare the way of the Lord”. We then come to the Gospel, where we meet John the Baptist. Discuss who John was and how he lived (children always ‘love’ hearing about the locusts and wild honey!). Help them to make the connection with the voice that cries out in the first reading with John in the Gospel.
– The Baptism of Jesus is also a good time to discuss the sacrament of Baptism. Talk to your children about their Baptism. When did it happen? Did they cry? Or were they quiet? Show them their baptismal candle and any pictures taken that day.
For this week, I have a couple of colouring pages:
And for discussion about your child’s baptism, I have a page describing the Four Symbols of Baptism
And a small craft! You can make a dove representing the Holy Spirit:
The Transfiguration
This weekend is the transfiguration. In this story of the Gospel, Jesus reveals to his disciples he is the Son of God. He becomes dazzling white and Moses and Elijah appear with him. God the Father speaks to James, John and Peter. You may want to ask your kids what it must have been like for Peter, James and John at that moment. I probably would have thought I was dreaming or hallucinating. No wonder Peter didn’t know what he was saying! Also discuss the significance of going up the mountain, putting Jesus closer to God in Heaven. Mountains are significant in the stories of Moses and Elijah as well: Moses receives the Ten Commandments on Mount Horeb and Elijah also goes to Horeb where he also meets God.
Today’s activity will require a few arts and craft items:
– construction paper (any colour)
– Transfiguration template
– markers, pencil crayons, etc.
– glue sticks
– scissors
Take a piece of construction paper and fold into three sections so that two flaps cover the front. The template has two pictures. Keep one intact, but cut out the other one so it looks like this:
Colour the cut out picture with Jesus in “regular” colours and paste half of it to the front of your construction paper so that a flap remains free.
Colour the second image making sure Jesus is white and paste it inside the folded section. The finished project should look something like this:
The picture has words in French around it. In case you are wondering what it says, here is the translation: “This is my Son, My Chosen; listen to him.”
The Raising of Lazarus
Just a little note on the readings: if your child has the Children’s Missal, you may have noticed that the readings happening in Mass are not the same. That is because we are reading from the scrutinies. We read the readings from the scrutinies when there are people at our parish in the RCIA program preparing to be Baptised (“The Elect”). There are three scrutinies during Lent. The readings for the Scrutinies all come from Cycle A. Why are they called “the scrutinies”? Who are we scrutinizing? Do the people already baptized scrutinize the elect? No, the point is for everyone present in the parish to scrutinize ourselves, using the readings during these weeks to focus on our own lives and what we can do to redirect ourselves back to God. If you would like further information on this, there are some good ideas on this page: https://catechistsjourney.loyolapress.com/2009/03/4040-lenten-activities-the-scrutinies/
This week is the third and final scrutiny, the resurrection of Lazarus. This is a preview of what is to come at Easter. In this Gospel, Jesus states “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, even though they die, will live”. The story of Lazarus rising from the dead reflects the Easter season to come, but for the elect represent Baptism and eternal life.
I have a fun printable craft for this week, showing Lazarus coming from the grave after Jesus asks him to come out. I took the activity from this website: https://craftingthewordofgod.com/tag/lazarus/
Instructions for the craft is at the top of this page. Here is the template:
Colour the pages and cut the slits carefully and you will be able to slide the strip through the page showing Lazarus getting larger and larger.
Trinity Sunday
(Entry by Lyse Rowledge)….
The Trinity (God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) is a great mystery, even for adults. A “mystery”, in this sense, is an idea meant to be explored and prayed about over and over again so God helps us to understand more. You’ll sometimes hear people say the Trinity is “like this” or “like that” (ex. a braid, the parts of an apple). But these comparisons don’t fully explain how the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all God, not just a part or form of God.
The Church teaches us that God is three unique persons, yet He is one God. He is God the FATHER, God the SON (JESUS), and God the HOLY SPIRIT. The 3 persons love each other more than we can imagine and they want to draw each of us into their great love.
One way to introduce kids to the idea of the Trinity is the different states of water. Water can be three different things, a liquid, a solid, and a gas, but still remains water. You can read more about how God the Father is like ice, Jesus like liquid water and the Holy Spirit like vapor/steam here. The next time you drink a glass of water, eat an ice cube, or feel steam, remember that God is three Persons in One!
Attached is a simple colouring page to explain the Trinity. Another way to think about the Trinity is like a shamrock: https://carolbrookebooks.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/holy-trinity-shamrock-craft_carolbrooke2.pdf