Opening Check-Ins
We support each other no matter what. Invite everyone to share something that made them happy and/or something that made them sad this past week. We are here to support each other in prayer and presence.Centering in Silence and Song
If you have a household altar, I recommend using it. If not, a sense of ritual and sacred time can be initiated by lighting a candle and ringing a bell (three times is usually a good way to help everyone settle into silence). Share a few minutes of silence together. You may sound the bell again when silence is over. Children often enjoy the responsibility of these tasks (and should be supervised and assisted as appropriate).
You might invite each person to share:
any lenten practice. Giving something up? Trying to do something special each day?
You may also listen to this song and discuss what it brings up for each of you:
Prayer of Jesus
If you have a particular version of the prayer that you use, you are encouraged to use it.This is the "children's translation" that I wrote and use with my students:
God all around us with many sacred names
We roll up our sleeves to create a beautiful world with you
Please care for us and our needs and forgive us when we don’t do our best
Please help us to be forgiving of others, too.
Help us to be good, loving, and safe so we can help create a loving and safe world for everyone.
Amen.
Sacred Story
Background:
This is the first Sunday of Lent, a new season in the church year. Last time in Sunday School, we talked about Ordinary Time.In church, we have different seasons, kind of like there are seasons in Nature. Seasons in nature let us know what to expect about weather and maybe let us know what holidays are coming. The church calendar is similar. The church calendar can also tell us what holidays are coming, but we might think of church seasons as seasons of the heart, times during which we talk about certain kinds of stories and feelings.
The season of Lent lasts from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday.
Lent is a “contemplative” season, which means it is a season in which we think about our life and its meaning. The color for the season is PURPLE. People often give something up for Lent (like not eating sweets). Sometimes we might set a different goal, like to read a big book during Lent or to start meditating every day. This helps us to think about our life and how we would like to be be better.
Lent lasts 40 days (plus Sundays). Forty is an important number in the Bible. The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 days, Jesus was secluded in the wilderness for 40 days, the flood rains lasted 40 days and nights when Noah was on the ark. Forty is a number that means “completion,” or readiness. When we see the number 40 in Bible stories, we might ask “What new change is coming?”
Easter comes after the 40 days of Lent.
On Ash Wednesday, many Christians have a smudge of ashes placed on their forehead. We often say, “Ashes to ashes” or “dust to dust.” In one of our Bible stories, God creates a human from dust. It reminds us we are all made of the same things, that we are all made by God, and that we are, in some ways, eternal.
Today sometimes we say “you are made from stardust” because we know now, with the knowledge we have about science and outer space, that everything in the universe, including you and me, is made of stardust. EVERYTHING is made of stardust, so we know that we will ALWAYS be made of stardust because everything is!
Bible Story:
Read together “Jesus in the Desert” in Children of God Storybook Bible (p. 70-71).Special Story:
Read together "God is night." in Images of God for Young Children (p. 14)
Read together “You Are Stardust”
Conversation:
How do our bodies change over time? We grow, our hair grows, our nails grow. Our skin sheds.
How do other bodies on the earth change over time? Trees grow. Leaves fall and regrow like hair.
How does space change over time? Space expands. Stars explode and new stars are born.
Can remembering that we are made of stardust help us to remember that we are brothers and sisters to animals and nature?
Craft:
As we think about how we are made of stardust, we will make stardust bags. They are good for young people’s development of motor skills, but can also be a tool for keeping hands busy for older children. It is sometimes good to busy your hands so you can focus your mind (maybe like a fidget spinner).
clear packing tape
Empty the contents of the clear hair gel into the gallon storage bag. Shake in the star confetti and glitter. Before sealing your bag, lay it flat and squeeze out as much air as possible.
To make the stars really shine, cut the black poster board to the size of the ziplock bag and tape the bag down to the poster board.
Closing Prayer
Read together the prayer by St. Richard of Chichester in First Prayers (p. 120).Curriculum texts used:
- Children of God Storybook Bible by Archbishop Desmond Tutu
- Images of God for Young Children by Marie-Helene Delval
- First Prayers by Caroline Jayne Church
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