Saints Live Like Jesus

Transcription

1 Saints Live Like Jesus Background for the Catechist Please take 10 minutes to reflect on the following introduction to this lesson. Reflection/Doctrinal Reference The witnesses who have preceded us into the kingdom, especially those whom the Church recognises as saints, share in the living tradition of prayer by the example of their lives, the transmission of their writings, and their prayer today (CCC 1994, n. 2683). The saints show us how a life lived in Christ looks in vastly different eras and contexts. Apart from saints who have been canonised, there are countless men and women who have lived exemplary Christian lives but who are unknown to us. Known or unknown, the saints are friends of God and our friends. They pray for us and inspire us by their lives to love and serve God in whatever circumstances we find ourselves. Two saints who exemplify holiness in very different circumstances are St Patrick, who lived in fifth century Ireland, and St Elizabeth, who lived in thirteenth century Hungary. They allowed God to work through them in very different situations: in Patrick s case, preaching to the Irish tribes and clans who had not heard the Gospel, and in Elizabeth s, helping the famine stricken people who lived at her door. Student Focus Students of this age are attracted to and by famous people. They want to know their stories and they try to emulate them. Saints have interesting stories that can capture students imaginations and can lead to emulation. Teaching Point Saints show us how to live like Jesus did. Remembering Point St Patrick and St Elizabeth show us how to live like Jesus. The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 1 Catechist Sheets

2 Beginning (2 minutes) Welcome the students as usual and invite them to gather round you on the floor. Tell the students: Last week we saw how Mary said yes to God. Today we are going to learn how St Patrick and St Elizabeth said yes to God. Middle (20 minutes) Tell the students: I m going to tell you two stories about two saints, Patrick and Elizabeth. They are important people because they worked hard to live like Jesus did. They told people about Jesus and cared for others, just like Jesus did. (If possible, before you begin the story, it would be useful to locate Ireland, England and Hungary on a world map so that the students have an idea where these are in relation to Australia. ) Place the puppet of Patrick before you and tell the story of Patrick (with enthusiasm). Ask the students to reflect on the following: (Accept the students answers. We do not know what Patrick felt, so any possible answer will be acceptable. The same for the other I wonder statements.) I wonder how Patrick felt when he was kidnapped by the pirates. I wonder what Patrick did to grow closer to God. I wonder what sort of things Patrick told the people of Ireland to do to live like Jesus. Place the puppet of Elizabeth before you and tell the story of Elizabeth (with enthusiasm). Preparation 1. Prayer focus: a coloured cloth, a candle or electric tea light, and puppets of Patrick and Elizabeth. 2. Cut out and decorate one of each puppet for you to use when telling the story of these saints. (See Appendices 6d and 6e.) 3. Read the stories from Appendix 6a and practise telling them. 4. Make copies of the Puppet templates, one set for each pair of students (Appendices 6dand 6e). 5. Instructions for constructing the puppets are in Appendix 6c. 6. If possible, have a world map to locate Ireland, England and Hungary. 7. Sticky tape and plastic glasses, yoghurt or cream tubs, for each student. 8. Student sheets. Ask the students to reflect on the following: I wonder why Elizabeth was disguised when she went to take bread from the palace kitchen to the poor. I wonder what other ways Elizabeth could have helped the poor. Invite the students to return to their tables. Hand out a puppet template and a plastic glass to each student Tell the students to colour in their puppet and stick it onto the plastic glass with one piece of sticky tape. Direct the students to retell the story of their saint to the person beside them. The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 2 Catechist Sheets

3 Direct the students to the statements about Patrick and Elizabeth on page 1 of the student sheets. Invite them to tick one statement about each saint that they think is right for them. Invite the students to draw a picture that shows their wonderings about the following statements: I wonder what we can do at home to live like Jesus. I wonder what we can do at school to live like Jesus. End Preparation (3 minutes) Direct the students to fill in the missing words on the next page. Then invite them to trace over the Remembering Point (in dotted letters). Have the students read out the Remembering Point when they have all finished. Gather the students around the prayer focus and invite them to repeat the prayers after you. Catechist: Students: Mary, mother of Jesus, pray for us Mary, mother of Jesus, pray for us Catechist: Mary, our mother, pray for us. Students: Mary, our mother, pray for us. Catechist: Catechist: Students: Students: St Patrick, God s messenger, pray for us St Patrick, God s messenger, pray for us St Elizabeth, carer of the sick and poor, pray for us. St Elizabeth, carer of the sick and poor, pray for us. Invite the students to take their puppets home and tell their families about St Patrick or St Elizabeth. Take up the name cards. Dismiss the students as usual. The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 3 Catechist Sheets

4 Appendix 6a St Patrick Long, long ago in England there lived a boy called Patrick. He was about 16 years old. One day some raiders landed nearby, saw how young and strong Patrick was and kidnapped him and his friends to work as slaves. They put them in their boat and took them to Ireland. Patrick worked hard in Ireland for six years. All that time he prayed constantly to God. One night in a dream, Patrick became aware that God wanted him to go back home. So he ran away and walked across Ireland to a sea port where he eventually found a boat that would take him back to England without having to pay the fare. When he got home his family were so pleased to have him back. Day by day he grew closer to God. Patrick never forgot the people of Ireland and he knew that one day he would walk amongst them again. Eventually he became a priest. He was such a good priest that he was made a bishop. About this time he realised that God wanted him to go back to Ireland to teach the people about Jesus. Before Patrick went to Ireland the people had never heard about Jesus. So he got into a boat and went back. Patrick spent the rest of his life helping the people of Ireland to know about Jesus. He taught them and cared for them just as Jesus would have done. Patrick told everyone about how to live a good life just like Jesus. He was so successful that by the time he died everyone in Ireland was trying to live like Jesus. Many of the first settlers in Melbourne were Catholics who came from Ireland. When they began to build their cathedral they dedicated it to their favourite saint, Patrick. That s why our cathedral is called St Patrick s Cathedral. The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 4 Catechist Sheets

5 Appendix 6b St Elizabeth Long, long ago there lived in Hungary a princess called Elizabeth. At the age of 14 she married Prince Louis whom she loved. They had three children. She prayed often and tried to live very simply. She cared for the poor and sick, just like Jesus. She often went out from the castle disguised as a poor woman to take bread from the palace kitchen to the poor. She also built a hospital below the castle and went down to care for the sick, making their beds and giving them food. After six years of marriage Prince Louis was killed in the Crusades; she was very sad. Elizabeth left the castle and continued to care for the poor and sick just as Jesus did. Appendix 6c Making Puppets You will need two plastic glasses or yoghurt tubs and the templates on the next two pages. Use the following instructions 1. Cut around the shape with the picture of Patrick and Elizabeth. 2. Decorate the cut out puppets. 3. Wrap the picture around the glass and where the two corners meet, stick with one piece of tape. 4. Use the puppets to tell the story. The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 5 Catechist Sheets

6 Appendix 6d St Patrick Template Photocopy this page and follow the instructions in Appendix 6c on page 5. Artwork by Kay Whelan The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 6 Catechist Sheets

7 Appendix 6e St Elizabeth Template Photocopy this page and follow the instructions in Appendix 6c on page 5. Artwork by Kay Whelan The Good News of Jesus (F / 1 / 2 Year A) 7 Catechist Sheets