Celebrating Together at Mass

Transcription

1 Celebrating Together at Mass Background for the Catechist Please take 10 minutes to reflect on the following introduc on to this lesson. Reflection/Doctrinal Reference The Lord, having loved those who were his own, loved them to the end. Knowing that the hour had come to leave this world and return to the Father, in the course of a meal he washed their feet and gave them the commandment of love. In order to leave them a pledge of this love, in order never to depart from his own and to make them sharers in his Passover, he ins tuted the Eucharist as the memorial of his death and Resurrec on, and commanded his apostles to celebrate it un l his return (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1994, n. 1337). The Eucharist is a complex ritual in which many aspects of our faith are remembered and made present. The death and resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of each celebration. Through Jesus death and resurrection we are brought into a relationship of love of God and trust in God. This mystery is celebrated in the light of the scripture readings of a particular Mass and leads to the act of communion. Here we share in the holy meal through which Jesus gives his whole self to us in the sacramental bread and wine of the Eucharist. The Mass enables every disciple of Jesus to share intimately in the experience of Jesus Passover: his last supper with the first disciples and the events of his death and resurrection. By receiving Holy Communion we bind ourselves to Jesus and commit ourselves to living through him, with him and in him to the glory and honour of God. Student Focus Students of this age appreciate ritual. They are vitally interested in the rituals involved in birthday celebrations. They are open to exploring the Mass as a holy ritual meal where Christians gather to: hear Jesus words speak to Jesus in prayer remember Jesus last supper recall Jesus death and resurrection receive Jesus as the Bread of Life in Holy Communion. Purpose of Lesson At Mass we celebrate Jesus last supper. Remembering Point At Mass we celebrate Jesus last supper. The Good News of Jesus F / 1 / 2 Year A 1 Catechist Sheets

2 Lesson 23: Celebra ng Together at Mass Beginning (2 minutes) Welcome the students as usual. Invite the students to be s ll and get ready to pray. Middle Let us begin with the Sign of the Cross. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Repeat the prayer a er me. Thank you, God, for our families. Thank you, God, for our families. Thank you, God, for our family celebra ons. Thank you God for our family celebra ons. Now, let us say the Glory be Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen. Preparation 1. Picture of a special celebra on e.g. a wedding. 2. Prayer Focus: A coloured cloth, a candle or electric tea light, wheat, grapes 3. Student sheets. 4. Answers for the Word Search (Appendix 23b) (20 minutes) Gather the students around you on the mat. Show them the picture of a special celebra on. What do you think is happening in this picture? Who comes when you have a celebra on. Ask the students to reflect on the following: I wonder why so many people come. (they like to celebrate, they come because they love you) Tell this story: One day Jesus and his friends had a special meal called Passover. (Jewish people celebrated the Passover meal every year.) This par cular Passover was the last one Jesus ever celebrated. That s why we call it the Last Supper. Jesus said the blessing and they all began their meal. While they were ea ng, Jesus did something different. He blessed some bread and gave it to them. He said, Take, this is my body. He took a cup of wine and gave thanks. Then he gave it to them and said, This is my blood. He said, Do this in memory of me (Lk 22: 22 25). Ask the students to reflect on the following: I wonder what Jesus and his friends talked about at this meal. (things they had done together, their friends, their families, their wishes, ) The Good News of Jesus F / 1 / 2 Year A 2 Catechist Sheets

3 What food did Jesus and his friends share at the meal? (bread, wine) What did Jesus ask them to do? (to do this in memory of him) Does this story of Jesus last supper remind you of anything? It will not ma er if students do not associate this story with the Mass because this will be part of your lesson today. Tell the students: Yes, every Sunday at Mass we do again what Jesus did at the Last Supper. We gather together to celebrate. We listen to stories from the Bible. We offer gi s of bread and wine. We give thanks to God. We do what Jesus did when he said, Do this in memory of me. The bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus. Then God s family shares a holy meal that we call Holy Communion. At the end the priest tells us to go in peace to announce the gospel of the Lord. What sorts of things does God s family celebrate at Mass on Sunday? (the Last Supper, Jesus, ) What do you want to say thanks to God for at Mass? (God is good, the beau ful world, giving us Jesus, God gave us our families, ) How we can love and serve the Lord? (help mum and dad, share toys, smile at people, play fairly, ) Invite the students to share their own wonderings. Accept them and facilitate the answers from the other students. Invite the students to return to their tables and hand out the student sheets. Tell them to complete the word search. END Preparation (5 minutes) Gather the students round the prayer focus. Let us be s ll as we get ready to pray. Let s say the Sign of the Cross In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. We ll sing A Song of Thanks as our prayer to the tune of London Bridge. Dismiss the students as usual. The Good News of Jesus F / 1 / 2 Year A 3 Catechist Sheets

4 Lesson 23: Celebra ng Together at Mass Appendix 23a A Song of Thanks Sung to the tune of London Bridge For the world, we thank you, God, Thank you, God, thank you, God. For the world, we thank you, God, with everyone at Mass. For Jesus Christ, we thank you, God, Thank you, God, thank you, God, For Jesus Christ, we thank you God, with everyone at Mass. For Good News, we thank you, God, Thank you, God, thank you, God, For Good News, we thank you, God, with everyone at Mass. To love and serve, please help us God Help us God, help us God To love and serve, please help us God, with everyone at Mass. The Good News of Jesus F / 1 / 2 Year A 4 Catechist Sheets

5 Appendix 23b Answers for the Word Find B L E S S I N G D A S K N A H T I S D N E I R F S T S X L A E M C S T R O O M S I U O E G T E U P P R N A A M S L P I I V B B E E E E W E L E J S R S D A E R B Blessing Bread Disciples Friends Gave Jesus Last Supper Meal Remember Room Stories Table Thanks Wine The Good News of Jesus F / 1 / 2 Year A 5 Catechist Sheets