3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time Cycle B
Welcome children to their worship space.
Ask them to get their carpet squares and sit down in a circle.
Introduce yourself and your helpers.
Introduce
Ask: Last week’s symbol was a telephone. We talked about how God calls each of us to do good things like Jesus did and how we answer him.
Say: Today is the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Introduce symbol
Say: Today’s symbol is a fish. The first people to follow Jesus were fishermen. Does anyone remember what Jesus told them? He said that he would make them fishers of……… <men> What do you think that means? <discuss>
Say: Today we will hear some readings about how God changed the lives of those who answered his call to do good things.
Say: Let’s look at today’s poster. What does it say? <Teach me your ways, O Lord.> This is our Responsorial Psalm for today. The Responsorial Psalms also come from Scripture, from the Book of Psalms in the Old Testament.
Ask: How do you think that God teaches us his ways? <through other people – parents, teachers, friends, through prayer when we just “know” the right thing to do, through things that we read or see – like the Bible!> We need to always pay attention so that we can “hear” God when he teaches us!
Introduce readings
We have two readings today.
Say: Let’s light the candle to show that we are ready to listen to the Word of God.
Say: Today’s first reading is from the Old Testament book of Jonah. (Jonah 3:1-5, 10) Does anyone here remember anything about Jonah? <most likely answer - swallowed by a fish> The story of Jonah is a story about how God helps us to do what he wants us to do.
Ask: Can you tell me WHY Jonah was swallowed by a fish? <discuss> God wanted Jonah to go and talk to the people who lived in a town called Nineveh. Jonah didn’t want to do that. The people in Nineveh were so bad that Jonah was afraid to give them God’s message. He traveled in a different direction. But Jonah’s life was changed! What happened after the fish swallowed Jonah? <the fish spit him up on the beach after 3 days> Can anyone tell me where this beach was? <NINEVEH!!> Listen to the story and hear what happened next.
Have the reader read the first reading.
Ask: What happened when Jonah got to Nineveh? <the people listened to him and began to follow God> Even when we are uncomfortable or afraid, when we do what God asks, God will take care of us. With God’s help, each of us can make a difference in our world.
Say: Now it is time for the Responsorial Psalm. Your part is to say:
Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Say: Today’s Gospel reading comes from the book of Mark (Mark 1:14-20). Mark tells us about when Jesus called his first disciples. They were ordinary men who were fishing for a living. They listened to Jesus and left their work to help teach others about him. Pretend that you are a fisherman who works with Simon and Andrew. How do you think you would feel when they left you? <discuss>
Say: Now we will stand and get ready to hear the Gospel
(hold up card) Glory and praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Have the reader begin: “a reading from the holy gospel.....”
Read: Read the Gospel
Ask: How do you think you would feel when the two brothers left you with all the work? <maybe frustrated, maybe even angry> We don’t always understand why things work out the way they do. Sometimes our frustration and our anger closes our ears and hearts to what Jesus had to teach us.
Say: Jesus asks different things of all of us and he teaches us all about love. What do you think he was trying to teach the men who were left behind? <maybe to do more work cheerfully, maybe he called them to follow also and they didn’t hear, maybe to be more patient and tolerant of others> We all have to live the best lives that we can and try to keep the love that Jesus teaches us in our hearts.
Hand out the poster cut-outs of a fish so that the children can write their names on them for the poster.
Hand out the symbols to color. (The symbol is a fish). Ask the older children to write one thing they can do this week to share something that Jesus has taught them.
Explain: Color this symbol of the fish and bring it to the altar (don’t forget to put your name on the back!) to show that we have learned about learning and teaching about God’s love.
If there is time, ask questions and go over the lessons one more time to help the children remember.
Give out stickers and hand-outs as they leave.
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| Use this symbol for all 3 symbol applications |
Parent Letter
3rd Sunday Ordinary Time B
Dear parents:
Today your children heard simplified versions of the same readings that you heard: Jonah 3:1-5, 10 and Mark 1:14-20
Symbol: Fish
To reinforce at home:
Today we hear from Jonah. We reviewed the story of Jonah and then heard the final part about what happened when Jonah delivered God’s message to the people of Nineveh. When Jonah listened to God and did what God asked, everything turned out right – even when it didn’t seem possible!
In the Gospel of Mark, we heard about what happened when Jesus called the first disciples while they were fishing. We pretended that we were other fishermen trying to understand what happened to Simon and Andrew. We know that Jesus calls each of us to do different things. We tried to guess what Jesus was teaching the other fishermen -–perhaps about tolerance or patience and definitely always about LOVE!
Activities to do at home:
*Share God’s love! Give a hug to someone who is sad and needs one.
*Read scripture! Read the story of Jonah to your child. The story is a wonderful one about trying to run away from the work God asks you to do.
*Set an example! As Christians, you and your child show others all about Jesus just by living your everyday life. Decide together to do something to show others about Jesus – (examples might be: to purchase something for your local food pantry, to work together on your patience or your tempers, to be more polite to strangers by holding doors or being nice while driving.)
Thank you for sharing your children!
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