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Lent with Children

By The Rev’d David Madison

Curate of All Saints, Fort Worth

St. John Baptist de La Salle reminds us that we are charged with the care of the souls of our young people. We should especially keep this in mind during Lent. What specific opportunities are we providing for the young people as they prepare their souls to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ?

Is the importance of confession being taught? Are you providing the opportunity for children to make their confessions during this important season of preparation? Are opportunities being provided to participate in Lenten devotionals?

 

How about planning a “Children’s Way of the Cross?” The Way of the Cross (or Stations of the Cross) is one devotional practice that has been in use for generations. Are there ways to make this rich experience even more accessible to the younger people in our parishes?

 

Here are some ways to make Stations of the Cross an event that young people will not forget:

             1. Do it outside! Don’t feel like you have to say Stations of the Cross inside. This change of venue will be exciting to the young people and can make it more memorable. Make 14 wooden crosses and place them at various places through the church grounds. That way, the children can actually “walk” the Way of the Cross with Christ.

             2. Involve all the senses. At each station, develop sensorial pieces so that the kids can experience Christ’s Way of the Cross in addition to just hearing about it. For example, when “Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus” the children can take turns wiping each other’s face with several washcloths you have put at that station. When “Simon Carries the Cross for Jesus,” have the children take turns holding a large wooden cross which has been left at that station. When “Jesus is

Lent is for Adults...If They Can Get It

By The Rev’d. Stuart Smith

Rector of Good Shepherd, Granbury

If you are an over-busy priest, or a harried DRE, or just the poor soul who has been given to last minute task of “coming up with something for our Lenten programs”…take heart!  What follows is a menu of suggestions.  But…I have to give a short intro and a warning:

Intro:   Lent is for adults!  That is, you can drop all the tired jokes about “giving up Brussels’ sprouts” or “I’m giving up going to Church for Lent!”  Lent is a precious opportunity to shake ourselves out of our spiritual lethargy (the great Tradition calls it ‘accide’…a sluggish, bored state of indifference) and draw nearer to God and grow in the Grace and Mercy which come from the heart of Jesus.   If you are “too busy”?...well that makes you a perfect candidate for Lent.  Slowing down, paying attention to what the Lord is up to, that’s a big plus we get from Lent.

Warning:  Lent is a tool that can be misused.  It works well as a lever…that lifts us up.  It’s a poor hammer…for pounding ourselves or our friends/neighbors.  If you can “get it” (find out how to use it), Lent can change your life and help you lose old self-destructive habits and gain new, blessed habits.

 

Let’s get to the Menu:  Ideas for Adult Lenten Activities:

· Teach the tried-and-true Traditions of the Lenten Rule:  Get a copy of the St. Augustine’s Prayer Book and find helps for the following Lenten topics:  a. Prayer  b. Fasting  c. Self-denial  d. Almsgiving.  Take each topic in succession through the weeks of Lent. 

· Read a spiritually worthy book as a “class” during the Lenten program nights.  Examples:  Richard Foster has written several instructive books.  C. S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters is a new classic on the reality of spiritual warfare, and the victory that Christ brings to the seeking soul. Cuss & discuss.

· Use a “project book” like The Purpose Driven Life (or… Church), both by Rick Warren.  This works especially well for parishes that are seeking a new vision for life together.

· Thematic approaches could include:  Reconciliation/Forgiveness (with the clergy instructing about the Sacrament of Confession within an overall focus on how to be reconciled).  “How Do I Pray?” (Googling ‘prayer/spirituality’ will give you schools of prayer:  e.g. The Benedictine’s Lexio Divina.  Biblical teachings on the Christian moral life.  These could feature “talks”, or discussions, or a combination of both by the leader(s).

· “Less is More” sometimes:  couple the Stations of the Cross devotion with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament (ask your priest if he knows about that), or make time for silent intercession/petition.  Maybe, offer the Sacrament of Anointing in the context of prayer/worship.  Lenten programs do not have to feature “yacking” as the primary focus.  Visual/musical/liturgical foci can be a welcome relief from old, tired program patterns.  Clergy, of course, need to oversee this, as for all the other menu ideas listed above.

 

Finally, dare the adventure of Lent.  You don’t have to be a “pew potato”!  Your parish can offer meaningful, spirit-filled and honest tools for the membership to grow in the Grace and knowledge of God during this wonderful season.  God Speed to You!

                (Now…What are we going to do at Good Shepherd?)

Lenten Resources

The Resource Room at the Diocese of Fort Worth has some wonderful items for Lent.  In searching our materials, via the commuter, I found seven titles that contain Lenten materials.  Before discussing those titles, let me say that many of our curriculum materials located on the south wall of the Resource Room contain Lenten ideas but are not found in the computer because they are samples of our most recent curriculum materials organized by age and publisher.

For example if you were looking for elementary age materials by Morehouse Publishing, you would look at the south wall under the title “Curricula - Elementary”; then find the publisher (in alphabetical order) such as “Morehouse”.  Some publishers would be more likely to have Lenten materials than others.  All publishers would have Easter materials in every age group.  If your elementary age Sunday school is using David C. Cook Publishing Company for it’s year-long study, you could certainly switch to another publisher for the Sunday’s in Lent, and you could select a video to accompany that study from our video tapes.

The materials listed in our library soft ware can be accessed through Alexandria by selecting “Researcher” from the Diocesan Resource Room (library) or from your home/work computer by going to www.fwepiscopal.org ; selecting check out Diocesan Resource Room; click on “materials and resources”, type in “Lent” and click on “All Words”.

The seven titles found in the resource room containing the words “Lent” in any of the information entered in our software system are a variety of materials from Adult Bible Study, Ministry Resources, and Curriculum-Adult.  You can click on the title on the title you want more information about and see all of the information describing that title.  You can also go back to the general list to research another title.  You can scroll down the information to “Status” to see if it is available or checked out.

The “Place Hold” or “Place Reservation” options are not in use at this point, but I can meet you at the Diocesan Library to check out materials or you may fill out and “Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth Resource Room Check Out Form” to check out any of the materials in the Resource Room.  Just leave the form on the table and I will process it for you the next time I am in the Resource Room.  My home phone is 817-926-3700 and I can meet you most any week day morning.

Vacation Bible School (VBS)

New vacation Bible school materials, such as, Cokesbury (publisher) “Lift-Off! Soaring to New Heights with God” (title of VBS materials) can be found on the south wall in the lower cabinet labeled Vacation Bible School Supplies.  These materials also may be checked out.  More information on VBS materials will be coming next month, or check out all our materials at the Resource Room whenever the Diocesan office is open.

 

Mark your calendars for an informative conference coming up on Saturday, March 24, 2007 at the Diocesan Center for Ministry.  This conference is designed to help clergy and directors to make the most of their programs or to start a successful new program. 

Topics will include: 

· Grooming Future Leaders and Recruiting

· Starting and Managing the Small Sunday School

· Curricula Review

· Attendance/Increasing Numbers

· Troubleshooting. 

If your parish already has a program, come and get tips on how to strengthen it.  If your parish is considering starting a program, come and find out the ins and outs without having to reinvent the wheel.  Online registration is available for this event on our website.  By now you have received the brochure mail-out with more information.  If not contact the commission to get on the emailing list.  We hope to see you there.

Nailed to the Cross” you can have a hammer and nails for the children to touch and feel. Use your imagination to develop sensorial material that invite the children into the event.

             3. End with “Hot Cross Buns.” You can end the event with refreshments of some sort. A “hot cross bun” is a simple baked roll with an icing cross historically served to break the fast on Good Friday. A search on the Internet will yield many recipes. As an alternative, most bakeries can bake this simple treat for you. This helps make the event more memorable for the children. For the older ones, you can use this to teach about fasting.

 

As we prepare for Lent, take some time to reflect upon what events and activities your parish is preparing for the spiritual lives of young people. For additional information or assistance, please do not hesitate to contact one of the Christian Education Commission members.

Preparing for VBS

By Kristy Leaseburg

Chair of the CEC

As we shiver through these cold January days, it’s hard to believe it’s already time to start thinking about Vacation Bible School.  All the VBS publishers have released their sample packs, so they are ready to be inspected.  If VBS is already a standard activity at your parish, you are probably partial to a particular publisher.  However, I encourage you to take a look at all that is available out there because you may decide a new direction is just the thing your program needs.  You may even decide that it’s time to write your own!

 

If you are just now venturing into the exciting world of  VBS, you may feel overwhelmed at all the choices in curriculum, not to mention all the decisions that must be made to get started.  Fear not, as the angels say!  There are plenty of resources available to help you get started. 

 

A good place to start when trying to select curriculum is Cokesbury Bookstore’s website.  http://www.cokesbury.com/images/portals/comparisonchart.pdf  They have a comparison chart of most of the big publishers.  This is far from a comprehensive list, but it does review the titles you are most likely to find when out shopping in the Christian bookstores. 

 

If you are new to this game and want to know how to get started or are experienced but would like some tips, you can visit our website at www.fwchristianed.org to see a checklist for running VBS.  There is also a section on how to write your own. 

 

If you are considering writing your own curriculum, there are a number of parishes in our diocese that have done that and would be happy to share advice including St. Andrew’s-Fort Worth, St. Andrew’s-Grand Prairie, St. John’s-Fort Worth, and St. Anne’s.  I have posted on the website in the Have/Need Section that I have two “homegrown” curricula that I am willing to share.  I am also happy to consult on how to plan out your own.  Please visit our website and feel free to contact me or any of the Commissioners.  And don’t forget about that Have/Need Board on our website as we get closer to VBS time.  It is a great way to find and share materials.