Children s Liturgy of the Word

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1 Children s Liturgy of the Word in Luke 24, in the story about the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. They are filled with emotion, sharing their information, and gossiping with a stranger. While they did not recognise their old teacher, they must have appreciated his teaching, for they pressed him to stay for dinner. It was at the table that Jesus taught them again, but this time with bread, not words; thus did they recognise him in the breaking of the bread, and he vanished from their sight. It should not be surprising to us that eating and telling stories are intimately connected human events where we also meet God. ANDERSON, HERBERT & FOLEY, EDWARD. Mighty Stories, Dangerous Rituals: Weaving together the Human and the Divine. COPYRIGHT 1998 BY JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED EDITION From the General Instruction of the Roman Missal; 28. The Mass consists in some sense of two parts, namely the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist, these being so closely interconnected that they form but one single act of worship.40 For in the Mass is spread the table both of God's word and of the Body of Christ, and from it the faithful are to be instructed and refreshed.41 There are also certain rites that open and conclude the celebration. General Instruction of the Roman Missal 2008 Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.

2 As companions on the journey of life and faith, Jesus comes to journey with us anew each time we come to celebrate the Mass together. Jesus comes to us in the Scriptures and with the preaching of the priest or deacon, the Lord helps us make sense of our lives, our relationships, our struggles and our joys. The homily breaks open God s Word and renews and refreshes our hope and our joy for the coming of God s kingdom. Pope Francis states; The preacher has the wonderful but difficult task of joining loving hearts, the hearts of the Lord and his people. The dialogue between God and his people further strengthens the covenant between them and consolidates the bond of charity. In the course of the homily, the hearts of believers keep silence and allow God to speak. The Lord and his people speak to one another in a thousand ways directly, without intermediaries. But in the homily they want someone to serve as an instrument and to express their feelings in such a way that afterwards, each one may choose how he or she will continue the conversation. EVANGELII GAUDIUM The activity of preaching leads us to be no longer strangers to ourselves, to each other and to Jesus. The liturgy of the Word leads us to the liturgy of the Eucharist and brings us to enter into Holy Communion with our hearts burning within us. A small table, white cloth, candle, bible and cross. Loving God, we come to hear your Word on this Third Sunday of Easter. We sign our forehead with the sign of the cross as we open our minds to understand to your Word. We sign our lips with the sign of the cross, help us to speak your truth.

3 We sign our hearts with the sign of the cross, may we carry the Good News of Jesus and share it with everyone we meet. A reading from the Acts of the Apostles On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood with the eleven apostles and spoke in a loud and clear voice to the crowd: "Friends and everyone else living in Jerusalem, listen carefully to what I have to say! "Now, listen to what I have to say about Jesus from Nazareth. God proved that he sent Jesus to you by having him work miracles, wonders, and signs. All of you know this. "God had already planned and decided that Jesus would be handed over to you. So you took him and had evil men put him to death on a cross. "But God set him free from death and raised him to life. Death could not hold him in its power." The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. R. I love you, Lord, my strength. I love you, Lord God, and you make me strong. You are my mighty rock, my fortress, my protector, the rock where I am safe, my shield, my powerful weapon, and my place of shelter. R.

4 You are the living Lord! I will praise you. You are a mighty rock. I will honour you for keeping me safe. You give glorious victories to your chosen king. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Lord Jesus, make your word plain to us; make our hearts burn with love when you speak. Alleluia. A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke Two of Jesus' disciples were going to the village of Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. As they were talking and thinking about what had happened, Jesus came near and started walking along beside them. But they did not know who he was. Jesus asked them, "What were you talking about as you walked along?" The two of them stood there looking sad and gloomy. Then the one named Cleopas asked Jesus, "Are you the only person from Jerusalem who didn't know what was happening there these last few days?" "What do you mean?" Jesus asked. They answered: "Those things that happened to Jesus from Nazareth. By what he did and said he showed that he was a powerful prophet, who pleased God and all the people.

5 Then the chief priests and our leaders had him arrested and sentenced to die on a cross. We had hoped that he would be the one to set Israel free! "But it has already been three days since all this happened. Some women in our group surprised us. They had gone to the tomb early in the morning, but did not find the body of Jesus. They came back, saying that they had seen a vision of angels who told them that he is alive. Some men from our group went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. But they didn't see Jesus either." Then Jesus asked the two disciples, "Why can't you understand? How can you be so slow to believe all that the prophets said? Didn't you know that the Messiah would have to suffer before he was given his glory?" Jesus then explained everything written about himself in the Scriptures, beginning with the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets. When the two of them came near the village where they were going, Jesus seemed to be going farther. They begged him, "Stay with us! It's already late, and the sun is going down." So Jesus went into the house to stay with them. After Jesus sat down to eat, he took some bread. He blessed it and broke it. Then he gave it to them. At once they knew who he was, but he disappeared. They said to each other, "When he talked with us along the road

6 and explained the Scriptures to us, didn't it warm our hearts?" So they got right up and returned to Jerusalem. The two disciples found the eleven apostles and the others gathered together. And they learned from the group that the Lord was really alive and had appeared to Peter. Then the disciples from Emmaus told what happened on the road and how they knew he was the Lord when he broke the bread. The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ. Invite the children to retell the Gospel story in their own words; o Where were the disciples going? o What were they talking about? o Who was the stranger? o What was Jesus teaching the disciples along the way? o What happened when Jesus broke the bread? Share with the children that the Mass is made up of Story and Meal, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. The Liturgy of the Word: o First Reading often from the Old Testament or what we call the Hebrew Scriptures. Jesus knew these stories very well and helped people to understand them in a way that brought them hope and freedom. o The Psalms also from the Hebrew Scriptures are ancient prayers that we respond to together. o Second Reading from the New Testament or Christian Scriptures that come from the Letters of St Paul or the Acts of the Apostles and

7 tell us about the memories and experiences of the early Church communities. o The Gospel Acclamation we stand and greet the Gospel with reverence, hope and joy. o The Gospel (good news) - is a teaching from Jesus himself about the kingdom of God. o Homily the priest or deacon explain the meanings of the readings and Gospel to us and help us to understand how they continue to help us live our faith each day. o The Creed we remember and together say who we are and what we believe. o Prayer of the Faithful based on what we have learned from the Readings and the homily, we ask God to help us make the world more like the kingdom of God for everyone. The Liturgy of the Eucharist: o Presentation and preparation of the gifts of bread and wine gifts provided by the goodness of God s earth are blessings for us and are an essential part of life for feeding us and keeping us healthy. In a symbolic way the bread and wine is us, our lives lifted up and made new in Jesus. o The Eucharistic Prayer we remember and do again what Jesus did with his disciples at the Last Supper. When Jesus said, This is my body he is actually saying: this is me all of me being handed over for you. When Jesus said, This is my blood he is actually saying: this is my life. What does blood do for

8 our body? That is what Jesus is doing for us PAULINE BOOKS & MEDIA, MIDDLE GREEN SLOUGH S L 3 6 B S ORG At the end of the Eucharistic Prayer we say or sing a great Amen. This announces our praise and thanksgiving that God loves us. The Our Father we say together the prayer that Jesus gave us. The Sign of Peace - we offer each other the complete peace that God wants for everyone. The Breaking of the Bread The priest breaks the bread just as Jesus did for the disciples at Emmaus, and we recognise Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. We receive Jesus Holy Communion. In the Prayer after Communion we give thanks for the great gift we have received. I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,

9 the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen. Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. Leader: Loving God, help us to grow more and more in our faith as we pray; Reader: We pray for the Church, may we be the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the world. Lord, hear us. All: Lord, hear our prayer. Reader: We pray for acceptance, tolerance and to see the face of Jesus in those who we think are strangers to us. Lord, hear us. All: Lord, hear our prayer. Reader: We pray for people who are lonely or isolated, may we accompany them on the journey of their lives with compassion and mercy. Lord, hear us. All: Lord, hear our prayer. Reader: We pray for the faithful companions who now rest in God s eternal love, especially our family and friends. Lord, hear us. All: Lord, hear our prayer. Leader: Loving God, we make our prayers in the name of Jesus, who comes to us in Word and Bread. Amen. Having been fed at the Table of the Word, we now prepare to share in the celebration of the Eucharist. May we be people who journey in faith with others in the coming week.