[84] TENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME B FIRST READING I will put enmity between your offspring and her offspring. A reading from the first book of Genesis 3:9-15 The Lord called out to Adam and asked, Where are you? Adam answered, I was naked, and when I heard you walking through the garden, I was afraid and hid! How did you know you were naked? God asked. Did you eat from the tree I told you not to? Adam said, It was that woman you put here with me! She gave me some of the fruit, and I ate it. The Lord God then asked her, What have you done? The woman answered, The snake tricked me into eating some of that fruit. The Lord God said to the snake: Because of what you have done, you will suffer a greater curse than the cattle and the wild animals. For as long as you live, you will crawl on your stomach and eat dirt from the ground. You and this woman will hate each other. Your descendants and hers will always be enemies. One of them will crush your head, and you will bite him on the heel. The word of the Lord. RESPONSORIAL PSALM 130:1-2 3-4, 5 and 6d-7a R. (7b) With the Lord there is mercy. From a sea of troubles I call out to you, Lord. Won t you please listen As I beg for mercy?
R. With the Lord there is mercy. If you kept record of our sins, no one could last long. But you forgive us, And so we will worship you. R. With the Lord there is mercy. With all my heart, I am waiting, Lord, for you! I trust your promises. Yes, I wait more eagerly than a soldier on guard duty waits for the dawn. Isreal, trust the Lord! R. With the Lord there is mercy. SECOND READING Our bodies are dying but we are being made stronger. A reading from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians 4:16 5:1 Brothers and sisters: We never give up. Our bodies are gradually dying, but we ourselves are being made stronger every day. These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. Things that are seen don t last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. That s why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen. Our bodies are like tents that we live in here on earth. But when these tents are destroyed, we know that God will give each of us a place to live. These homes will not be buildings that someone has made, but they are in heaven and will last forever. The word of the Lord.
ALLELUIA John 12:31b-32 R. Alleluia, alleluia. The prince of this world will now be cast out, and when I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all to myself, says the Lord. R. Alleluia, alleluia. GOSPEL A Long Form It is the end of Satan A reading from the holy gospel according to Mark 3:20-26, 31-35 Jesus went back home, and once again such a large crowd gathered that there was no chance even to eat. When Jesus family heard what he was doing, they thought he was crazy and went to get him under con trol. Some teachers of the Law of Moses came from Jerusalem and said, This man is under the power of Beelzebul, the ruler of demons! He is even forcing out demons with the help of Beelzebul. Jesus told the people to gather around him. Then he spoke to them in fiddles and said: How can Satan force himself out? A nation whose people fight each other won t last very long. And a family that fights won t last long either. So if Satan fights against himself, That will be the end of him. Jesus mother and brothers came and stood outside. Then they sent someone with a message for him to come out to them. The crowd that was sitting around Jesus told him, Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside and want to see you.
Jesus asked, Who is my mother and who are my brothers? Then he looked at the people sitting around him and said, Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who obeys God is my brother or sister or mother. The gospel of the Lord. B Short Form Who are my mother and my brothers? A reading from the holy gospel according to Mark 3:20-21, 31-35 Jesus went back home, and once again such a large crowd gathered that there was no chance even to eat. When Jesus family heard what he was doing, they thought he was crazy and went to get him under control. Jesus mother and brothers came and stood outside. Then they sent someone with a message for him to come out to them. The crowd that was sitting around Jesus told him, Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside and want to see you. Jesus asked, Who is my mother and who are my brothers? Then he looked at the people sitting around him and said, Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who obeys God is my brother or sister or mother. The gospel of the Lord
10 th Sunday of Ordinary Time Opening Prayer: Dear Jesus, Thank you for allowing us to live with you forever and for being the gift of free grace by dying on the cross for our sin. Teach us about your gift of free grace and how we don t have to earn our way to heaven. Amen. Readings: Genesis 3:9-15: Psalm 130:1-2 3-4, 5 and 6d-7 a: II Corinthians 4:16-5:1: John 12:31b-32: Mark 3:20-26, 31-35: Mark 3:20-21, 31-35 Reflection: We know we are born with sin because of the beginning of sin, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the fruit that He told us not to eat. Sin then entered into our own bodies thru our parents and our grandparents like genes are passed down to us. Genes are things like the color of our eyes or the color of our hair, or the shapes of our hands, for example. Sin is now a part of who we are and each of us has it, and each of us commits it. We might lie or steal or cheat or say something mean about someone. Those are all sins. We all do it even though it s hard not to. We were given a punishment by God for sin just like our parents punish us if we misbehave at home. That punishment God gives us, for sin, is not getting to live forever in heaven with him. Instead of us having to pay the price for sin, God sent his son to pay the price by dying on the cross in our place so we do not have to be punished by God. Now, all we have to do is believe it. It s a free gift of grace so that we can live forever in heaven with him. Discussion: 1) Explain how sin entered into the human race through our parents and grandparents going all the way back to Adam and Eve, eventually getting passed on to each of us like our hair or eye color. 2) Describe different types of sins there are and how everyone commits them. 3) Discuss consequences for our behavior and explain how it relates to the consequences of sin, which is not being able to live with God in heaven forever. 4) Talk about how we can live with God forever now because Jesus paid the price when he died on the cross for our sins. Not by anything we do, but that it is a free gift of grace. We know that because Jesus said, It is finished when he died on the cross. 5) Tell the children that this is God s grace and it s free to everyone who believes. Not by our works or by anything we do. 6) Discuss what are some ways we can be kind to others, when we feel rejected and hurt by others? 7) Remind them how much God loves us and how he will love us forever, even though we can never stop sinning, until Jesus comes again. Activity: For this activity, you will need: A good eraser and a piece of paper (preferably white) or a chalk or wipe board and an eraser. To explain God s grace and how he offers it to us for free, by dying on the cross for us, have the children draw a simple outline of a person. Within the body of the drawing, have them write different sins on the arms, legs, head, and within the body of the outline. It doesn t have to be sins they have committed
themselves but just actions they know to be sins (i.e. stealing, disobeying, jealousy, hitting, being selfish, lying, hating, gossip etc.) When they ve filled up their person with these sins have them start erasing the sins from their person. Explain that s what God did by dying on the cross. Have them take a look at the person without the sins and explain that is all of us and only God can remove our sins. Remind them, that s how God washes us white as snow again. Conclude the session with prayer: Father God, Now we understand why sometimes we can t help it when we ourselves commit sin. That it s a part of who we are, like our hair and eye color. We thank you for coming down from heaven and paying the ultimate price by dying on the cross for ALL of everyone s sin. Thank you that, You chose to die on the cross for us so we didn t have to die, but now we can live forever in heaven with you. Thank you for this gift of grace that was given to us as a free gift. Not by anything we need to do, to earn it but because you died as a sacrifice, by your own free will. You came down from heaven to save us all and we thank you. Help us now to make good choices and to allow you to live inside of us through the Holy Spirit. When we have troubles with our friends and family, help us to make good choices so we can get along in love and peace. Help us to show the world who you are by our letting you shine through us by our humble behavior like you were. With the help of your Spirit, we know we can be loving and forgiving with everyone. In Jesus precious name. Amen