April this year includes the last few days of Lent, leading to Holy Week and the celebration of Easter. So it seems fitting that the last of our Lent series of Celebration of the Word Assemblies, inspired by the Jubilee Year, explores the theme of ‘hope’.
In Lent, we remember the hope that only Jesus can bring, and then we celebrate with faith when that hope is realised on Easter Sunday.
This newsletter shares some of the content children will experience in school throughout April, and suggests ways for you to engage with them about it. We hope it is a useful resource for your family prayer time.
JUBILEE JOY: HOPE
Inspired by Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son, this assembly reminds us to be hopeful and positive in our relationships with each other.
Through the image of the father, waiting for his son to return, children learn that even when we turn away from God and make choices that hurt ourselves and other people, God never loses hope that we will come back to Him. We can be hopeful, knowing that God is always ready to forgive us and welcome us back.
With your child/ren, you might like to…
- Talk about hope - a positive feeling that encourages us. You might want to compare the hopes of different members of the family or talk about hope in different contexts e.g. hope in family life, hopes for the world, hope in our faith.
- Read the story of The Prodigal Son together (Luke 15:1-3, 11-32), and talk about the actions of the father and his two sons. The feelings of the faithful son who stays with his father might be interesting to explore, particularly with older children.
- Watch the Together in Hope video released as part of this assembly inspired by the Jubilee Year. You can access it via the Prayer and Liturgy Online Parent Portal.
- Think about the part forgiveness and saying sorry has within family life, perhaps acknowledging that this can be challenging and needs to be practised. For older children, you might wish to discuss the Sacrament of Reconciliation as part of their Lenten preparations and perhaps plan a visit to church to receive this important sacrament.
AN ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS
In the first of our Eastertide assemblies, we celebrate the hope, joy and peace of Easter. Children will consider the meaning of faith and belief through a dramatisation of Thomas’ encounter with Jesus.
Jesus said that those who believe without seeing Him are truly blessed. Like the disciples, children learn that Jesus invites us to believe in Him and share His hope, joy and peace through our words and actions.
With your child/ren, you might like to…
- Talk simply about belief and faith, maybe sharing some of your own beliefs and encouraging your child to do the same.
- With older children you might want to explore the common phrase - ‘seeing is believing’, and how we might come to believe in things that we cannot see e.g believing trusted sources of information. Then discuss what faith is and how we can grow in our faith.
- Listen to our Jubilee focussed prayer reflection song for the season of Easter - ‘Give us Hope’ by One Life Music. You can find the song in the Prayer and Liturgy Parent Portal.
CARLO ACUTIS - A MODERN DAY SAINT
The last week in April is dedicated to celebrating young people in the ‘Jubilee of Teenagers’, and Pope Francis has chosen 27th April to declare Blessed Carlo Acutis a saint. This young man was only 15 years old when he died but is well known for his enthusiastic witness to his faith, calling the Eucharist his ‘highway to heaven’.
Carlo was never shy about speaking about his faith, and he used his talent for technology to share his faith with thousands of people online.
As we celebrate this soon-to-be modern day saint this is a great opportunity for us to think about young people and their contribution to the life of the Church. You can find out more about the life of Blessed Carlo Acutis in this video created by CYMFed.
HOPE FILLED FAITH
Faith is an understanding; being able to see in a spiritual way. It is not a leap in the dark but a leap in the light! The prayers for the first week after Easter invite the Holy Spirit to help children understand and see, in faith, the Hope of Jesus’ Resurrection.
You might like to call on the Holy Spirit as you pray together:
Holy Spirit,
Because of Jesus, I can see, speak, hear and know hope.
Help me grow in hope filled faith each day.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Credits:
Created with images by Romolo Tavani - "Crucifixion At Sunrise - Empty Tomb With Shroud - Resurrection Of Jesus Christ " • vovik_mar - "Panoramic view of colorful sunrise in mountains. Concept of the awakening wildlife, romance,emotional experience in your soul, joy in mundane life." • WavebreakmediaMicro - "Smiling kids jumping together during a sunny day"