Page 10 - Promise - Program Preview

Lesson Theme: Jesus invites us to a holy meal.
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
October 15, 2023
Jesus invites us to a holy meal.
Teaching This Week’s Lesson
Share Experiences
Objective The children will explore their experiences of going to celebrations.
Play and sing “Come, Do This in Memory of Me” (CD-1, #20) to begin your session.
Gathering Prayer Invite a child to point to the current Sunday on a Church Year calendar. Pray: “Jesus, you give us the Mass and Holy Communion so we can be part of you and you can be part of us. Thank you for giving us this gift. Bless us today so we can learn more about you and become better members of your Church.”The children respond, “Amen.”
Cover Activity l Jesus invites us to a holy meal. (pages 1 & 4) Gather the children at their worktables. Ask: What are some special days or events that you’ve been invited to celebrate? Holidays, birthdays, weddings. Ask: What happens at these celebrations? Special food, games, prizes, gifts, clothes. Ask: What are your feelings are about these events? Love, excitement, happiness, sharing, belonging.
Distribute Promise. Invite the children to examine the photos and tell you where they were taken. In a church. At Mass. At a Baptism. Invite a volunteer to describe the first photo (a Baptism). Ask: When have you been at a Baptism? What happened? Where did you stand? Go on to the photos of children bringing up the gifts, receiving a blessing during Communion time, and praying the Lord’s Prayer. Remind the children that they are always invited to God’s house and to Mass. Read aloud the page title. Ask: What is the holy meal that Jesus invites us to? Mass, Holy Communion, the Eucharist.
Direct the children to open Promise so they can see pages 1 and
4 side by side. Ask: Which words and drawing go with each photo? Distribute pencils and direct them to draw lines from the words and drawings to the matching photos.
Story l Steve’s Birthday Party A coloring page to accompany this story is available at gospelweeklies.com/lesson- updates. Gather the children in a story circle and tell this story:
Steve’s mom promised him that he could have a party on his seventh birthday and invite three friends. Steve helped his mom plan the food, games, and prizes. He made three invitations that said: “Come to my party this Saturday, 1 p.m.” Steve gave one invitation to John, one to Pedro, and one to Mary.
On Tuesday at school, Mike and Terry said to Steve: “Are you having a birthday party? Can we come too?” Steve said, “Yes.” That night, he
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made two more invitations and gave them to Mike and Terry on Wednesday.
On Thursday, Mark and Samantha ran up to Steve on the playground. “Can we come to your party?” they asked. “OK,” said Steve. He made two more invitations and gave them to Mark and Samantha on Friday.
On Saturday morning, Steve helped get ready for the birthday party. He set eight places at the table. “Steve,” said his mom, “you have set too many places.” Steve looked at his mom and said, “Mark, Samantha, Mike, and Terry wanted to come too, so I invited them.”
His mother laughed. “It’s a good thing I baked a big cake and bought extra hats and prizes. We have room for all of your friends, Steve. Next time, please tell me how many guests you have invited.” Then she gave Steve a big hug and said, “Happy Birthday!”
Ask: What kind of friend is Steve? Would you have invited all the children to your party? What kind of person is Steve’s mother? What is the most fun about a birthday party?
Activity l Stretch and Move Direct the children to leave their copies of Promise at their worktables and gather in a circle in the open area, holding hands. Have them take two steps back then drop their hands. Lead them in a stretching activity:
Stretch, stretch your hands up high.
Now let your fingers fly.
Stomp your feet, both left and right, left and right. Now stretch again—up, up, up high!
Repeat the verse and movements.
Discover Gospel and Doctrine
Objectives l The children will:
l RecognizethatJesusinvitesallpeopletobelongtoGod’s family.
l Identify Mass as the most special celebration of God’s family. Stand and sing “Gospel Acclamation” (CD-2, #24) to prepare for the proclamation of the Gospel.
Sunday Gospel l The Wedding Feast Explain that Jesus told this story about a king who wanted to give a wedding celebration and meal for his son:
Jesus said: “Listen to this parable about what God’s kingdom is like. Once there was a king whose son was getting married. The king decided to throw a big wedding feast. The king said to his messengers, ‘Go out and tell the people I invited that the feast is ready.’
TG1-18