“Baptism is a celebration of joining God’s family. When you were baptized, the priest poured holy water over your head and anointed you with oil. You were dressed in white clothes as a sign of being washed clean of sin. And you were welcomed into God’s family.” (Catholic Book of Bible Stories page 110)
“Thank you for welcoming us into your family, Lord, through the sacrament of baptism. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen”
For families to share together:
Pray the Rosary with your children. Use the crucifix to cross yourselves:
“Begin with the sign of the cross, then say an Our Father, ten Hail Mary’s and a Glory Be.” From Magnifikid! Vol. 14.Part 9. Section 4
Add the “Apostles’ Creed” and the first of the five Luminous Mysteries: The Baptism of Jesus.
Happening This Week
The Saint’s Day of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux–“The Little Flower of Jesus,” October 1, 2017
Excerpt from Fransciscan Media “Saint of the Day“:
“Few saints of God are more popular than this young nun. Her autobiography, The Story of a Soul, is read and loved throughout the world. Thérèse Martin entered the convent at the age of 15 and died in 1897 at the age of 24.”
“Thérèse, like so many saints, sought to serve others, to do something outside herself, to forget herself in quiet acts of love.“
The Saint’s Day of The Holy Guardian Angels, October 2, 2017
“Today the Church honors our guardian angels. Each one of us has a guardian angel whom God has appointed to watch over us, and to protect us. In the words of Psalm 91, ‘The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.’ (Ps 91:11)
Source: Magnifikid! Prayers for Schools page 65
We celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, October 4, 2017.
Source: FranciscanMedia.org
“Saint Francis gave up a life of wealth and comfort to help and care for the poor. He is a profoundly popular saint, particularly with children, and is fondly remembered for his love of animals and all God’s creations.”
Source: Saints and Angels, page 40.
Excerpt from Peace Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi
“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me bring love.
Where there is offense, let me bring pardon.
Where there is discord, let me bring union.
Where there is error, let me bring truth.
Where there is doubt, let me bring faith.
Where there is despair, let me bring hope.
Where there is darkness, let me bring your light.
Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.”
“Saint Francis of Assisi is the Patron Saint of:
Animals
Archaeologists
Ecology
Italy
Merchants
Messengers
Metal Workers”
Source: FranciscanMedia.Org
Our Lady of the Rosary, October 7, 2017
A Beautiful Rosary Story from Franciscan Media
“The purpose of the rosary is to help us meditate on the great mysteries of our salvation.” Source: FranciscanMedia.org
We Learn through Storytelling
The two stories of “The Baptism of Jesus” and “The Temptation of Jesus in the Wilderness ” are among my favorite children’s Bible stories. John the Baptist is the cousin of Jesus. He is wandering through the wilderness telling everyone about the Kingdom of God and telling them to “repent.” Repent means to give up the bad things people were doing, and to be baptized for the forgiveness of sins. John the Baptist is also a messenger–it’s his job to pave the way for Christ, the Messiah. “I am baptizing you with water, ” he said, “But someone else will come after me who will baptize you with God’s love.” Source: The Baptism of Jesus by Katherine Sully Illustrated by Simona SanFilippo, page 6. Imagine John’s surprise when Jesus comes down to the River Jordan to be baptized among the people of Galilee. Jesus says to John, “I have come to the river today, because this is the right way.” So John baptizes Jesus in the River Jordan.” What do you think you’d feel and think, if you had been there and had seen the Holy Spirit come down in the form of a dove? Imagine hearing God’s voice say, “This is my son, whom I love.” The Baptism of Jesus page 8.
After Jesus is baptized, he leaves the area around Galilee and goes into the wilderness for forty days and forty nights. This is where we now need to remember that although Jesus is “Fully Human” he is also “Fully Divine.” This means that Jesus is God, the Son. Can you guess who might want to trick or tempt Jesus? Hint: Remember the serpent in Adam and Eve? Who really was the serpent? That’s right…it was Satan. Satan is the name Jesus calls the devil. Satan suddenly appears when Jesus is very weak and hungry from a long fast. A “fast” is a time when a person doesn’t eat and sometimes doesn’t drink, too. He offers Jesus three bad temptations–#1 “Turn the stones into bread.” #2 “Throw yourself off this tower for the angels to catch you.” #3 “Worship me not God.” Jesus beats Satan on all the temptations and says to Satan, “No! Go away! We should worship only God.” page 15. Then three angels come to take Jesus away and care for him.
If you haven’t read this story, you will love reading it, I’m sure.
Parents, please help your children understand the meanings of the highlighted words.
We Learn Through Reading
“The Baptism of Christ” and the connected story, “The Temptation in the Desert” begin the Gospel of Christ’s life as an adult and his life preaching. “The Baptism of Christ” is the first of the “Luminous Mysteries” for the Rosary. We are introduced to John the Baptist in the first story, and to “Satan” in the second. As you can see, both stories are profoundly important. Here are some different books for the story to read with children. I am listing the ones for younger children first, followed by two which are more complex for older children to enjoy, then the Didache Bible for the family to share. The Catholic Bible for Children does not contain “The Temptation in the Wilderness.”
The Catholic Bible for Children
Catholic Book of Bible Stories
The Children’s Illustrated Bible
The Catholic Children’s Bible (I think this is excellent for children 12 and older.)
The Didache Bible Read Matthew, chapter 3 and chapter 4
We Learn Through Writing
Baptism is a sacrament. “A Sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace.” Grace is a gift from God and helps us have a share in God’s life. There are Seven Sacraments–Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony. We will look at this in more depth over the months.
We Celebrate Through Song
An African American Spiritual about Baptism
Wade in the Water Text from Hymnary.org.
Refrain:
Wade in the water, wade in the water, children,
wade in the water, God’s a-goin’a trouble the water.
1 See that host all dressed in white,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water.
the leader looks like the Israelite,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water. [Refrain]
2 See that band all dressed in red,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water.
looks like the band that Moses led,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water. [Refrain]
3 Look over yonder, what do I see?
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water.
the Holy Ghost a-coming on me,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water. [Refrain]
4 If you don’t believe I’ve been redeemed,
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water.
just follow me down to Jordan’s stream.
God’s a-goin’a trouble the water. [Refrain]
The Rennas Sing about Holy Water
We Celebrate Through Art
Vocabulary for Project–Holy Spirit, dove, flame, John the Baptist, River Jordan, baptism, holy water
Invite your children to draw with watercolor crayons then to go over their drawings with a wet finger or brush. I prefer using a finger because it works very nicely. After they have read the story, they’ll know about the Holy Spirit descending as a dove. I chose to do a band of three colors to represent the desert, the River Jordan, and the sky. Perhaps they can have fun trying to draw John the Baptist’s fur clothing. I found the design for the Holy Spirit and Flame on Pinterest.
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