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30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
“Tools” for the Classroom or at Home: activities, crafts, games, puzzles, worksheets, lesson plans, classroom tips, etc. for all ages.
October 25, 2020
Love the Lord God with all your heart.
Does this mean that we canât love anyone else? No, God tells us we need to love others, but we need to remember, it is God, who gives us love. Without God, there would be no love in the world.
There are so many books, songs and movies about love. Do you think love is important?
God is love; the love we feelin our hearts. We need to remember he has given us this great gift and thank him everyday for allowing us to feel love. The love that we share with our moms, dads, brothers, sisters, grandmothers, etc., and most importantly, with God is what our whole life is about. Without God, there is no love.
In todayâs gospel Jesus sums up all the teaching of a thousand years, five books of the bible and dozens of prophets in one sentence. He tells us what the most important thing God has to tell us.
When Jesus is asked âwhich commandment is most important?â His answer has two parts. First we are to love God, second we are to love our neighbor, as we love ourselves. This teaching was not a new one for the religious leaders of Jesusâ time. What made it new and necessary was that Jesus presents both commandments as equally important.Todayâs reading tells us there is no commandment more important to live by than the two great commandments.
The Two Great Commandments
Catechist Background and Preparation
Primary Session
Intermediate Session
Junior High School
Sacrament Connection
The sacrament of Baptism celebrates our response to Godâs invitation to believe in Jesus Christ and live the Gospel. As Baptized Christians we are called to live the great commandment and be a sign of Godâs presence in the world.
30A Ordinary Time
30A Ordinary Time
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30A Ordinary Time
The One Green Apple beautifully illustrated book becomes an opportunity for students to learn and appreciate the richness and diversity of Godâs world. As a Muslim girl (Farrah) rides in a hay wagon heading to an apple orchard on a class trip, her duppata (the head scarf) on her heads sets her apart. She observes that while some children are friendly, others are not. As the story progresses and the students each supplies an apple into the cider press, Farrah places a green apple into the press while all the other students place shiny red apples in the press. The resulting cider from the collective contribution of all the students is delicious, thus providing a metaphor for the benefits garnered by the richness of diversity. Certainly this story speaks explicitly to the importance of relationships and growing into right relationship.
30A Ordinary Time
Todayâs gospel âbottom-linesâ it for us. Jesus tells us that there are 2 main, important things we need to know about what He preached and the law of God. âBottom-lineâ we are to love God more than anything else and love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Simple, right? Yes and no! It is easy to understand the first part, loving God more than anything else but it is not always so easy to do. For example, it can sometimes be hard to love God more than anything else on Sunday mornings when we would love to stay in bed or at home watching cartoons. Can you think of other times when it is hard to love God more than anything else?
Jesus is kinda tricky with the second part. We are to love our neighbor as ourselves. Seems simple but there are actually 3 things we need to be able to do. Before we can loves someone else the way we love our self we must first love our self. What are some of the ways we love ourselves and is this always easy? Is it by doing everything that will make us happy? What about when we eat too much candy, which will make us happy but will also make our tummies sick and our bodies unhealthy?
Next, in order to love our neighbor as ourselves we must figure out who our neighbor is. Who is Jesus talking about when He says, âLove your neighbor?â Is it only the people who live next door to us? Our family? Our friends? Finally, we have to figure out how to love them. Can you think of some example of how you love your neighbor as your self? It can be very difficult sometimes but Jesus is always there to help us because He loves EVERYONE, including us. If we ask Him, He willhelp us learn how to love everyone as we love ourselves
Activity:
Materials needed: 24 inch pieces of yarn, enough for everyone in the class. Fruit loop cereal and/or beads.
Preparation: Tie knots at one end of each piece of yarn. Set-out several bowls of the cereal or beads so that several children can share them. Tell the children that the yarn represents Godâs love for them and when they finish the project it will be made into a loop that will surround them as Godâs love does.
There will be 3 sections to the necklace. Begin by asking each child to briefly describe a way they show their love for God. They will then put a piece of cereal or a bead on the yarn for each example they give. Let each child give 3 or 4 examples. Then put a different colored bead or a knot to separate these examples from the next set. Ask the children to give examples of how they love themselves and place a bead/cereal on the yarn for each example. Place a different colored bead or a knot to separate these from the 3rd set. Ask the children to give examples of how they love their neighbors. Tie the 2 ends of the yarn together to make a necklace.Ask the children to wear their necklaces back to church and after Mass to tell their parents what each bead represents. If using cereal, remind them not to eat it until after Mass.
