Lectionary Links: Sunday, November 25, 2012

Reign of Christ Sunday

Year B:  November 25, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 23:1-7

Hurry by Emily Arnold McCully

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment:  Last words hold a certain power over us. We might replay a final conversation again and again through our minds. Last words may serve to comfort, unsettle, affirm, or move us to action. According to Marcia Mount Shoop, the last words of David display that, even in the midst of his many failings, “he has come to the end of his rule remembering that when his kingship has been at it’s best, it has been because he has remembered he is with God.” (Feasting on the Word: Year B, Volume 4, p 316) We are stirred by David’s last words to remember that human power, so easily corruptible, must continually be refocused toward a vision of God’s kingdom.  McCully’s book tells the story of a single last word that is also meant to refocus our attention. A Farivox, possibly the last of its kind, says, “Hurry!” to young Tom. This one word stirs within readers a sense of urgency, refocusing us to the understanding that our way of life may cause the end of life for a number of species.

Second Reading: Revelation 1:4b-8

The Mangrove Tree by Susan L.Roth & Cindy Trumbore

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come…” Jane E. Fahey speaks of God’s reign as both an already and a not yet. She explains that God’s transformative work in the world, begun in Jesus Christ, continues today and into the future. (Feasting on the Word: Year B, Volume 4, p 328) In a world suffering from human destruction and greed, we are called to be a faithful witness by living into the hope of the transformative power of Christ’s reign. The Mangrove Tree is a true story of  hope and transformation. Scientist Gordon Sato worked with the villagers of Hargigo in Eritrea to help alleviate poverty and hunger. Dr. Sato named his project after the Japanese American Concentration camp where he lived during WWII because he wanted “to remind people that it is possible to fight injustice with hope.”

Gospel Reading: John 18:33-37

Goodbye, Curtis by Kevin Henkes

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” For Rodger Y. Nishioka, this text centers on belonging. “When Jesus tells Pilate that all who listen to Jesus’ voice belong to the truth and are part of his kingdom, he is saying…that belonging is less about individual decisions and more about collective participation in a community that transcends the self.” (Feasting on the Word: Year B, Volume 4, p 332 & 336) We aren’t in control of our belonging to Christ’s kingdom, God is. This understanding presents a wonderful invitation to explore the concept of belonging to a community with children. Goodbye, Curtis is the story of a community bound together by their letter carrier of 42 years. They belong to one another through their common love for Curtis and Curtis’s love for them. In Christ’s kingdom we may look, act, or feel differently and yet, we belong to one another because we belong to God.

The Lectionary Links this week are written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 12, 2012

19^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 2, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33

Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You by Nancy Tillman

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: This week’s Old Testament passage deals with violence and death. This is not a passage geared for children. Yet, in the midst of the battle and death of Absalom, we hear and see King David’s love for his son. The passage begins with David’s request to “deal gently” with Absalom and ends with David weeping for his son’s death. Nancy Tillman writes about the unconditional love that is shared between parents and children. Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You reminds children that anywhere they go and in anything they do their parents’ love is going with them. This love will surround them even if they cannot feel it or see it. David’s love for his son went with Absalom even when they were at war with each other. David’s love for his son kept him from focusing on the fact that he won the war. Instead of celebrating he mourned the death of Absalom.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Confessions of a Former Bully by Trudy Ludwig

(Written for ages 8-12)

Comment: Children are gearing up and getting ready to head back to school. For some this might be a scary time and for others it might be a time to reinvent themselves. In the passage from Ephesians, Paul is encouraging the church to live out the new life in Christ they have all received. With competing information vying for our attention, it is a nice reminder that we have the knowledge and the spirit to help us change who we are and become disciples of Christ. In Confessions of a Former Bully, Katie has been caught bullying again, and is called to the principal’s office. One of her consequences is to meet with the school counselor once a week to learn about bullying behaviors. As she learns all this new information Katie is able to learn how to build up her school community. This book provides is about empowering children to choose who they want to be. The person we choose to be, with God’s help, is who we become.

Gospel Reading: John 6:35, 41-52

The Little Green Goose by Adele Sansone

(Written for ages 3-8)

Comment: After overhearing the other barnyard animals discussing how he doesn’t look like a goose, the little green goose is on a search for his identity. He searches far and wide, only to discover he knew who he was all along and runs home to his daddy. The Little Green Goose is a book that helps us claim our identity, even when our identity does not fit what others expect it to be. Jesus faces the same challenge in this passage from John. Jesus has made the statement “I am the bread of life” (v 35), and the Jews who know that he is the son of Mary and Joseph challenge him. These two descriptors of Jesus are at odds with each other in the eyes of the Jews. Both Jesus and the little green goose must choose to claim their identity or allow the outside world to do it for them. The little green goose, who looks more like a dinosaur than a goose, and Jesus, who makes a claim at odds with what others already know about him, both make the difficult decision to claim their identity.

The Lectionary Links this week are written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 6, 2012

18^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 6, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13a

Franklin Says Sorry by Paulette Bourgeois

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: This passage begins with a reminder of the unimaginable things David has done as king. Nathan visits David, upon God’s direction, and tells a parable in which one man is obliviously evil, and the other is obliviously good.  As David learns that he is the evil man in the story, he responds with a confession to the Lord. Like David, Franklin, in Franklin Says Sorry, has made a mistake that hurt people around him and is only able to respond with a confession after being encouraged by a friend. Franklin and David both learn the important skill of being able to acknowledge what you have done and to say sorry, but both need the help of a friend to show them the way. We are reminded with both of these texts, that sometimes we need our friends to help us say we are sorry when we make mistakes.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:1-16

The Crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf

(Written for ages 5 – adult)

Comment: Paul is reminding the church in Ephesus of the importance of being unified while at the same time highlighting the diversity and unique gifts each person brings to the church. Working towards unity in a group does not mean that everyone is exactly the same. What is does mean is that as we work towards the unity of the community, we each share the gifts we have for the benefit of the whole community. The individual crayons in The Crayon Box That Talked must learn this lesson. Before they are able to see what each crayon brings to the picture they talk negatively to one another, yet after they have been given the opportunity to see a whole picture come together, they begin to speak positively to one another. This book reminds us to keep an open mind to what each person can offer to the group to make our picture complete.

Gospel Reading: John 6:24-35

The Lost and Found Tooth by Louise Borden

(Written for ages 7-10)

Comment: Lucy wants desperately to add her name to the lost tooth calendar. It seems like almost everyone else in her class, maybe even in the second grade, has had the honor of writing their story about losing a tooth except her. In reading the passage from John, I get the sense that this feeling of being left out is something the crowd is experiencing. They had just been taught and fed by Jesus and the disciples, and then he disappears with the disciples. When they finally find Jesus, in the midst of the conversations the crowd asks for a sign so that they may believe. Lucy and the crowd have in common a deep desire to be a part of something. Lucy is finally able to add her name to the list, but the crowd does not receive the sign they are expecting. Instead Jesus responds to request with words culminating in “I am the bread of life” (v35).

With today’s Lectionary Links, we welcome recent Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes as our guest writer for the next thirteen weeks.  Elizabeth has had a great deal of experience in working with children and youth and is currently serving as Pastoral Intern at First Presbyterian Church, Ft. Worth, TX.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 29, 2012

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 29, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 11:1-15

Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tiny Lie by Laura Rankin

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: This disturbing text is a quintessential story of our human desire to want what isn’t ours. As adults we are likely horrified by David’s actions towards both Bathsheba and Uriah. We might not be ready to tell the full story to our children, yet even small children will have experienced the desire to take something that doesn’t belong to them. Ruthie also takes something that isn’t hers, lies about it, and then feels pretty rotten. People make mistakes, and it’s important to talk about the options we have after we’ve made a mistake. David chose to dig himself into a deeper, destructive hole. Ruthie sought to change the situation and make amends. How would we act?

Second Reading: Ephesians 3:14-21

Did I Tell You I Love You Today? by Deloris and Roslyn M. Jordan

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” In this epistle we hear that to know and be rooted in Christ’s love, is to more fully be the people God has created and is calling us to be. We are empowered to be the best versions of ourselves. Children’s first experience of God’s love is often through the love of a parent, like that described in the Jordans’ story. The mother in the story begins and ends her day with a prayer for her children, thinking of ways to bring out the best in them and encourage them through her words and actions.

Gospel Reading: John 6:1-21

Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: I love the gospel story of the boy who shared his lunch. It is a powerful image of the ways God can use us and whatever we have, to accomplish God’s plans for the world. It is especially empowering for young children to see a child at the center of the action. The miracle of this text is in the sharing with others. Extra Yarn is also a story of a child who shares and the abundance and beauty that comes from her giving to others. This text and story are great inspirations to celebrate the ways the children (and grown-ups!) in your congregation share from their resources.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.  Noell will be  beginning a well deserved vacation and our Links for the next 13 weeks will be written by recent Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.  We look forward to her contributions!

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 22, 2012

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 22, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 6:1-5

The House on Dirty-Third Street by Jo S. Kittinger

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Thus says the Lord of hosts… I have been with you wherever you went… and I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more… Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house.” These words to Nathan describe God’s constant presence and participation in the settling and creating of home for David, Israel, and the generations to come. What does it take to be settled, safe, in a place one can call home? Kittinger explores the creation of home through the experience of a young girl. Turning the house on dirty-third street into a home requires many hands, eyes of faith, and the love of a community that is moved by the Spirit of the living God.

Second Reading: Ephesians 2:11-22

I Am I by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” Often we allow those things that distinguish us from one another to divide us, building a hostile environment. As we read from today’s epistle, our reconciliation, our peace, is in Christ. In Christ we see one another with new eyes. I Am I  is a story inspired by a Native American river symbol describing the divisions and connection points between two cultures. It explores the separation and hostility between two boys, as well as their journey to peace.

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

Five Minutes Peace by Jill Murphy

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” Even in the midst of hustle, bustle, and doing good work, rest is necessary. The reading from Mark describes a scene where Jesus and the disciples are physically separating themselves from the crowds in order to have a time of rest. Even as they draw away the crowds gather. Five Minutes Peace is the story of a mother Elephant looking for a moment’s rest in her wild home. Her children pursue her much as the crowds must have pursued Jesus.

The Lectionary Links this week were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 15, 2012

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 15, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19

The Jazz of Our Street by Fatima Shaik

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the Lord with all their might, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.” This reading from 2 Samuel sparks our imagination as we picture parades and processionals of music and dancing. As David and the thousands who paraded with the Ark danced and made music, we can reflect on the way the presence of the Lord draws us in and evokes celebration. The sounds, emotions, and movements of such a parade can be further explored through Shaik’s poetic story of second lining in New Orleans’ Tremé. We, too, have been drawn into the parade “because the band called us today, and we pranced, played, and swayed…”

Second Reading: Ephesians 1:3-14

I Belong to the Christian Faith by Katie Dicker & Sam Dilkes

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.” What is our inheritance and how do we live it out? I Belong to the Christian Faith tells of a boy’s experience of being Christian. Use this book to explore Sam’s spiritual life and connect, compare, and contrast it with the spiritual lives of the children in your church. Consider the ways this lectionary text and Sam’s story can open a conversation about what it is to be Christian, to belong to God, and to be part of the Church.

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:14-29

A Terrible Thing Happened: A Story for Children Who Have Witnessed Violence or Trauma by Margaret M. Holmes

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Today’s lectionary readings do an interesting job of avoiding the experience of trauma through the omissions in the first text, and then facing trauma head on with the story of John the Baptist’s death. This is not so unlike the way we deal with trauma in our own lives: we can ignore or acknowledge it. It’s helpful to think about the ways children internalize the trauma they experience, as well as the ways we are called to help them process and talk about it. Holmes tells the story of a young boy who witnesses a traumatic event and the ways he is affected by, and eventually able to process, his experience.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate and regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 8, 2012

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 8, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10

Arthur and the Sword by Robert Sabuda

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “The Lord said to you: ‘It is you who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you who shall be ruler over Israel.’ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel.” As we have read over the summer, David’s story is one of someone small, young, and unexpected being called as king. Arthur was another small, young, unexpected boy called and chosen to be king in his time. While you can find Arthur’s story in a variety of anthologies and library books, Sabuda’s edition offers lovely images to accompany the tale.

Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:2-10

The Greedy Sparrow: An Armenian Tale by Lucine Kasbarian

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh…” Though we can only venture a guess as to what Paul’s thorn was,  he says it was given to him to keep him from being too elated. His reflections suggest that he was able to find a helpful purpose in it’s presence. Kasbarian’s folktale begins with the pain of a thorn. Free from the pain of the thorn, the sparrow grows greedy and sings with elation at what he’s accomplished. The tale ends “leaving the sparrow as he began… with nothing but a thorn in his foot!” Readers are left hoping the sparrow will discover a lesson through his experience.

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:1-13

Not the Piano, Mrs. Medley! by Evan Levine

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: “He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.” This text can be a hard one for us to think about in a culture where we have gadgets for everything and we like our stuff. However, our things can weigh us down and keep us from the actual task at hand. Not the Piano, Mrs. Medley! is a great story and visual experience of a person weighed down and delayed by too much stuff. Jesus shared with the disciples that they didn’t need to take much to follow him and do the work to which they were called. This reading presents a good opportunity to reflect on what we need to follow Jesus today versus what delays us from our path.

This week’s Lectionary Links are written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 1, 2012

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 1, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27

Sweet, Sweet Memory by Jacqueline Woodson

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: David sings a song of lament over the death of Saul and Jonathan. Any of us who have experienced loss understand the need to grieve. Grief is expressed in many different ways in our lives. David expresses the root of his grief as distress over the loss of one beloved. He sings a song remembering how those he loved have died. Others spend time with friends and family weaving together the songs of lives well lived, the notes of memories strung together, playing the song of one beloved. In many ways, Woodson’s book is a song whose refrain is the sweet, sweet memory of Grandpa’s words: “life goes on and on.”

Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 8:7-15

The Man Who Caught Fish by Walter Lyon Krudop

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” Jesus is the example we are called to follow. We are called to lives lived generously, seeking a fair balance, where each would have enough. The Man Who Caught Fish is what some might call a trickster’s tale. The king becomes obsessed when the stranger who comes to town gives everyone one fish. He does everything in his power to receive more because he is the king. In the end he gets all the fish, but not in the way he’d hoped. This is truly a story of one who is rich becoming poor in order to learn what it is to be generous and to have enough.

Gospel Reading: Mark 5:21-43

Under the Lemon Moon by Edith Hope Fine

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: In this text, both Jairus and the woman seek Jesus for his healing touch. For anyone who has been sick or loved someone who was sick, it’s not too difficult to imagine the desperation these people must have felt. Nothing else had worked, Jesus was likely their last hope. What was it like to seek him? To find him? To witness a cure? In a small way, readers experience a similar quest and miracle as they follow Rosalinda on the path to heal her lemon tree. When all the advice has been followed and the tree is still ill, she desperately seeks La Anciana, the Old One. Eventually her persistence and faith lead to healing and hope.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, December 18, 2011

4^th Sunday in Advent

Year B:  December 18, 2011

First Reading: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16

The Carpenter’s Gift by David Rubel

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: Understanding the consistent grace of God is a helpful way to explore this text with children. Mark Douglas suggests that for the Babylonian exiles, hearing this text would have been “a way of hoping for a future based on what God has done in the past.” He goes on to say that for us to hear the text in this way is a chance to “watch the gospel be born anew.” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 1, p 78) We see a vision of hope for the future based on the past in The Carpenter’s Gift. When Henry’s wish for a house comes true through the gifts of many people, he plants a pinecone in gratitude. The pinecone grows into a huge tree, which many years later allows Henry to share the gift of a house with another family.

Second Reading: Romans 16:25-27

Cricket at the Manger by Edith Hope Fine

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: This doxology from Romans is an expression of praise for the way God is made known to us through Jesus Christ—the incarnation. Sally A. Brown declares it shocking that God would come to earth as one of us, with flesh and bone, a vulnerable baby. “By grace, shock may give way to holy stillness, holy stillness to rising joy, until we leap to shout ‘Praise!’ to the one who took flesh for our redemption.” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 1, p 91) Cricket, too, goes through a process before he leaps to praise. When he finally comes face to face with the Christ child, he is moved to sing a song of joy.

Gospel Reading: Luke 1:26-38

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (a picture book adaptation) by Barbara Robinson

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “…nothing will be impossible with God.” The story of the annunciation is truly one where, through God, the impossible occurs. The classic story, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, is also a story of impossible transformation. Everyone expects the Christmas pageant to bomb because the Herdmans—aka “the worst kids in the history of the world”—have hijacked all the main roles. How can it really be a Christmas pageant when they don’t even know the story of Jesus’ birth? Although the Herdmans take artistic freedoms in interpreting their roles, it is clear that they have truly encountered the Son of God. The impossible did occur: “Every wrong thing the Herdmans did seemed right and natural… It was the best Christmas pageant ever!”

This Lectionary Links post was written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun.