Children's Liturgy

Celebrating the Liturgy of the Word with Children

YEAR A – 4th Sunday of Lent

This liturgy is written following the format of the Welcome the Word Liturgy series by Sister Joan Brown SND and has been adapted for the fourth Sunday in Lent, known in many parishes in Scotland as “SCIAF Sunday”. A collection is taken in churches for Papal and Episcopal Charities, which includes SCIAF.

‘HE HAS OPENED MY EYES’

Resources – SCIAF Lenten Box – The Wee Box Appeal

Sharing
Ask the children what they saw on the way to church today? What colours did they see? Did they see any flowers? Did they see smiling faces? What would it be like if you couldn’t see?

What kind of things would children miss seeing if they were blind or if it was always dark?

Today in the gospel we are going to hear about a man who could not see.

Welcome and proclaiming the Gospel
Glory and Praise to you,
For all the colours we see.
O Lord, you help us all to see.
Glory and Praise to you.

A reading from the Good News given to us by St John

Glory to you, Lord Jesus

One day as Jesus was walking along he saw a man who had been born blind. Jesus bent down, licked his fingers, made a muddy paste with the dust on the ground and spread it on the man’s eyes. Then he told the man “Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam.” The man went, washed, and he could see. Many people could not believe that the man could see and asked him what happened.

The man said “Jesus made a paste, spread it on my eyes; I washed and now I can see!”

This is the Gospel of the Lord

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

Discussion
What happened when Jesus met the blind man?

How do you think the blind man felt when he could see?

Some people cannot see because they are blind. They live in darkness. But there is another way people can be blind. That is when people don’t see what is happening to others around the world.

Do you know what Sunday this is? It is the day when we think about the work of SCIAF. Does anyone know what SCIAF does?

One of SCIAF’s main jobs is to stop people being blind to what is happening to others around the world. They want to help us all to see what is happening in other countries. Just like Jesus helped the blind man to see, SCIAF wants to help us to see what is happening to others so that we can try to help.

Here is a story about someone SCIAF helped.

Meet Jenneth! (pronounced Janet)

When Jenneth was 14, she was kidnapped on her way to school by the rebel army. For five years they made her fight in the war as a teenage soldier until the day she was rescued by a priest, who took Jenneth to a safe house supported by SCIAF.

Jenneth says if the house wasn’t there, she doesn’t know what would have happened to her. Now Jenneth is 21 years old. She’s learning how to sew clothes to earn her own living. Her two sons, Wultur and Gurfre, go to nursery while Jenneth does her training.

One day, she hopes to have her own business.

Do you see this little box? SCIAF wants you to put wee pennies into this wee box during Lent. The money will help people like Jenneth and her children. Look, you can see her children on the box. Jenneth says “Thank you SCIAF and people from Scotland who have helped me”

Jesus helped the blind man to see.

SCIAF helps us to see things we cannot see because they are so far away.

Resources & background information available from SCIAF, 19 Park Circus, Glasgow G3 6BE. Tel: 0141 354 5555 or www.theweebox.org

Many thanks to Deirdre McGowan, St Michael’s Primary School, Dumbarton, for preparing this liturgy.