Lectionary Links (NL): December 29, 2019
1st Sunday of Christmas
Year 2: December 29, 2019
That Fruit is Mine! by Anuska Allepuz
(Written for ages 3 to 5)
Comment: We finally get the first story featuring Jesus in this lectionary cycle, and it is striking that Mark’s gospel introduces him in the context of partnership and community. John the Baptist prepares the way for – and baptizes – Jesus. Almost immediately, Jesus calls his disciples to join him in fishing for people. It is clear Jesus doesn’t come into the world to do things by himself, but rather invites other people into the work of making this world more like the kingdom of heaven. In Allepuz’s amusingly illustrated story, a group of elephants discover an enticing fruit deep in the forest. The elephants all try to get the fruit on their own, using a variety of methods (none of which are successful). Simultaneously, a small group of mice work together and, slowly but surely, they are able to get the fruit. This illustrates the idea that God made people to work together in harmony to accomplish our goals. You might remind children that this is a consistent theme throughout the Bible, even going back to the creation of Adam and Eve (the first story in this narrative lectionary cycle). Jesus doesn’t work alone and God doesn’t work alone, either. Jesus shows us how to work together to help make the world a better place.
Thanks to Union Presbyterian Seminary alumnus Joshua Andrzejewski for writing the Year 2 Narrative Lectionary Links this year.
Lectionary Links (NL): December 29, 2019 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
