Christ the King Sunday

Year 2: November 24, 2019

2 Kings 22:1-10 [11-20]; 23:1-3

When We Were Alone by David A. Robertson

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Commentator Rolfe Jacobson rightly points out that the central irony of this story – about people rediscovering an ancient story – is that it is a fairly unknown story itself!He recounts talking to two learned Bible teachers, neither of whom can recall hearing this story as a child. The rediscovery of the Torah is, in a way, a rediscovering of family history. In Robertson’s book about the legacy of Native American boarding schools, a young girl learns about her grandmother – Nókom – and the many things she does to maintain a connection to her history, despite her experience at the boarding school. Nókom wears bright colors to protest the bland uniforms designed to make the Native American children blend in. She wears her hair long, speaks her native language (Cree), and spends time with her brother – all things that were taken from her during childhood. Because Nókom intentionally does these things, she is able to keep her culture alive. Josiah tries to reclaim his culture, repenting of the ways the people have fallen away from the instruction of Torah. This is an opportunity to talk with children about family traditions, church practices, or other things that set your community apart.

Thanks to Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Joshua Andrzeewski for writing the Year 2 Narrative Lectionary Links.

Lectionary Links (NL): November 24, 2019 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.