18th Sunday after Pentecost

25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B: September 23, 2018

First Reading: Proverbs 31:10-31

Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler By Margery Cuyler

(Written for ages 5-8)

Comment: In Feasting on the Word, H. James Hopkins connects this passage from Proverbs to a community filled with wisdom. Rather than the personification of wisdom in one woman who does it all, wisdom is a part of the community as each woman does what she can to bring about God’s kingdom. (Feasting on the Word: Year B, Volume 4, p 77 & 79) This woman (or women) the scripture talks about sees a need and does what she can to make it happen. In Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler, a few kindergarteners are assigned homework to show kindness in response to their unkind behavior in class. The kids are not told what kindness will look like, only to do it. As these kids share with the class the ways they are showing kindness it begins to change the community. More people are stepping out and being kind. Like the woman in the scripture, these kindergarteners begin to see the needs in their world and ways in which they can help them.

Second Reading: James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a

Star Wars: The Legendary Yoda (DK READERS Level 3) By Catherine Saunders

(Written for ages 7-9)

Comment:  James describes two kinds of wisdom. One comes from the world and is filled with selfish ambition, boasting and lies. The other comes from God and is pure, genuine, and peaceful. James encourages us to choose the wisdom from God and it is through our actions we and the world will know which wisdom we have chosen. When I think of a character that exemplifies pure wisdom, Yoda comes to mind. He is sought out by all who want to learn the way of the Jedi and warns each of them the power of the dark side and encourages them to follow the light. Throughout Star Wars: The Legendary Yoda, we see Yoda continually choose the light side over the dark side. We have the opportunity to choose a pure, genuine loving way of living when we choose to follow the wisdom of God.

Gospel Reading:  Mark 9:30-37

The Pout Pout Fish Goes to School By Deborah Diesen

(Written for ages 3-6)

Comment:  Mr. Fish is starting Kinderguppy and is scared. He finds himself in the hallways of school not understanding. He finds himself in classrooms not understanding and despite wanting to give up, he keeps trying. Mr. Fish does not want to ask questions. He doesn’t want the teachers or other students to know he doesn’t understand. He is about to give up when the kinderguppy teacher sees him and welcomes him into the right classroom where he is at the same level as all the other new students. When Jesus is foretelling about his death, the disciples do not understand what Jesus is talking about, and are afraid to ask questions. The disciples miss out on a deeper understanding because they are afraid to ask questions.  It can be encouraging to hear that the disciples, those closest to Jesus, did not understand everything he says, but we want to encourage children (and adults) to be different from the disciples and ask questions. Jesus teaches us the way to follow him, but we cannot fully understand it unless we ask questions.

Thanks to Union Presbyterian Seminary alumna Elizabeth Boulware Landes for writing the Revised Common Lectionary Links this week.

Lectionary Links (RCL): September 23, 2018 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.