Pictures from our Celebration!

John, Jesus, and Peter!

We held the Last Supper Celebration today in the atrium. It was a lovely morning, and fun to have the different age groups together. You can learn more about our morning by reading this previous post on the Last Supper Celebration.

This is such a quiet and intimate celebration that I didn't want to interrupt by taking photos. But I managed to snap some pictures as we drank juice and ate lots and lots of matzo at the end. I seriously doubt anyone needed lunch today!

The Last Supper, Revisited

Last Sunday, children in the Good Shepherd and True Vine Atria saw the Cenacle Presentation. Today I am re-posting a description of the work, that appeared in the blog last Lent. I hope you enjoy it!

Recently children in the Good Shepherd and True Vine Atria saw the Cenacle (or Last Supper) Presentation. The Cenacle is a Latin name for the Upper Room, where the Last Supper took place. This is one of my favorite works in the atrium and one that the children return to again and again. With this work, we read a scriptural account of Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples (which is actually a compilation of several accounts), pausing to move the figures accordingly.

The highlight of the reading is this moment when Jesus is gathered around the table celebrating the Passover with his friends. We hear anew the words he said over the bread and wine--words that hadn't been said before. "Take, this is my body." and "This is my blood which is poured out for many."

In the presentation, the catechist narrates the time after Jesus and the disciples go to the Mount of Olives, including Jesus' death and resurrection. She hangs a cross behind the table, and lights the candles to remember those two moments.

And suddenly the children are presented with another tableau - one that is very familiar to them! Several times, I have had the pleasure of hearing children suck in their breath as they recognize the altar. I've also heard children call out "The Church!!" As catechists, we leave this lovely connection for the children to discover. Whenever it comes, I've found that this work enables the children to make a profound connection between the way Jesus loved his disciples and his desire to be with them always, and the way that Jesus loves us and expresses his love in the bread and wine that we are blessed to receive each week.

My daughter working with the Cenacle many years ago!

Every Lent we hold a Last Supper Celebration with the children. This is a wonderful gathering which draws upon the children's experience of the Cenacle material. I'll be sure to post about it when it comes along.


We will be holding our Last Supper Celebration for 2012 this Sunday, March 18th for the children in all three atria! For a description of this special day read the Last Supper Celebration.


Two wonderful blogging friends of mine, Sheila at Explore and Express, and Storyteller at Wonderful in an Easter kind of Way are collecting links with ideas for preparing for Easter. I am listing this post in their Lenten Link-Up Party. Click here to see all of the great posts they have collected!  

Being a 'Dayenu' People

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Rev. Peter's invitation to us to enter into a spiritual practice of gratitude, and I mentioned his sermon on "Being a 'Dayenu' People." One thing I didn't mention is that the song "Dayenu" that Rev. Peter preached about may be well known to your children!

'Dayenu' is a joyful song from the Jewish celebration of the Passover. Each year in atrium, we remember Jesus' last Passover supper with his friends with the Last Supper Celebration.  Each of us takes on the role of a disciple and we reenact that special meal together. Afterward we sit around the table singing some of our favorite atrium songs, always ending with the song "Dayenu!"

In Hebrew, Dayenu means "it would have been enough." After singing an energetic rendition of the chorus of Dayenu we pause for someone to share an "it would have been enough" blessing before jumping into the chorus again. It is always wonderful to see the older children take the lead as they figure out what dayenu means and how the song works! One of my favorites contributions this year was "It would have been enough if God had let us have communion one time, but we get to have communion every Sunday!"

Dai, da-ye-nu
Dai, da-ye-nu
Dai, da-ye-nu
Da-ye-nu, da-ye-nu, da-ye-nu!

Photos from our Last Supper Celebration

Yesterday I posted a description of the Last Supper Celebration. Here are a few photos taken after the celebration ended, while we polished off the Matzo and Juice! We had a great morning!

Jesus

The Narrator with John and Jesus

Peter

John, Jesus, and Peter

It was such a beautiful day, we walked around outside the
 building to the front doors to join our families in Church!

Last Supper Celebration

On Sunday we will have our Last Supper Celebration.  I look forward to this special day every year. As a group we are invited to experience the Last Supper with Jesus, just as his followers did. The children always seem to participate in this celebration with peace and joy, and it is a pleasure to be a part of it.

The Cenacle or Last Supper material helps to prepare the children for this celebration. We have recently presented it (or re-presented it) to everyone and many have chosen to work with it individually during atrium in the past few weeks. Receiving communion week after week is also wonderful preparation for the children for this celebration!

The celebration itself is fairly simple and is child-led. Before the celebration begins, each person is given a name tag with the name and a short description of one of Jesus' followers. One child takes on the role of Jesus. With a few children reading the lines and performing the actions of Jesus, Peter, and John, and the rest of us participating as Jesus' followers, we reenact the great moments of the Last Supper using the scripture reading from the Cenacle material. We also remember Jesus' death and resurrection. In the end, we sit together eating matzo, drinking grape juice, and singing some of our favorite atrium songs.

It isn't easy to snap a picture during a celebration, but I'll try to take one at some point on Sunday to share with you!

Save the Date: Our Family Maundy Thursday Service will be on April 21st at 5:30 pm in the Chapel. This is one of my favorite services of the year, in part because it draws upon the Last Supper Celebration for its inspiration, and because it resonates so well with the children. I hope to see you and your family there!

The Last Supper

Last Sunday, children in the Good Shepherd and True Vine Atria saw the Cenacle (or Last Supper) Presentation. The Cenacle is a Latin name for the Upper Room, where the Last Supper took place. This is one of my favorite works in the atrium and one that the children return to again and again. With this work, we read a scriptural account of Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples (which is actually a compilation of several accounts), pausing to move the figures accordingly.

The highlight of the reading is this moment when Jesus is gathered around the table celebrating the Passover with his friends. We hear anew the words he said over the bread and wine--words that hadn't been said before. "Take, this is my body." and "This is my blood which is poured out for many."

In the presentation, the catechist narrates the time after Jesus and the disciples go to the Mount of Olives, including Jesus' death and resurrection. She hangs a cross behind the table, and lights the candles to remember those two moments.

And suddenly the children are presented with another tableau - one that is very familiar to them! Several times, I have had the pleasure of hearing children suck in their breath as they recognize the altar. I've also heard children call out "The Church!!" As catechists, we leave this lovely connection for the children to discover. Whenever it comes, I've found that this work enables the children to make a profound connection between the way Jesus loved his disciples and his desire to be with them always, and the way that Jesus loves us and expresses his love in the bread and wine that we are blessed to receive each week.

My daughter working with the Cenacle many years ago...

Later in lent, we will hold a Last Supper Celebration with the children. This is a wonderful gathering we have each year, which draws upon the children's experience of the Cenacle material. I'll be sure to post about it when it comes along!

Would you like to get more out of Lent? Check out my last post on Lent at Home, or explore some online options at Building Faith's blog post- Sites for Daily Meditation.