Creation, Fall, and Redemption.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.
John 3:16
The Story of Salvation is presented in 3 parts: Creation, Fall and Redemption. We are made in the image of God to be in unity and harmony with God. The Original Sin broke the family unity. Concupiscence, which is a tendency toward selfishness and sin, left man weak and vulnerable, man becomes wounded and separated from God. Jesus was able to pay the debt for humanity and restored unity with God. Jesus established the Church to reunite God’s family. A video to watch available on Formed.org is The Animated Bible Series: 1 The Creation this episode as described on Formed: “The Creation highlights Genesis chapter 1-3 revealing God’s creation, the fall of man, God’s judgment on mankind and on the crafty serpent, the banishing of Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden and the tree of life, and the promise of future redemption.” https://watch.formed.org/animated-bible-series/videos/the-animated-bible-series-the-creation
For the younger children teaching about Creation is a great way to approach this Session’s material. Humans were created with spirits and bodies. Our spirit also called soul enables us to think, choose, and love like God. It is this gift of Free Will that allows us to love as God loves. Because of our free will we are able to cooperate with God and help Him carry out His plan for the world to live in peace, justice, and love. Eden was a place of love and harmony. It was free from cravings, need for wealth and power, and pride. Adam and Eve were created full of Grace and were able to live forever. They lost their original holiness, due to eating from the Tree of Knowledge, which made it difficult to resist sin. This loss was passed on to all of humanity. This sin, the Original Sin shattered their relationship with God. After Adam and Eve sinned evil was set loose in the world. It became a pretty terrible situation reaching a peak during Noah’s lifetime.
For the older children a good approach is to review the story of the 10 Commandments and Moses. (Exodus 19:16-25, 20:1-3) When beginning the lesson about the Commandments I often discuss the importance of rules for being safe and ask the children to tell me some rules they follow at home and/or school. Why do they think that rule is important? What are the purpose of rules? Likewise replace the word “rules” with Commandment and talk about what the Commandments are asking us to do. Commandments 1-4 teach us how to show love towards God and Commandments 5-10 teach us how to show love towards others. Breaking it up that way can help make those BIG Commandments easier to understand for the little ones. To help the children make a better connection in understanding the 10 Commandments I like to use some key words to explain each Commandment, they are: 1. Pray 2. God’s Name 3. God’s Day 4. Obey 5. Kind 6. & 9. Pure 7. &10. Honest 8. Truthful. When looking for the key words in the Commandments take a moment and discuss what that means to your child. Feel free to discuss the Commandments as thoroughly as you see fit for your child’s age. The important focus is to teach the children that the Commandments were sent to the People through Moses as a way to help the people amend their behavior. We have added a 10 Commandments fill in the blank sheet below as an optional activity.
Watch: The Rosary in 2 Minutes and How to Really Pray the Rosary
Vocabulary words to discuss with your child: Grace (A share in God’s own life; a supernatural power to resist evil and do what is right. Adam and Eve took this away and we are all born without the gift of Grace, we regain Grace through the sacraments.), Free Will (a person’s choice to do good or bad. This is what makes it possible for humans to love as God does.) Concupiscence (tendency toward selfishness and sin), Original Sin (The sin of Adam and Eve that took away the special gift of Grace God gave us), Actual Sin (sinful acts we choose to do), Covenant (family relationship).
Homework
Homework First Year Sacramental Prep: Practice the Angel of God prayer and introduce the Glory Be. Complete the Garden of Eden craft for week 4. Example here. Work on the Decade a Day Rosary Challenge.
Homework Second Year Sacramental Prep: Angel of God prayer and Glory Be should be mastered, keep practicing the Hail Mary. Complete Spirit of Truth (pages 11-14). All four pages will be handed in at the end of the month. Work on the Decade a Day Rosary Challenge.
Homework Years 3-6th Grades: Read from the Catechism 32-34, #52-61. Read Genesis Chapters 1-3 together. Review the effects of Original Sin with your child. Work on the Apostles Creed prayer worksheet. Work on the Decade a Day Rosary Challenge.
Activity Ideas:
Creation theme craft to make universes ( https://www.catholicicing.com/bible-craft-for-the-letter-u-u-is-for-universe/ )
With Adam and Eve being a part of this week’s lesson there are many ideas for things to do. The included craft for the first grade students is the Garden of Eden. (The instructions are included in the Google Docs link. ) The students will be making Adam and Eve popsicle stick puppets, TP tube Tree of Life and a paper chain snake. With the Garden of Eden theme we have found that the kids really like to make snakes. If you have some pipe cleaners at home that is an easy way to make snakes or in the case of having a package of pipe cleaners creating lots of snakes. For kids who want to try to make something eye catching I found an idea for easy paper folded snakes. Have a crafty kid? Try an origami snake. Another option is to print, color, then cut out a snake.
Want something related to the 10 Commandments? Sara J Creations has a good idea for making your own Commandments.
The Small Pencil Catechist 