| Minister's Letter - April 2015 | |
|---|---|
| Rev Peter Cornick | |
 250 children from four local primary schools have encountered the Easter story in our Church during Lent. The children begin by hearing the Easter story and then enter the church which has become ‘the Temple in Jerusalem’. There they meet a money changer who changes their bag of money into the temple coins, and sells doves and pigeons. Some children start with more money than others and being ‘richer’ are treated more favourably. Later they are asked how they felt, and do we treat everybody fairly today?
The children meet Mary Magdalene, who tells them how grateful she was to Jesus for being healed, and how excited she was when she learnt that he had risen. Simon Peter talks to them about the shame he felt in denying that he knew Jesus. The children find these characters helpful, and easy to talk to. They meet Joseph of Arimathea, and realise that it can be quite dangerous for people to follow Jesus. Lastly they meet the Pharisee, who accepts their sacrifices, providing they have obeyed the ritual cleansing. He tells them he is no friend of Jesus, who caused such a commotion in the Temple. In addition to these characters the children can have their feet or hands washed by a temple slave, they hammer a nail into a wooden cross, and learn about the Passover meal which Jesus shared with his disciples. Through this experience, the Easter story comes to life, and the children explore for themselves what Easter is. For those playing the characters, the questions can be challenging, and gives us new insights of the story, and confidence in expressing our faith. Whilst we are not telling the children what to believe, we have shared the most important part of the Christian story, and therefore are engaging in outreach. How could you share the story of what Easter is? | |
