If you are looking for ideas for Holy Week in your parish, here are two of my favorites.
1) HOLY FIRE IN JERUSALEM
Gather a collection of videos of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem. That miracle is one many of our kids have never heard..
and the miracle continues each year!
On the Eve of the Resurrection, inside the tomb of
Christ in Jerusalem, the Holy Fire descends on the Patriarch of
Jerusalem from within the Holy Sepulcher and believers pass the light
around to all the faithful, who usually hold 33 candles bound together,
to signify the 33 years of Christ's ministry on the Earth. The fire is
miraculously given but also miraculous in nature, because it does not
burn, just as Moses and the Burning bush. Believers have proved this by
passing their hands through the fire, beards and faces...as many photos show.
It's color is different than normal too, with more of a white-blue hue.
The Holy Fire also bounces around like no light show ever manipulated by
machines! Pilgrims have seen the Fire ignite unlit oil lamps on It's
own and despite the efforts by many Muslims to seal the tomb with wax beforehand, and thorough searches of the Patriarch before entering, the Holy Fire still comes!
There are many articles available as well, some better than others...
http://www.holyfire.org/eng/
http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2007-04-07-holyfire_N.htm
Search YouTube for videos and compile the best clips for your own presentation.
2) CONFESSION ACTIVITY
http://orthodoxeducation.blogspot.com/2008/06/weight-of-our-sins.html
Pair everyone up (with same gender) for
a "piggy-back" contest.
For younger ones, use backpacks instead and add heavy items like staplers, stones.
The idea is to get them to try carrying around a lot of weight, to see how long they can go...before needing to release the "burden of our sins" They are
not moving around, but rather standing in one place in one large room.
During the time period, you could ask various teens to read aloud the Gospel accounts of Christ's judgment before Pilate, Crucifixion, and burial in the Tomb. After the final pair has surrendered to sitting down, you discuss how it felt, what their thoughts were, how heavy was the weight for them, and at what point did they want help? What delayed them surrendering? Often, it is our pride that keeps us away from God, because we want to go about life on our own, until we finally accept God's help because we have reached or limit.
Explain that Confessing our sins is exactly this same concept...
of finding relief in the sacrifice that Christ made once and for all. When we experience the weight of sin in our lives,
there is nothing to help us remember God's love for us better than experiencing Confession.
When I did this activity, I showed them the Prayer of Absolution from the Sacrament of Confession, where our priests, through the grace bestowed on them from their ordination, with the stole over our head, and us kneeling, absolves our sins.
This activity lead into a personal reflection time to prepare to confess their own sins troubling them. See the 10 Tools for preparing, or print this reflection list located here...
http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/selfexam.aspx. Ask if your priest is available during the afternoon to hear their confessions. I would encourage everyone to go to a personal Confession, however, even if only 5 teens go, it's absolutely worth it.
During down time, young people could help decorate the Tomb with flowerings and crawl under it
in the shape of a cross (which is an old custom)
Posts
greatest miracle which still takes place every year. The miracle of the HOLY FIRE in the Sepulchre Tomb of Christ in Jerusalem is truly remarkable! Download and use this worksheet to help your students discuss the holy sites in Jersualem with maps. We review the amazing story when the Patriarch received the fire which cracked down thru the column in the courtyard, and also we share oil, dirt and 33 taper candles from this part of the world as we discuss the FIRE which DOES NOT CONSUME beards and faces and fingers for a good 40 minutes to an hour after it arrives on Holy Saturday!
