Kids Korner: Transfiguration (February 19th)

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Read Matthew 17:1-9 with your family.

Trans means change, and Transfiguration means the person of Jesus, his ‘figure’, changed. He was still himself, but there was a new sense of purpose and this time Jesus’ closest friends were there to witness Jesus once again being given the responsibility to make the world different. The disciples were told that Jesus was the one to listen to.

In the Hebrew tradition, Moses represented the laws of the faith, and Elijah represented all the prophets who encouraged people to follow God’s teachings. It is interesting hearing this story in Matthew after we have been assured during the Sermon on the Mount in Chapter 4, that everything Jesus said followed the teachings of both Moses and Elijah.

The earliest followers of Jesus were still trying to figure out how important Jesus was compared to those two great men of the Hebrew tradition. This story shows that all of them, Jesus, Moses and Elijah, were in agreement and socialized together, however Jesus was the one with the message that was now to be followed.

Jesus was not going to say anything from either Moses or Elijah was wrong or needed to be changed, he was going to take those teachings and explain them further so people could do what God wanted them to do.

Sunday Reflection – January 8, 2023

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Baptism of Jesus

Matthew 3 13 Jesus left Galilee and went to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. 14 But John kept objecting and said, “I ought to be baptized by you. Why have you come to me?”

15 Jesus answered, “For now this is how it should be, because we must do all God wants us to do.” Then John agreed.

16 So Jesus was baptized. And as soon as he came out of the water, the sky opened, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down on him like a dove. 17 Then a voice from heaven said, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.”

Performed by Margaret Whisselle

Kids Korner: Jesus gets baptized (January 8th)

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Read Matthew 3:13-17 with your family.

Baptism is the special ritual Christian share to welcome someone into our family of God. This is one of the few practices we know was around when Jesus was alive.

Jesus wanted John to baptize him, even though John knew Jesus was God’s son. Jesus showed John, and all of us at the same time, that we all belong, and one of us is not more important than anyone else.

Baptism is a time when we publicly see that everyone is part of the family of God, and that we are all one family. It is the ritual where we see God loves us and thinks we are absolutely perfect just as we are. We are all beloved by God.

Epiphany – 6th of January

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Traditionally this is the celebration of the Magi arriving in Bethlehem to meet Jesus. Although almost all nativity plays have the Magi arriving at the birth of Jesus along with the shepherd, the Bible story records the Magi arriving when Jesus was around two and lived in a house in Bethlehem. We only encounter the Magi in the reading from Matthew.

The term ‘Magi’ shared the root word for ‘magic’ or ‘magician’, as well as “Magus’, who were believed to be a priestly class in the Zoroastrian tradition. They were astronomers, probably scientists, and to those who didn’t understand the science these folks practiced, they seemed like magicians. The ancient world commonly decided things were magic and mysterious if they couldn’t understand or explain them. Science was still relatively unknown even amongst the wealthy and well educated.

The term ‘kings’ is not in the Gospel of Matthew, but it does refer to a passage in Isaiah that talked about ‘kings from the east’. Isaiah was talking about Persian rulers centuries before Jesus’ birth, but those who read the early stories of Jesus made the connection.

The tradition of three gifts, three ‘wisemen’ and three named men comes from various times in history, but the Bible only mentions three types of gifts, not how many of each they presented. There is no number given of how many were present to visit Jesus, however, caravans were large groups of people who travelled together for safety, so we can be very sure there were more than three visitors, and they were probably a mix of women and men.

This day is also known as “Old Christmas”. This term goes back to the 18th century when the British Parliament adopted the Gregorian calendar, and effectively moving Christmas up twelve days to December 25th. Those who believed the Julian calendar was more accurate continued to use January 6th as the proper day of Christmas, thus the term ‘old’ was used. Some Christian traditions around the world still celebrate the birth of Jesus on this date. Those belonging to many Eastern Orthodox traditions, recognize January 6th as ‘Christmas Eve’, and celebrate on January 7th.

Sunday Reflection – January 1, 2023

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The Escape to Egypt

Matthew 2 13 After the wise men had gone, an angel from the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Hurry and take the child and his mother to Egypt! Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is looking for the child and wants to kill him.”

14 That night, Joseph got up and took his wife and the child to Egypt, 15 where they stayed until Herod died. So the Lord’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “I called my son out of Egypt.”

The Killing of the Children

16 When Herod found out that the wise men from the east had tricked him, he was very angry. He gave orders for his men to kill all the boys who lived in or near Bethlehem and were two years old and younger. This was based on what he had learned from the wise men.

17 So the Lord’s promise came true, just as the prophet Jeremiah had said,

18 “In Ramah a voice was heard
    crying and weeping loudly.
Rachel was mourning
    for her children,
and she refused
to be comforted,
    because they were dead.”

The Return from Egypt

19 After King Herod died, an angel from the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph while he was still in Egypt. 20 The angel said, “Get up and take the child and his mother back to Israel. The people who wanted to kill him are now dead.”

21 Joseph got up and left with them for Israel. 22 But when he heard that Herod’s son Archelaus was now ruler of Judea, he was afraid to go there. Then in a dream he was told to go to Galilee, 23  and they went to live there in the town of Nazareth. So the Lord’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “He will be called a Nazarene.”

Performed by Margaret Whisselle

Kids Korner: Jesus becomes a refugee (January 1st)

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Read Matthew 2:13-23 with your family.

We don’t spend a lot of time talking about Jesus as a child, and that is unfortunate. We have two stories from Jesus’ childhood, one when he is 13 and he stayed behind in the temple, scaring his parents (Luke 2:41-52), and this story from when Jesus was about 2 years old and the king wanted to kill him.

When we see pictures on the news or online that show families forced to leave their homes and travel to new countries, it is important to remember that that happened to Jesus, too. When we welcome refugees, it is like we are welcoming Jesus all over again.

Jesse Tree – Christmas Day

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The history of the Jesse Tree during the Advent season dates back to the Middle Ages. The tradition finds its origin in the verse from Isaiah 11:1, “A shoot will grow up from the stump of Jesse”, promising the Messiah and God’s salvation of the Hebrew people from their political enemies.

Each day throughout the season of Advent, an ornament will be placed on leaf-less tree branch, representing part of the Biblical story from the beginning of creation through to the birth of Jesus. As each ornament is added, the story will be told.

You can read the full scripture referenced with each video and share a prayer with your family and friends.

Christmas Eve, December 24, 2022

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Jesus’ birth

Luke 2 In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. 2 This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. 3 Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. 4 Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. 5 He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the guestroom.

Announcement to shepherds

8 Nearby shepherds were living in the fields, guarding their sheep at night.9 The Lord’s angel stood before them, the Lord’s glory shone around them, and they were terrified.

10 The angel said, “Don’t be afraid! Look! I bring good news to you—wonderful, joyous news for all people. 11 Your savior is born today in David’s city. He is Christ the Lord. 12 This is a sign for you: you will find a newborn baby wrapped snugly and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great assembly of the heavenly forces was with the angel praising God. They said, 14 “Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”

15 When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.” 16 They went quickly and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. 17 When they saw this, they reported what they had been told about this child. 18 Everyone who heard it was amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19 Mary committed these things to memory and considered them carefully. 20 The shepherds returned home, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. Everything happened just as they had been told.

Coming of the magi

Matthew 2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the territory of Judea during the rule of King Herod, magi came from the east to Jerusalem. 2 They asked, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We’ve seen his star in the east, and we’ve come to honor him.”

3 When King Herod heard this, he was troubled, and everyone in Jerusalem was troubled with him. 4 He gathered all the chief priests and the legal experts and asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They said, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is what the prophet wrote:

6 You, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
        by no means are you least among the rulers of Judah,
            because from you will come one who governs,
            who will shepherd my people Israel.”

7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi and found out from them the time when the star had first appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search carefully for the child. When you’ve found him, report to me so that I too may go and honor him.” 9 When they heard the king, they went; and look, the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stood over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. 11 They entered the house and saw the child with Mary his mother. Falling to their knees, they honored him. Then they opened their treasure chests and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Because they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route.

 

Performed by Margaret Whisselle