Sunday School Syllabus Year 3

Home , John the Dwarf, Paremhat, Sarathiel

COPTIC ORTHODOX DIOCESE of LONDON

Generated on 01/09/2020 Contents

OCTOBER 4 Week 1 – Jealousy: Joseph and His Brothers ...... 4 Week 2 – God Sent an Angel to Defend King Hezekiah ...... 7 Week 3 – Angels in Heaven: Tobias ...... 10 Week 4 – The Tower of Babel ...... 14

NOVEMBER 16 Week 1 – Let Us Trust God (I): Elisha’s Servant Learned to Trust God ...... 16 Week 2 – Let Us Trust God (II): God Helps a Poor Woman through Elisha ...... 18 Week 3 – The Book of Exodus: Moses Talks to God ...... 20 Week 4 – The Book of Exodus: Moses Leads His People out of Egypt by the Power of God (I) ...... 24

DECEMBER 28 Week 1 – The Book of Exodus: Moses Leads His People out of Egypt by the Power of God (II) . . . . . 28 Week 2 – The Book of Exodus: The Ten Commandments ...... 31 Week 3 – The Book of Exodus: The Bronze Serpent ...... 34 Week 4 – The Birth of St John the Baptist and the Birth of our Lord Jesus are Announced .... 36

JANUARY 38 Week 1 – Our Lord Jesus is Born in a Manger in Bethlehem: The Escape of the Holy Family to Egypt 38 Week 2 – A Voice Preparing You for the Coming of the Saviour ...... 42 Week 3 – Naaman the Syrian: Story of a River and a Font of Water ...... 46 Week 4 – I Obey my Parents and Respect them: The Lord Christ in the Temple Amidst the Teachers . 51

FEBRUARY 55 Week 1 – The Sacrament of Repentance and Confession ...... 55 Week 2 – The Lord’s Prayer ...... 59 Week 3 – Introduction to the Gospel of St Matthew: Jesus Christ the Teacher ...... 64 Week 4 – The Good Samaritan ...... 67

MARCH 69 Week 1 – The Great Lent ...... 69 Week 2 – Being Ready for Heaven: The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price ...... 72 Week 3 – Life of Responsibility: The Prodigal Son ...... 75 Week 4 – Palm Sunday: Jesus Enters Jerusalem as King of Peace ...... 78

APRIL 80 Week 1 – Between the Temple and Bethany: Pascha Week ...... 80 Weeks 2-3 – No lessons due to Palm Sunday and the Feast of the Resurrection ...... 86 Week 4 – Resurrection of Christ: The Power of the Resurrection ...... 87

MAY 89 Week 1 – Resurrection is Joy: Jesus Appears to the Disciples in the Upper Room ...... 89 Week 2 – The Lord Jesus Christ Gave His Disciples the Power to Serve ...... 94 Week 3 – The Resurrection Appearance at the Sea of Tiberias: Having Faith of the Heart ...... 97 Week 4 – Feast of the Ascension: Christ’s Love in His Ascension ...... 100

SIX WEEKS KEPT FREE FOR COPTIC FESTIVAL PROGRAMME 103

2 JULY 104 Week 3 – The Book of Acts: St Peter the Great Fisherman ...... 104 Week 4 – The Apostles’ Feast: The Wonderful Life of the Young Converts ...... 107

AUGUST 110 Week 1 – Friends in Heaven: St Anthony the Great & St Paul the Anchorite ...... 110 Week 2 – Obedience: St John the Dwarf ...... 114 Week 3 – The Seven & Four Praises of Kiahk: The Intercessions of St Mary ...... 116 Week 4 – Our Behaviour ...... 119

SEPTEMBER 122 Week 1 – Heaven is my Crown: Abanoub the Martyr ...... 122 Week 2 – The Feast of the Cross ...... 125 Weeks 3-4 – Two weeks kept free for Coptic Festival revision and exam ...... 128

FILLER LESSONS 129 Week 1 – The Archangels Michael and Gabriel ...... 129 Week 2 – Jesus Authority to Raise the Dead: Raising Jairus’ Daughter ...... 132 Week 3 – The Holy Bread: El-Qorban ...... 136 Week 4 – An Introduction to the Book of Genesis: Abraham ...... 138 Virtue First Sunday of October

Jealousy Joseph and His Brothers

Bible References: Genesis 37

Lesson Aim: To learn about the jealousy of Joseph’s brothers and how to overcome jealousy in our own lives.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The meaning of jealousy. Feel: That jealousy and hatred have many disadvantages. Practice: Being thankful, and being content to love others.

Memory Verse: “...love does not envy...” (1 Corinthians 13:4 ) “If anyone desires to be ﬁrst, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 9:35 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-1.tex)4 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue First Sunday of October

Lesson Content Drama / Pantomime Role play in the Court We will do a role play with the children and we will distribute the roles as follows: a servant plays the role of the judge and another lays the blame on Joseph’s brothers (prosecution) and a group of kids play Joseph’s brothers, another child plays Joseph and another Joseph’s father. We start the play with the judge seated and another servant standing beside him. Joseph’s brothers are standing on the left, and Joseph himself on the right. Judge: Court case number 37: the book of Genesis - Joseph and his brothers. The prosecution to put forward the accusations, and present the case. Prosecution: Your honour, our case today is repeated every day of our lives, which is the case of jealousy between a brother and his siblings, but today’s case reached the point where the siblings planned to kill their brother, Joseph, capturing him despite his kindness towards them as he was bringing them food. They plotted together and threw him in a well, forgetting that Joseph was their brother who loved them, for their jealousy of him was more powerful than anything else. Judge: Joseph’s brothers, what do you make of these accusations made against you? One of Joseph’s Brothers: We did this because Joseph the dreamer is loved by our father the most, and was the only one to whom he gave a multicoloured robe, and because Joseph always told us about his strange dreams which annoyed us a lot. Judge: Are these the reasons that made you want to kill him and then sell him? Joseph’s Brothers: Joseph used to tell us about his dreams which made us so annoyed from him, even our father was annoyed by them. These dreams would make us feel that he is better than us, and if you don’t believe me, then ask our father who will tell you the same thing. Judge: We agree to the request of the first of those accused from Joseph’s brothers, and we summon the witness: Jacob, the father of Joseph, to hear his statement. (Looking at Jacob) Jacob, what do you think of what Joseph’s brothers say about Joseph’s dreams and how these dreams offended them and that you favoured Joseph more than them? Father: Yes, Joseph is the one who had strange dreams, where he dreamt two dreams. The first dream in which it was harvest time, and we were all collecting sheaves and Joseph’s sheaf stood in the middle and all the other sheaves bowed to Joseph’s sheaf. However, I didn’t think much of the dream, but after that he told us about another dream, in which the Sun and Moon and 11 other stars bowed before him, but this time I was offended about his words and reproached him, saying “Do you want me and your mother to bow down to you as well?” However, his reply was full of love saying that he didn’t mean it to be like that, but it was just a dream. Prosecution: Joseph, you are accused of offending your brothers with your dreams, what do you have to say about that? Joseph: I didn’t mean it, but if I knew that telling them about my dreams would offend them, I wouldn’t have done it. Judge: After hearing the prosecution and witnesses, the court has decided that jealousy of others is a bad feeling, and can lead to many dangers, just like what has happened in this case. As being jealous of Joseph led to him being thrown into a well, and then after that sold as a slave and lying to their father.

Application Comprehension Questions • What were the reasons which caused Joseph’s brothers feel jealous of him? • Did Joseph mean to oﬀend his brothers? • What were Joseph’s dreams? • What did Joseph’s brothers do to him because of jealousy?

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Exercise • Ask the children to thank God for His gifts to them, by writing on pieces of paper the blessing that God gave them throughout the week, and placing these papers in a box.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord Jesus Christ, Who created me and knew me by name. Who granted me many talents. I thank you Lord. Please help me to identify these talents and how I may use them to serve you. O Lord, I am sure that You granted me many talents. Help me to appreciate the talents in others, without getting jealous of them. Amen. (Mother Theresa)

Evaluation

Did the children get the aim of the lesson?

Objective Can the children... Notes

• Mention Joseph’s dreams. • Describe the jealousy of Joseph’s brothers. Know • Explain how to avoid jealousy. • Jealousy is deﬁned as the reason behind being unaccepting and not being thankful. • God’s love to them through the many blessings He has given us. Feel • Appreciate the talents that God has given to them.

Practice • Loving our friends.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-1.tex)6 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of October

God Sent an Angel to Defend King Hezekiah

Bible References: 2 Kings 19:1-37

Lesson Aim: To learn that God uses many methods to help us. God appointed an angel to help king Hezekiah. We only have to present to God our needs and He has His ways to help us.

Memory Verse: “The angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of Assyrians one hundred and eighty-ﬁve thousand.” (2 Kings 19:35 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-2.tex)7 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of October

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • If we are in a moment of need, would God ever forsake us? • To whom should our prayers be directed when we need help? • What does the word intercessor mean?

Lesson Content

Introduce the story of King Hezekiah and how in his moment of need, he used the intercession of Isaiah the Prophet to ask God for help. Emphasise the events in detail that led to the need for the angel to come and help king Hezekiah.

The king of the Assyrians did not worship God. He was an enemy to Hezekiah, the King of Israel. King Hezekiah was a good man and he loved and worshipped God.

The king of the Assyrians sent a letter to Hezekiah saying that he was going to attack Jerusalem and the God of Hezekiah cannot defend him. This teaches us that we have to focus on the Lord Jesus and His love towards us and not on loving the world.

Hezekiah was afraid and sad, but he went to the house of God and prayed. Then Hezekiah sent a message to prophet Isaiah saying “Lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left” (2 Kings 19:4). This teaches us that we can ask other believers to pray on our behalf whenever we have a problem. Most important, we can ask for the intercession of the Virgin Saint Mary and the prayers of other Saints (like Saint Mark, Saint George, and Saint Mina) on our behalf.

God sent to Hezekiah a message through Isaiah ‘the man of God’ and told him that God is going to defend him and that he should not worry about it. Hezekiah believed the message of Isaiah and waited for God to work.

Let us review Hezekiah’s prayer and learn from it (2 Kings 19:15-19). He started his prayers by praising God saying “God of Israel, the one who dwells between the cherubim You have made heaven and earth”. So, let us learn to start our prayers always by praising the name of the Lord.

Then Hezekiah presented the situation to God with regard to the king of the Assyrians and his request to the Lord. “Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone.” (2 Kings 19:19). So let us learn from Hezekiah to leave the method of our plea to God. God will choose the method as He deems ﬁt. Our methods are usually limited and may only ﬁt some respects. God’s solutions are holistic.

God sent his angel to the camp of the Assyrians at night and killed 185,000 men. God allowed this to happen because these people were non-believers who insulted Him and His people and were going to kill them. Moreover, “that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you are the Lord God. You alone.” (2 Kings 19:19) In the morning Hezekiah and his people knew that God defended them.

Later, the king of the Assyrians, while he was worshipping the idols, was killed by his two sons. He was an old man.

When we are sad or when we need anything, we must go to our heavenly Father and pray. He will quickly help us. He might use an angel to do what we need.

Remember St Peter in the prison (Acts 12:6-14): the Lord sent an angel who opened the doors of the prison and saved his life. (Please tell what happened in a story fashion.)

Every one of us has his own guardian angel with him all the time to protect and guard him or her.

There is a great power attached to our prayers. God uses many methods to solve our problems. He may choose to send an angel to serve us and respond to our needs.

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Application Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Lord, teach us how to pray. Teach us to praise your Holy Name and in complete faith present all our needs to You and leave it in Your Hands to satisfy it according to Your Divine wisdom. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-2.tex)9 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity Third Sunday of October

Angels in Heaven Tobias

Bible References: Tobit

Lesson Aim: To teach the children through the example of the life of Tobias about the role of angels in our lives.

Lesson Objectives: Know: God sends His angels to serve and save His loved ones all the time. Feel: Feel safe, not afraid, because angels are beside you. Practice: Asking the intercession of the angels when afraid.

Memory Verse: “Blessed be God ... who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him...” (Daniel 3:28 ) “...If anyone desires to be ﬁrst, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 9:35 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-3.tex) 10 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity Third Sunday of October

Background Information for the Servant The book of Tobit [or Tobias] (which falls directly before the book of Nehemiah), is a beautiful, and poignant sermon. It is deservingly considered to be a spiritual and literary masterpiece, demonstrating the piety of God’s people during captivity, exiled away from Jerusalem the mother, home of the prophecies and the prophets, the center-point of all the nations’ gaze. The book represents a special quality during the period of development for the Jews following the captivity.

The events in the book occur in a very similar environment to that of the ﬁrst Fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The book describes two Jewish families living in exile, the ﬁrst being Tobias’ family who lived in Nineveh, and the second is Raguel’s family who lived in Ecbatana (currently Iraq and Iran).

Authorship of the Book It appears, as mentioned in Tobias 12:6,7,20, that the book was written by both Tobit the elder, and Tobias the son. Prior to departing from them, the angel advised them to “...bless God, praise Him, and magnify Him, and praise Him for the things which He hath done unto you in the sight of all that live. It is good to praise God, and exalt His name, and honourably to shew forth the works of God; therefore be not slack to praise Him. It is good to keep close the secret of a king, but it is honourable to reveal the works of God. Do that which is good, and no evil shall touch you.” (Tobit 12:6-7). “Now therefore give God thanks: for I go up to Him that sent me; but write all things which are done in a book.” (Tobit 12:20).

It is possible that Tobias the son, may have taken upon his shoulders this holy mission of writing the book, especially that his part contributing to the events in the book is bigger than the part of his father the elder, it is therefore diﬃcult to determine which of them the book had been named after, it is likely that it was attributed to both of them.

Date and Location The book was written in the 7th century BC, precisely a few years after the destruction of Nineveh in 612BC. The events of the book occurred during the presence of Nineveh. Tobias lived through the destruction, and he recorded the angel’s advice a little while after the destruction of Nineveh, before his death.

Summary Both families (Tobit and Raguel’s daughter Sara), underwent trials. The pious Tobit lost his wealth followed by his sight. When he felt his death approaching, he called his son who is also named Tobias, and handed him a list of good advice. Tobit informed Tobias that he had left him a large sum of money in a place called Rages, and gave him the written deed to enable him to obtain the money. As for the second family, their daughter Sara underwent a diﬃcult trial. She had been married seven times and all seven husbands had been killed by a devil called Asmodeus on the ﬁrst wedding night, before any of the marriages were consummated.

Tobias was met by Archangel Raphael, disguised as a man named Azarias, who offered to guide Tobias the son in his journey to the town of Rages in the land of Media. Along the way, while Tobias was washing in the river, a fish tried to devour him. Raphael instructed Tobias to capture the fish, remove its heart, liver and gall bladder, and keep those safe for later. When they arrived at Ecbatana they lodged at Raguel’s house, a relative of Tobias. Raphael told Tobias of the beautiful Sara, whom Tobias has the right to marry because he is her cousin and closest relative. The angel explained that Sara had been reserved for Tobias since the beginning. The angel instructed Tobias to burn the fish’s liver and heart to drive away the demon when he attacks on the wedding night. Tobias stayed for some days at the wedding feast and sent Raphael to recover his father’s money.] After the feast, Tobias, Sara and the angel returned to Nineveh to Tobit the elder. There, Raphael told Tobias to anoint his father’s eyes with the fish’s gall in order to cure his father’s blindness. Raphael then revealed his identity and prior to departing, he advised both Tobit and Tobias to record these events in a book, and to tell of God’s wonderful work. After these events, they all lived happily, thankful to God, awaiting salvation and the return of Israel from exile.

Views It has been the point of view of some, that the actions of Raphael the angel are symbolic of the work of Christ who has been an intermediary between people and God, and also because Christ put a limitation to the devil who kills our souls. God has also enlightened us, just as Raphael the angel has done to Tobit the father. This part of the book which was in the apostolic era, was very similar to the works of our Lord Jesus Christ, and one of the corners of basic ministry, due to the strength of the symbolism of Tobias and the angel to the work of Christ for salvation.

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The book of Tobit demonstrates that God has witnesses in all places and eras, no matter the surrounding conditions or the prevalent evil. Just as the presence of God’s witnesses were mentioned during the period of captivity, such as Daniel and the three Youths, likewise, the presence of Tobias, Sarah and others during the captivity of the North Kingdom.

The book of Tobit also reveals how to overcome Satan’s tricks, by long standing patience and the purity of prayer of a person who has faith in their God. God’s righteous angels are the “...ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14) These are the children of God who are diligent in their prayers, their petitions, and who lead pure lives. Thus, God sends His angels to help us in all the work that we put our hands to, just as He did with Tobias.

Lesson Content A long time ago there was a small family made up of a father, a mother, and a good son called Tobias. The father’s name was Tobit and the mother’s name was Anna. Tobit the father loved God very much, he used to oﬀer many services to God’s people and did good things that were pleasing to God.

One day, Tobit was returning back home as usual. He was tired, so he sat down to rest and fell asleep, and it happened that some bird droppings fell into his eyes and blinded him. Since Tobit was a faithful man whose heart was full of God’s love, he prayed to God, acknowledging that all His ways are mercy and truth and He judges truly and justly. (Tobit 3:2)

Time passed and Tobit aged, and his son Tobias had grown up. One day, Tobit asked his son to ﬁnd someone to go with him on a journey to a man called Gabael who owed Tobit a sum of money. Tobit gave Tobias a deed (a handwritten receipt) of the amount of money that Gabael owed, so that Gabael would see the receipt and agree to give Tobias the money. Tobias went to ﬁnd someone who would go with him on the journey.

Tobias found a beautiful young man called Azarias. Tobias asked Azarias if he know the town of Rages, where Gabael comes from, as Tobit had mentioned. Azarias told him that he knows the town well, and he would be able to accompany him on the journey. Tobias took Azarias home to meet his father Tobit. Upon speaking with Azarias, Tobit was satisﬁed that Azarias is a faithful man, and he felt that Tobias would be safe in his company, so he prayed for Tobias and his dog before he departed with Azarias.

As they went on their journey, they reached the river Tigris in the evening and decided to stop to rest. All was calm when suddenly at an unexpected moment, a fish leapt out of the river and tried to devour him. Tobias screamed, and the angel instructed him to grab hold of the fish and throw it to the ground. He also instructed Tobias to open the fish, remove its heart, liver and gall, and keep those safe for later, so Tobias obeyed.

Tobias and Azarias continued on their journey to the town of Rages where Gabael lived. They reached a nearby town and decided to stop over for the night. Azarias told Tobias that they should stay at the house of a man called Raguel who is one of Tobit’s relatives. Azarias also told Tobias to marry Raguel’s daughter. They entered the town and met Raguel, and when he found out that Tobias is one of his family relatives, he was overjoyed, so they talked a lot, but before they ate, Tobias asked Raguel if he could marry his daughter Sara. God blessed Tobias’ marriage and looked after him. Azarias took the receipt and went to get the money from Gabael. After this, Tobias, Sara and Azarias returned home to their father Tobit. As they got closer to their home, Tobias’ mother saw them from a distance, so she told Tobit, and they both ran to them. Tobias took the gall of the ﬁsh and rubbed it on his father’s eyes and he regained his sight. He was very joyful at his son’s return, and thanked Azarias a lot. Azarias told them all to thank God ﬁrst who gives us everything. He told them that whilst Tobit was praying, “I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels, which present the prayers od the saints and which go in and out before the glory of the Holy One.” (Tobit 12:15) God sent me to heal you and Sara, and accompany Tobias in his journey to marriage.

Application Comprehension Questions • What happened to Tobit (the father) when he got back from work? • Who went with Tobias in his journey? • What are the names of Tobias’ wife and her father? • Who went to retrieve the money, and who went with him? • What would you enjoy most in a journey with the angels?

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Exercise God’s angels help us in our lives, when we face diﬃculties. Tell the children to ask for the intercession of an angel before starting any task such as studying and before leaving home every to go to school.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Lord Jesus Christ, Who sends His angels to help us along the path we walk in our daily lives, surround us with Your angels, so that they may protect us from the warfare of the devil. We are certain that You look after us God, because You love us.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for everything in our lives, because all the things You do, Lord, are a result of Your love for us.

We also love You, Lord Jesus. Keep us close to You, Lord, by the intercession of our Mother, the Ever-virgin Saint Mary, the Seven Archangels, the Cherubim and Seraphim, and all the hosts of angels. Amen.

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The Tower of Babel

Bible References: Genesis 11:1-9

Lesson Aim: To learn to be humble and not demand too much (or think we are better than others) so that at the Holy Spirit inside us would guide us and lead us to spiritual growth.

Memory Verse: “Learn from Me, for l am gentle and lowly in heart.” (Matthew 11:29 )

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Lesson Content

The sons of Noah multiplied for many generations. They built many cities and formed many nations. All the people everywhere had only one language and they could all understand each other. Some of these people migrated from the East. They came to a plain in the land of Shinar which seemed a good place to settle. So they went to work ﬁring bricks. When they had made enough bricks, they said, “Let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” (Genesis 11:4)

When they had built the city, the Lord came down to see the city and the tower they were building. And when He saw how high it was, He said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. Come, let Us go down and confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” He did just that and immediately they could not continue building the tower, and so the city was named Babel. The Lord then scattered the groups and nations all over the earth. They all had separate languages so that they could not understand each other anymore.

One of the main characteristics that all the saints have in common is ‘humility’. The Holy Spirit can only work and become eﬀective in a person’s life when s/he is humble. No one can become a saint without the guidance, help and declaration of the Holy Spirit. This is the reason our Lord Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes, Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.” (Luke 10:21). The praise thar St Mary said when she met Elizabeth was “He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly.” (Luke 1:51-52)

In Pentecost, the Holy Spirit granted the Disciples “who continued with one accord in prayer and supplication” (Acts 1:14) the ability to speak several languages so that they can communicate with other people and spread the word of God to all nations. So, what had happened to the modest Disciples at Pentecost was the reverse of what had happened to the proud people at Babel when they were confused by the Lord, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.

Application Exercise • Let us be humble and not demand fancy things like the people who wanted to build a ‘high tower’. Let us not ask for fancy clothes or cars or toys. Lord, help us to be satisﬁed with the bare necessity. • When we get higher marks than our friends or we win a game, we must give glory to God who helped us. Reject the idea that we are better than other people.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (10-4.tex) 15 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible First Sunday of November

Let Us Trust God (I) Elisha’s Servant Learned to Trust God

Bible References: 2 Kings 6:8-23

Lesson Aim: This is the ﬁrst lesson in a two-lesson series on our need to fully trust God. In this lesson we learn that the Lord can open our eyes to realise that we have a lot of heavenly power to support us more than all the powers against us.

Memory Verse: “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” (2 Kings 6:16 )

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Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • In what situations, are we more likely to lose trust in God? • Does God have limits or is He unlimited?

Lesson Content

Tell in a story-like method about the fear and lack of trust in God that Elisha’s servant had.

Elisha the prophet helped the king of Israel. He was called the man of God. God tells Elisha something and Elisha tells it to the king of Israel. The king of Syria was surprised about the strength of Israel but one of his servants said to him, “Elisha the prophet, who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” (2 Kings 6:12) Therefore the king of Syria wanted to capture Elisha and he “sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city” (2 Kings 6:14). When Elisha’s servant saw this army he was very afraid and said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” (2 Kings 6:15)

Elisha asked the Lord to open his servant’s eyes that he may see. This means sometimes we cannot understand the word of God by ourselves. But God can open our eyes (meaning our minds to understand and believe the word of God). We have to pray to God to give us good eyes to be able to see that God is with us.

When Elisha’s servant saw the mountain was full of horses and chariots of ﬁre round about Elisha, he trusted that “those who are with us are more than those who are against us.” All his fears then disappeared.

The people who wanted to capture Elisha the Prophet were blinded and captured by Elisha who led them to Samaria. Then Elisha prayed to the Lord to open their eyes and He did. They found themselves in Samaria. When the king of Israel wanted to kill them, Elisha said “no”. Instead they were given food and water and allowed to go back to their master. This shows us that Elisha did not want to take the opportunity to kill the enemies. He only trusted God and wanted to prove to the Syrians that they cannot take him captive because he was the man of God.

All the saints of the church trusted God and knew that “those who are with us are more than those who are against us.” Hence, they stood in front of kings and judges and did not fear anything.

Another example for the opening of the eyes of the people to understand and trust God: the two disciples of Emmaus who did not understand what happened to the Lord Jesus after He was cruciﬁed. The Lord Jesus opened their eyes and they knew that the person who was speaking to them was the Lord Himself. Please read this example in Luke 24:13-31.

If we do not understand anything in the Bible, what do we do? Pray to God to enlighten us. If we still do not understand, then we should ask Abouna or our parents or our Sunday School teacher to give us an explanation.

Application Exercise • We must trust that God loves us and He is also the Almighty. This means He can do everything for our beneﬁt. Let us not fear anything: tests, competition, darkness ... etc. We should develop a ﬁrm belief that those who are with us (i.e. God who sends His angels to serve us) are more than those who are against us (i.e. the devil).

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Let Us Trust God (II) God Helps a Poor Woman through Elisha

Bible References: 2 Kings 4:1-7

Lesson Aim: This is the second lesson in a series of lessons on our need to fully trust our God. He helps us through His believers, so we must listen to God’s people.

Memory Verse: “Commit your way to the Lord.” (Psalm 37:5 )

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Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • Whenever we are faced with a challenging problem, who should we commit our problems to? • Is God Limited or Unlimited? • Does God have limits or is He unlimited?

Lesson Content

A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets went to Elisha because she had a problem. She knew that Elisha is a man of God. God accepts the prayers of His true believers. This means that the mother trusted Elisha and, more importantly, she trusted God because He is truly the one who can solve all problems.

The mother cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.” (2 Kings 4:1)

The mother asked the boys to bring empty containers. She trusted and obeyed what Elisha asked her to do. She asked them to collect as many containers as they can. They did.

God helped the mother and the boys as follows: From a very small amount of oil that she had, she was able to ﬁll all containers, until all the containers were completely ﬁlled. She asked then the boys to bring more containers. When they said that they did not have any more, the oil stopped.

What did she do with the oil? She sold it and paid the loan. She took the rest of the money to spend on her other needs.

Discuss the memory verse: commit our way to the Lord means let Him handle all our life. If we have a test at school, we must not fear. If we have someone sick in the family, we must not get sad and lose hope. All what we have to do is to pray and do our best, and then we leave the rest to God. Always leave room for God to work. Let us memorise the memory verse by heart and give prizes.

Application Exercise • We must trust that God can do everything and that He loves us. So we must trust Him with all our needs. • Help from God can come to us through His believers. We must trust and obey God’s people. When Abouna tells us to do something we must obey him because we trust Abouna. • As long as we pray, God is going to act and do everything for the best. God has His ways, which are beyond our understanding.

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The Book of Exodus Moses Talks to God

Bible References: Exodus

Lesson Aim: To have a general overview of the book of Exodus.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The general overview of the book of Exodus and the character of Moses the Prophet. Feel: The secret behind the power of Moses in his life (talking with God). Practice: Prayer as a conversation with God.

Memory Verse: Then [God] said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals oﬀ your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:5 )

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Background Information for the Servant

God told Moses that he is responsible for the Israelites and sent him to speak to Pharaoh to let His people go.

Moses initially refused God’s calling, but later he returned and accepted God’s invitation after God told Moses to take his brother Aaron to go and see Pharaoh.

Moses went to Pharaoh and told him that God wanted him to let His people to go out of Egypt, but Pharaoh didn’t approve and so God struck Egypt with heavy plagues.

The ten plagues are: 1. Changing the water to blood 2. Frogs 3. Lice 4. Flies 5. Livestock diseased 6. Boils 7. Hail 8. Locusts 9. Darkness 10. Killing of the firstborn The last plague was the hardest one of them all, when Pharaoh’s heart was hardened and didn’t want to let the people go. In spite of all these plagues, it was before the death of the firstborn that God told every family of his people to sacrifice a 1-year-old lamb without blemish and sprinkle its blood on the doorposts and lintel of their houses, and were to eat of it grilled with unleavened bread with bitter herbs, in order for their firstborn to be saved from death. So, the angel of death killed the firstborn of the Egyptians only, i.e. the houses that do not have the blood of the lamb sprinkled on it.

After the death of the ﬁrstborn of the Egyptians, Pharaoh expelled Moses and the Israelites from the land of Egypt, but later, he went out to follow them and kill them. It was a very diﬃcult situation for the Israelites; the sea was in front of them and the enemy was behind them. So, Moses prayed to God who ordered him to stretch out his rod, and strike the water of the Red Sea, so it divided into two, and they all crossed over. And when they reached the other side, Moses struck the sea again with his rod and the waters of the sea returned back and drowned Pharaoh and his chariots.

The journey through Sinai started after crossing the Red Sea, the journey to the Promised Land which God promised His people to dwell in.

During the journey, there was a pillar of cloud by day shadowing them, and a pillar of ﬁre by night to light their way. And He fed them manna and quail (explain what is manna and quail).

When the Israelites were thirsty, God told Moses to hit the rock to release water, and so the Israelites drank, and that was in a place called Horeb. God stood by the people in every battle, and they defeated the Amalekites; He fought for them and they needed only to be still (Exodus 14:14), just as He stood by them in Egypt.

Afterwards, God told Moses to ascend upon Mount Horeb to give him the Ten Commandments, so Moses went up the mountain and fasted forty days and God gave him the Ten Commandments written on two tablets of stone. God also ordered him to make a tent called the ‘tent of meeting’, because this is the place that God chose to dwell with His people, just like as He does in the church today.

After forty years in the wilderness, the Israelites reached the Promised Land, but under the leadership of Joshua the son of Nun; Moses died and God chose Joshua (Moses’ disciple) to lead His people instead. This is a brief overview of the book of Exodus, which is the second book of the Holy Bible and the Old Testament.

Lesson Content

Jacob had twelve children, the one before last was Joseph. Joseph’s brothers were jealous of him. One day they managed to trick him and sell him to the Egyptians as a slave. They then dipped his tunic in the blood of an animal and went to their father, Jacob, making it look as though Joseph was eaten by a wild beast.

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The Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man, for Pharaoh made him a ruler over the land of Egypt.

Eventually, Joseph brought his father Jacob and the Hebrews to Egypt. After Jacob died and as the years passed, the Hebrews multiplied greatly and grew strong. A new Pharaoh came who did not know anything about Joseph. He feared the large number of Hebrews, so he made them slaves, and “made the children of Israel serve with rigor.” (Exodus 1:13)

Use the above introduction to proceed with the birth of Moses, his preference not to stay in Pharaoh’s house and his departure to Midian. (Exodus 2:1-15)

We know from the book of Exodus that long ago the people of Israel, who were the children of Jacob and his descendants, were living happily in Egypt. However, when their population increased and became a great people, the Egyptians feared them and in turn they started to make them work very strenuously, which made the Israelites call upon God to save them from the hands of the Egyptians. God arranged to free His people from this bitter slavery and prepared a leader to free them from the hands of the Egyptians. Do you know who he is?

When Moses was born, his mother hid him, in fear that he would be killed by the Egyptians because of Pharaoh’s command to kill all the baby boys. But Moses’ became more and more afraid for her son, so she hid him in a basket and placed the basket on the River Nile, where it was discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter while bathing in the river. So, she took the baby boy from the basket and adopted him, and Moses’ sister, Miriam, came and told Pharaoh’s daughter about a woman (who was Moses’ mother) that could nurse the baby, but without letting her know that she was his actual mother.

Moses grew and ﬂed Pharaoh’s palace because he killed an Egyptian which annoyed his fellow Israelites.

God appeared in a burning bush and said: “I shall be with you” (Exodus 12:3). (It may be helpful to show the children a picture of the burning bush.)

The Call of Moses One day Moses was pasturing the flocks of his father-in-law when he came to Mount Horeb. There he suddenly saw a bush which seemed to be on fire, yet which was not consumed. He was about to go to investigate when he heard a voice coming out from the midst of the bush calling him by name. When he answered, the voice said, “Do not come any closer. Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” The voice then continued, “I am the God of your father, and of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. I have heard the cry of My people in Egypt, and I have seen their great affliction. Therefore, I plan to free them from their slavery and bring them into a land flowing with milk and honey, the land of Canaan. I hereby send you to Pharaoh, to bring My people out of Egypt.”

Moses said, “But I am unable to do this.” The Lord answered, “I shall be with you and you will bring the people to this very mountain to worship God.”

Moses again protested that he was not eloquent, and did not believe he could persuade Pharaoh.

So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?” (Exodus 4:11)

Application Comprehension Questions • What’s the order of the book of Exodus in the Holy Bible? • How many chapters does it contain? • What are the most important parts of the book, and what were the main events of each part? • Who is the main character in the book?

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Exercise • Pray and ask for God’s help during distress and have faith in His promise that he will never leave us. I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me. O Lord, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. (Psalm 30:1-4)

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord Jesus, thank You for Your many blessings, because You shield me and save me from evil. Please protect your people everywhere, and keep us ﬁrm in You, for You are blessed forever. Amen.

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The Book of Exodus Moses Leads His People out of Egypt by the Power of God (I)

Bible References: Exodus 2-12

Lesson Aim: To learn that with a strong hand the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt. The Lord supports us in all our diﬃculties. No matter how strong the devil is, God is much stronger and he will make us victorious over the devil.

Memory Verse: “The Lord will ﬁght for you, and you shall hold your peace.” (Exodus 14:14 )

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Background Information for the Servant Moses’ Flight to Midian The story finally reached Pharaoh about Moses killing an Egyptian and Pharaoh decided to punish him by death. By this time, Moses had fled out of the country. He went to Midian. One day he was sitting all alone by a well when he saw seven girls, the daughters of a Midianite priest, who came to draw water. They were just watering their flocks when along came some rude shepherds who pushed them out of the way. Moses took the side of the girls and helped them water their flocks.

When the girls arrived home, their father asked, “Why are you home so early today?” The girls answered that an Egyptian had defended them from some shepherds and had also helped them draw water for themselves and for their sheep. “Where is this Egyptian?” asked their father. “And why didn’t you invite him to come and eat with us?”

So Moses was welcomed into the priest’s household. He eventually married one of the girls whose name was Zipporah. When she had a son, Moses named him Gershom, for he said, “I have been a stranger in a strange land.”

In the meantime, the Pharaoh whom Moses feared died and another took his place. But still the oppression of the Hebrews continued as before, and they cried out to the Lord for help. God heard their moaning and saw their condition of slavery. Then He remembered His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He recalled to mind the promises that He had made; that these people would be His people and that someday they would be as numerous as the sand of the sea.

Therefore, He resolved to free them from the yoke of slavery under which they were suﬀering in the land of Egypt. And He resolved that He would send His angel to call His servant Moses and appoint him to be the leader of the people.

Moses and Aaron went back to Pharaoh. To prove that their mission was from God and to be respected, Aaron threw down his staff and it immediately turned into a snake. Pharaoh summoned his court magicians who did the same thing; all of their staffs became snakes when they threw them down, but Aaron’s staff ate up all of their staffs.

The Ten Plagues The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart has hardened, he refuses to let the people go. So tomorrow, when he goes to the river, you and Aaron are to stand on the bank and warn him that I the Lord gave you power to change the water to blood if he continues to be so stubborn.” You shall say to him, “The Lord God of the Hebrews has sent me to tell you that you must let the people go into the wilderness to worship.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron to stretch out your rod over the waters of Egypt, over their streams, rivers and ponds and all their pools of water, so that all may become blood.”

Moses and Aaron did what the Lord commanded. In front of Pharaoh they changed the water of the river to blood by smiting it with the rod. And all the ﬁsh in the river died, and the water began to smell so bad that the Egyptians could not drink it. But the Egyptian magicians could do the same thing, so Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. He refused to listen to Moses and Aaron just as the Lord had predicted. So Moses and Aaron threatened to bring about another disaster. Should Pharaoh refuse to let the people go out and worship, a plague of frogs would overrun the country. And the frogs did come in swarms, into the bedrooms and into the beds, into the ovens and kneading bowls and over all the people. Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and promised to let the people go if they would only get rid of the frogs. They did so, but Pharaoh changed his mind.

Then God told Moses to have Aaron strike the dust with his rod, so that it would turn into mosquitoes. He did so and the mosquitoes attacked men and animals throughout Egypt. Pharaoh’s magicians told him that this was God’s doing but as usual, he refused to listen.

The next plague was gadflies. They swarmed over all the Egyptians, but there were no flies in Goshen where the Hebrews lived. This was to prove that God distinguished between His people and the Egyptians. Pharaoh relented only insofar as letting the Hebrews worship within Egypt. But Moses said they must go for three days’ journey into the wilderness. Pharaoh yielded, but as soon as the flies were gone, he refused again.

Next, God killed all the livestock of the Egyptians, all the cattle and horses, the asses and camels, the oxen and sheep; but not one animal of the Hebrews was stricken. Pharaoh refused again.

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God then told Moses to take ashes from the kiln, throw them up in the air, for when they would come down on the Egyptians, all the people would break out with terrible boils and sores on their skin. Still Pharaoh said “no”.

Then Moses promised a hail storm such as had never been seen in Egypt before. All the crops would be ruined. And so it happened. Thunder and lightning and hail went on striking down every plant and shattering every tree. Only in the land of Goshen was there no hail. Pharaoh promised Moses to let the people go, if he would only pray that God make the hail storm cease. But when there was no more hail, Pharaoh forgot his promise.

The Lord then sent a plague of locusts to eat every green leaf and plant that remained after the hail. By this time, the whole country of Egypt was nearly mined. Pharaoh’s servants urged him to let the Hebrews go. But still he refused.

Then God sent thick darkness, so dark that the people could not see each other, nor could they even get up for three days. Pharaoh allowed the people to go, but insisted that they leave their herds behind. Moses, however, said that they must have animals to sacriﬁce, Then Pharaoh ordered Moses to go out of his presence and told him never to look upon his face again.

Then the Lord came around midnight and went into the midst of Egypt and all the ﬁrstborn in the land of Egypt died except for the children of Israel. There was a great cry throughout Egypt. Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and asked them to take the children of Israel and depart from Egypt. So, the Hebrews led by Moses left Egypt. God kept His promise to Moses and delivered His people out of Egypt with a very strong hand.

Lesson Content

The Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man, for Pharaoh made him a ruler over the land of Egypt.

Use the above introduction to recap the Introduction to the Book of Exodus given in the previous lesson. The proceed with the lesson of today about Moses’ ﬂight to Midian and his later mission in Egypt.

When Moses saw the Burning Bush, he noticed that although the bush was on ﬁre, it was not consumed by it. This is a symbol of St Mary who was pregnant with the Lord Jesus, the Son of God (the ﬁre of the Divine) and was not burnt.

Moses was afraid at the beginning, but the Lord showed him that He would support him with miracles and he would assign his brother Aaron to help him. ‘And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt ... So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians. ... Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh.” So God said, “I will certainly be with you ...” (Exodus 3:7-11)

To prove that their mission was from God, He supported them with miracles. Aaron threw down his staff and it immediately turned into a snake. Pharaoh summoned his court magicians who did the same thing, all of their staffs became snakes when they threw them down. But Aaron’s staff ate up all of their staffs. “And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and did not heed them, as the Lord had said.” (Exodus 7:13)

Describe brieﬂy the ten plagues as per the background information to the servant.

Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. He did not want to let the Lord’s people go. The Lord wanted to prove to His people that He will get them out of Egypt by a strong hand so that their faith would grow in spite of the hardening heart of Pharaoh.

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All the events of the Old Testament are a foreshadow of our Lord Jesus Christ’s work of salvation by His Incarnation, His death on the Cross, His resurrection and His ascension to Heaven. Here are the symbols: 1. Moses’ rod: symbolises the Cross of Christ by which we are saved from the slavery of the devil and enjoy the freedom of God’s children. 2. Burning bush: symbolises the Virgin Mary and the Lord Jesus Christ whom she bore. 3. Pharaoh: symbolises the devil who is fighting us all the time and does not want to let go. 4. The 1-year old unblemished lamb: is a symbol of our Lord Jesus Christ who has no sin at all, and just as the Jews offered the lamb as a sacrifice without breaking any of its bones, so none of Christ’s bones were broken when He was on the Cross. 5. The sprinkled blood on the doorpost and lintel: represents Christ’s blood that saved us from eternal death, for Christ is our Passover. The two doorposts and lintel represent the Cross. 6. Crossing the sea: represents baptism and the passage from slavery (of the devil) to freedom, and the cleansing from the original sin of our father Adam. 7. The pillar of fire: represents Jesus as the light of the world. “The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” (Exodus 14:18) The Lord our God made Heaven and Earth and all that is in it. Instead of worshipping God, the Egyptians worshipped the things that God had created. They worshipped the river, the sun, the cows, etc. So, God hit all of this to show the Egyptians His dominion over it and that He had created it and that He can destroy it. The servant should introduce the First Hos (Praise) to the children and teach them how it is such a powerful praise to the Lord which we sing with the saints in Heaven. Practise saying and learning the words.

Application Exercise • God is more powerful than all our enemies. If God is with us, we will be victorious. If we need something, we must mention it in our prayers, and then leave it in God’s hands. We have to be patient. The Lord will answer our prayers and give us all our needs and more at the right time and in the most suitable way. We can see this very clearly in the way through which God delivered His people out of Egypt.

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The Book of Exodus Moses Leads His People out of Egypt by the Power of God (II)

Bible References: Exodus 16

Lesson Aim: To teach the children that the Lord gives us all our needs.

Memory Verse: “I will sing to the Lord for He has triumphed gloriously.” (Exodus 15:1 )

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Background Information for the Servant The Tenth Plague: The Death of the First Born Then God told Moses that He would kill every ﬁrst-born in Egypt that night at midnight.

Moses summoned the elders of Israel and told them to have all the Hebrew families kill a lamb, and then sprinkle its blood over the lintel and the doorposts of their doors. So when the Angel passed through that night to let the destroyer smite the Egyptians, He would see the blood on the doors of the Hebrews and “pass over” them. Moses told them also that when they eventually come to the land that the Lord would give them, they were to keep this ritual.

That night at midnight, the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on the throne to the firstborn of the prisoner in the dungeon. He even struck the firstborn of the cattle. Pharaoh got up that night, along with all his household and all the Egyptians, and a loud wail rose up throughout the country, for there was not a single house without its dead.

The Departure from Egypt and the Crossing of the Red Sea When Pharaoh heard that the Hebrews had departed and had taken their ﬂocks and herds with them, along with jewels of gold and silver that they had borrowed from the Egyptians, he had a change of heart and wished he had not given them permission to go. Accordingly, he decided to pursue them and bring them back, so he made ready his chariot and six hundred other chariots, all with their captains, and he overtook them as they were encamping by the sea.

When the Hebrews looked up and saw all the chariots and horsemen of Egypt bearing down on them, they were terriﬁed. And they were angry with Moses.

“Is it because there were not enough graves in Egypt that you have brought us out to die in the wilderness?” They asked scornfully. “It would be better to live as slaves in Egypt than die out here.”

But Moses said, “Fear not. Just behold the salvation that the Lord will work for you today. These Egyptians you will never see again. For the Lord will ﬁght for you.”

Then the Lord told Moses to stretch his staﬀ out over the sea. He did so and the waters of the sea were divided in two; the children of Israel went through the midst of the sea. The waters were like a wall to them on the right hand and on the left.

When they were all safely crossing, Moses saw the chariots of the Egyptians also crossing right behind them. So he raised his staﬀ again, and the waters rolled down on top of the Egyptians and covered their chariots and their horsemen until there was not one left.

That was the way the Lord saved Israel that day from the hands of the Egyptians. The people saw it and revered the Lord, and believed in Him and in His servant Moses. And they made up a song of thanksgiving to God.

The Quail and the Manna About six weeks after leaving Egypt, the sons of Israel came into the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai. By that time their supplies had nearly run out, and they grumbled to their leaders about their condition.

“We wish we had died by the hand of the Lord back in Egypt, where at least we had pots of ﬂesh enough to eat. You brought us out here so that we can all die of hunger,” they said.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will bring food to these people, ﬂesh in the evening and bread in the morning, so that they will know that the Lord brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

On that very evening, quail ﬂew in and covered the camp, so that there was plenty of quail for everyone. And in the morning, when the dew was melted, there lay on the ground something like hoar frost. The people did not know what it was.

“This is the bread which the Lord has given you,” said Moses. “Gather as much as you want.” It was white as

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (12-1.tex) 29 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible First Sunday of December coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. The Hebrews called it manna; they lived on it for forty years.

Lesson Content

Review the previous lesson and continue to describe the tenth plague in detail. The Hebrews put the blood over the lintel and the posts of their doors. So when the Angel passed through that night to let the destroyer smite the Egyptians, He saw the blood on the doors of the Hebrews and passed-over. Since that time the Hebrews’ most important feast is the ‘Passover’ as they remember how the Lord got them out of Egypt.

For us as Christians our Passover Lamb is our Lord Jesus Christ because through His Blood on the Cross we gained salvation and were transferred from death to life. This new life was granted to us by the Risen Lord on Easter which has become our new Passover.

Please describe the Red Sea crossing as per the background information for the servant provided above. “Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and made the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided. So the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued and went after them into the midst of the sea ... Then the Lord said to Moses, ’stretch out your hand over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians’ ... And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; ... the sea returned to its full depth, while the Egyptians were ﬂeeing into it.”

Please let the children read the rest of the song of Moses and his people (Exodus 15:1-21). “I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously! ... The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him ...” Our Lord is capable, our Lord loves us and when we are with Him we are very happy.

At the sea of Marah, the water was bitter, they could not drink it and Moses cried to the Lord. Moses threw a tree in the water according to God’s command and the water became sweet.

After they had exhausted their food supplies in the wilderness, the Lord gave them ﬂesh (quail) in the evening and bread (manna) in the morning.

The Hebrews lived on God’s food for forty years in the desert. As the Lord took care of the Hebrews at that time, He takes care of us now.

Application Exercise When we take communion, the Lord Jesus gives us His Body to eat and His Blood to drink. This is the heavenly food that is given to us now in order to gain eternal life. When the Hebrews were in the desert God gave them regular food to eat, i.e., the quail and manna.

We have to be very careful of the temptation of the devil who wants us to fall in sin. But we must not be afraid of the devil because God is much stronger and he is with us.

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The Book of Exodus The Ten Commandments

Bible References: Exodus 20:1-17, 31:12-18

Lesson Aim: This lesson is a continuation of the series of lessons about Moses and his people as discussed in the previous two lessons. In this lesson we will learn about the Ten Commandments.

Memory Verse: “And He gave Moses two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the ﬁnger of God.” (Exodus 31:18 )

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Background Information for the Servant In the third month of the journey, the Hebrews camped in the desert, near Mount Sinai. And the Lord called Moses and told him to sanctify the people and have them wash their clothes, for in three days He would appear before them on the mountain.

On the third day in the morning, there was thunder and lightning and a thick cloud covering the mountain. Then came great clouds of smoke for the Lord descended upon the mountain in the form of ﬁre. When Moses spoke, God answered him with a voice.

God came on the mountain and the whole mountain quaked greatly and it was all covered with smoke, and the smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the sound of the trumpet grew louder; is the same God who came to our Lady’s womb in a very humble and quiet way, and was born in a manger. Therefore, the burning bush is a symbol of our lady, St Mary, carried the Fire of Divinity (God) in her womb without blemishing her virginity. As He came on the mountain, it was like a furnace.

Then God called Moses to come up to the top of the mountain, and He gave him these commandments: 1. You shall have no gods except Me. 2. You shall not make any carved idols. 3. You shall not use the name of God profanely. 4. Remember to keep the Sabbath day Holy. 5. Honor your father and mother. 6. You shall not kill. 7. You shall not commit adultery. 8. You shall not steal. 9. You shall not give false evidence. 10. You shall not covet anything of your neighbor’s. Moses was on the mountain so long that the people became impatient. They went to Aaron and asked him to make them gods to go before them. So Aaron had them contribute their golden jewelry, which he melted down and formed into a golden calf.

When Moses came down the mountain, he heard the people singing. Then he saw them dancing naked in front of the golden calf and worshiping it. Moses was in a fury. He broke the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments on them. Then he took the golden calf and burned it and ground it to powder.

Later, Moses returned to the mountain and received the stone tablets engraved with the commandments a second time.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • Why is Moses considered to be a very important character in the Old Testament? • After spending forty years in the desert, what did Moses receive from God? • Why are the Ten Commandments important for us as Christians?

Lesson Content Discuss the Ten Commandments. We, as Christians, are supposed to follow these commandments and even more. We should love not only our neighbours but also our enemies. “You shall have no other gods before Me.., You shall not make any carved idols... You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.., Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy... Honour your father and your mother... You shall not murder... You shall not commit adultery... You shall not steal... You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor... You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:3-17)

Our Lord Jesus Christ fulﬁlled Moses’ Laws. He said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulﬁll.” (Matthew 5:17)

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The commandments were given to Moses for the people of Israel to follow in their life. The people at that time did not have the grace of the Holy Spirit as we now have Him when we are baptised. So, the ten commandments were the minimum requirements and we as Christians are required to do a lot more. For this reason the Lord Jesus said, “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:20)

The Sabbath (Saturday) is the Lord’s Day of rest. God commanded His people to keep that day holy so that they can continue to remember His mighty works in creation. Adam’s disobedience took away God’s rest. “And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth and He was grieved in His heart.” (Genesis@6:6)

When did rest return to God? On His Resurrection when He gave life back to man. Therefore, Sunday has become our day of rest ... our Sabbath.

The people of Israel had to keep the Sabbath (remember that the word Sabbath means rest). But they kept it in a very rigid way. When our Lord Jesus came and performed miracles on the Sabbath, they were angry. For example, our Saviour healed the man at the pool of Bethesda on a Saturday (John 5:1-17). The Jews were very angry. “For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him because He had done these things on the Sabbath.” (John 5:16).

The Jews were wrong. They should have realized that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God and He could do any merciful deeds at any time even on the Sabbath. God does merciful deeds at all times. We too can do merciful deeds on Sunday.

Application Exercise • I must know and follow God’s commandments and all the teachings of the Bible, both the Old and the New Testaments. I follow their commandments for my goodness sake. • Sunday, the day of the Lord’s Resurrection, has become our day of rest ... our Sabbath. We can make Sunday as a very special day in which we remember the Lord’s Resurrection and the new life that He gave us. On Sundays, we go to church, take communion, and family members get together dedicating time for prayers and hymns. Let us make Sunday an ideal day of our life in behaviour, prayers and happiness.

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The Book of Exodus The Bronze Serpent

Bible References: Numbers 21:4-9

Lesson Aim: To complete the series about the Lord’s care for Moses and his people. He also takes care of us. Let us all train ourselves not to be complainers.

Memory Verse: “If a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent he lived.” (Numbers 21:9 )

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Lesson Content

The people were continually complaining against both God and Moses.

“Why did you lead us out of Egypt in order to die in the wilderness?” was their constant cry. “There is no bread, no water, and we are tired of manna.”

Then the Lord sent stinging serpents among the people, which bit them. Many of them died from serpent bites.

Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned in speaking against the Lord and against you. It is because of our sin that these serpents have been set upon us. Would you pray to the Lord for us, that He remove these serpents?” So Moses prayed for the people, and the Lord told him to construct a bronze serpent and place it on a pole. If anyone should be bitten by a serpent, all s/he had to do was to look at the bronze serpent on the pole, and his/her life would be spared.

The Jews were complainers in the days of Moses and also in the days when our Lord Jesus Christ was on earth in the flesh. “And the Lord said to what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance, we mourned to you, and you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon,’ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by all her children.” (Luke 7:31-35) We should not be complainers at home or at school or at church or at any place we go to.

The Bronze Serpent was a symbol of Jesus when He was cruciﬁed. As the Bible said, “As Moses raised the serpent in the wilderness, the Son of Man will be raised on the Cross so that who believes in him will inherit eternal life.” (John 3:14-15)

Imagine a Hebrew child bitten by a stinging serpent and then he was healed when he looked upon the bronze serpent. Should he just go to his tent or go and play afterwards? No. He should go to other people and tell them about the glory of God and the miracle that was performed on him. We should do the same. We must tell people about the Lord Jesus, who saved us with His Blood on the Cross.

Application Exercise • We must be thankful for all that we have from God. We must not complain as the Israelites did. God is very merciful. When the Israelites repented and confessed their sins to Moses, God healed them through the bronze serpent (the symbol of the Cross). Similarly, God accepts us when we repent.

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The Birth of St John the Baptist and the Birth of our Lord Jesus are Announced

Bible References: Luke 1:5-38

Lesson Aim: To let the children rejoice with these two happy events and know them by heart. Emphasise the simplicity of the Virgin Saint Mary.

Memory Verse: Do not be afraid... (Luke 1:13 )

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Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • What does it mean to be humble? • What does it mean to be obedient? • Who in the New Testament is known for her humility and obedience?

Lesson Content

As St John the Baptist was designated, according to God’s plan, to come before our Lord Jesus, St Luke started by describing ﬁrst the events of the birth of St John the Baptist then the events of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Tell the two stories of the birth of St John the Baptist and our Saviour the Lord Jesus in detail. The starting point of the angel with Zacharias was diﬀerent from that of the Virgin Mary.

The angel started with Zacharias saying, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John” (Luke 1:13). This reminds us that in spite of the fact that Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth were too old to have a son, they did not lose hope, and God responded to their prayers in due time. When the angel came to the Virgin Mary, he said, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women.” (Luke 1:28). St Mary was “the highly favoured one”, and the Lord was with her, and that she is “blessed among women”.

The answer of Zacharias was quite diﬀerent from that of the Virgin Mary. Zacharias did not believe the message. The Virgin Mary believed and obeyed.

Ask the children to talk about the main characteristics of the Virgin Mary: Simplicity: “let it be to me according to your word”, and humility and obedience: “Behold the maidservant of the Lord.” The Virgin Mary said that she was the “maidservant of the Lord” after the angel told her, “That Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). This means that she was going to be the Mother of God.

Even if we do not understand what the Bible is telling us, we have to be simple and straight in our thinking and take it as it is and believe it. God will explain things to us at the right time when we mature

The Holy Spirit will be with the Virgin Mary so that she would give birth to a Child and He would be called Holy. He is the Son of God.

Why was John the Baptist needed to come before our Lord Jesus? He was needed to come before to prepare the minds and hearts of the people so that they may accept the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah, the Son of God, and the Saviour of the world.

Application Exercise • Our Lord Jesus Christ was born, taking on a body from the Virgin Mary, for our salvation, and the remission of our sins. Hence, Christmas is the happiest occasion of our lives. Let us learn from the Virgin Mary to be simple and obedient. When we read the Holy Bible at home or listen to it at church, we must listen, obey and apply what we read or hear in our daily life; even if we do not fully understand.

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Our Lord Jesus is Born in a Manger in Bethlehem The Escape of the Holy Family to Egypt

Bible References: Luke 2:1-20, Matthew 1:18-24, Matthew 2:7-23

Lesson Aim: To learn that our Lord Jesus was humble and did not use His power against His enemies. We also must be humble in our life and in all our dealings with people. We must ﬂee away from temptations and ﬁghts.

Memory Verse: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.” (Matthew 2:1)

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Background Information for the Servant The Birth of God’s Son Now the time was ripe for the Saviour to be born on earth. And how the world needed Him, for everyone was selﬁsh and unhappy! All the people in the world were sinners, just as Adam and Eve had been. When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God promised them that a Saviour would come someday to take away their sins. The prophets too had often told the people of Israel that this wonderful Saviour was going to come.

One day the time came, and God sent His angel to St Mary. She was a Jewish girl who was a relative of King David, who had lived hundreds of years before. Gabriel the Angel of the Lord said, “Do not be afraid, Mary! God has greatly blessed you. You are going to have a baby and His name will be JESUS. He will have no human father, for He will be the Son of God. And God is giving a baby to Zacharias and your cousin St Elizabeth.”

St Mary did not understand how she could have a baby, for she was a virgin, that is, she was not married. But the angel explained that this was not necessary, for God would perform a special miracle to make her pregnant while she was a virgin. No other babe has ever been born without a human father. Jesus was diﬀerent. How excited and happy St Mary was at this wonderful news that she would be the mother of the Saviour of the world!

She was engaged to an old man named St Joseph, who was a carpenter.

But when they arrived at Bethlehem there was no room for them at the little hotel; it was already full. So they went out to the stable where the donkeys and camels were kept, to sleep in the straw on the ground. And while they were resting in the stable, St Mary’s baby was born. He was the little son that the angel Gabriel had told her about. Yes, the Lord Jesus was born out there in the stable; and St Mary dressed Him in some baby clothes she had brought, and wrapped Him up in a blanket, and laid Him in a manger.

In those days the Jews were under the rule of the Romans; they had to do whatever the emperor of Rome and his assistants told them to. Now he made a law that the name and address of every Jew must be written down. He instructed everyone to go to the city where his ancestors had lived, so that the Roman oﬃcers could record their names. Ancestors mean relatives who lived hundreds of years before. So St Joseph and St Mary went to Bethlehem where King David used to live, because they were relatives of his, though he had lived hundreds of years before they were born.

That same night some shepherds in the ﬁelds outside the town were watching their sheep to protect them from wild animals. Suddenly an angel surrounded by a bright light appeared to them. They were very frightened. But the angel said, “Do not be afraid; for I have good news for you, and for all people. In the city of David your Saviour was born! His name is Christ the Lord.”

“And this is how you will know Him: you will ﬁnd Him wrapped in baby clothes and lying in a manger!”

Then suddenly many, many other angels appeared, praising God and saying “Glory to God! in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!”

After the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other: “Let’s now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass which the Lord has made known to us.” So they ran to the village and soon found St Mary and St Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger! Afterwards the shepherds returned to their ﬂock again, praising God for what they had heard and seen, as it was told to them.

The Lord Jesus kept safe The night was cool. St Joseph whispered softly when he lifted Baby Jesus up to St Mary’s arms, He watched St Mary tuck the blanket carefully around the Lord Jesus.

St Joseph looked all around. “Now let us go quickly!” he said as he led the donkey. That night an angel had told him to take the Lord Jesus and His mother to Egypt.

When the sun came up they were far away from Bethlehem. In a few days they came to the land of Egypt. They stayed in Egypt a long time. Then one night in a dream the angel said to St Joseph, “Arise and take Jesus and His mother back to Israel. Those who tried to kill Him are dead.”

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So once more St Joseph lifted the Lord Jesus gently up to St Mary and they rode the donkey. He led the way back to the land of Israel. On and on they walked until they came to the town of Nazareth. There they lived in a small house.

St Joseph watched happily as the Lord Jesus grew. He saw that the Lord Jesus helped His Mother; St Joseph let the Lord Jesus help with his carpentry work too. St Joseph took good care of the boy Jesus, St Joseph knew that the Lord Jesus was God’s Son, our Savior.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • Why do you think our Lord Jesus Christ chose to be born in a humble manager in Bethlehem? • What characteristic did he want to teach us by doing so?

Lesson Content

God wanted to teach us humility. When our Saviour the Lord Jesus was born, He chose a poor girl (the Virgin Mary) and a manger for His birth. Let us not think highly of ourselves so that our Beloved Jesus would come and rest in our hearts. In St Mary’s song, she said the following about God, “He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly.” (Luke 1:51-52). This means that in order to receive the Lord Jesus’ help in our lives, we must be humble.

Please ask the children: What does it mean to be humble? It means that we do not think that we are better than others; it means we are content with the bare necessities of life; and it also means that we should feel our weaknesses, realise that we are sinners and in need of God’s grace and His great mercy on us.

St Joseph and St Mary came to Bethlehem to be registered as the government wanted. But the prophecies were then fulﬁlled that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born in Bethlehem.

When the Lord Jesus was born they gave Him the name “Jesus” which means Saviour because He saves His people from their sins. So the prophecy “The Virgin Mary shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Emmanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14) was fulﬁlled, Emmanuel means “God is with us.” which implies that He took ﬂesh, stayed with us and saved us.

Describe the visit of the shepherds brieﬂy.

Describe the visit of the wise men in detail and then mention what King Herod did: • He was afraid because he thought a new king would take away his authority. He thought only of himself. • He called all the chief priests and asked them where about Christ would be born. They said in Bethlehem. • He invited the wise men in secret and wanted to know where Jesus was born so that he could go and kill Him. After the wise men saw the Lord Jesus and gave Him their gifts, they returned to their far town and did not go to King Herod.

The angel then appeared to St Joseph and asked him to take St Mary and the Lord Jesus and go to Egypt. God had the ability to kill King Herod himself and all his people, but He did not want to use this power. God had several other ways to save the Lord Jesus from King Herod, but He chose to use this opportunity so that Egypt would be blessed with the visit of our Lord Jesus Christ, and also to fulﬁl the prophecy “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

King Herod was still focusing on his job. He sent an army and killed all the young children up to the age of two. When our Beloved Jesus went to Egypt He was about 2 years old.

Compare the love of the wise men that came from very far to the hatred of King Herod.

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Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Since the ﬁrst day of the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ, He wanted to teach us to be content with the minimum of materialistic things. We must stop asking for more toys and more candy. We must thank the Lord and thank our parents for what we have.

• We must flee away from possible fights and problems as the Lord Jesus fled away from King Herod.

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A Voice Preparing You for the Coming of the Saviour

Bible References: Matthew 3:13-17, John 1:18-34

Lesson Aim: To learn that St John the Baptist came to prepare people’s minds for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. There was a declaration from heaven as well as a declaration from St John the Baptist that Jesus is the Son of God.

Memory Verse: “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” (John 1:2)

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Background Information for the Servant The Baptism of Jesus Christ - January 19 (According to the Julian Calendar) Geographical Setting At the very end of the Jordan River and just before it pours its waters into the Dead Sea, there is a shallow area in the river that could be crossed by wading called now the ford of ’Bethabara’ (the crossing way). There, for many years merchants and travellers from Arabia, Persia and India have crossed the river on their way to Jerusalem, Egypt and Africa. It is a very rugged spot. During the summer, the heat is terrible, the air is heavy and the surface of the Dead Sea is in the colour of lead. There too was located the lost cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (read Genesis 13-19). The smell of Sulphur still hangs in the air as if to remind man forever that “... the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

Winter is a bit better because a cooling breeze blows down the Jordan Valley in the evening to replace the heat of summer.

Introduction In the wilderness of Judea, one day, a prophet or a messenger of God appeared around the year AD 30. He was a strange, rough looking man. His only garment was a camel skin caught at the waist by a strip of leather. His food was locust leaves and wild honey. He cried to everyone who passed by and, out of curiosity stopped a moment to listen: “The reign of God is about to begin. Right now, God has His axe set ready at the base of the tree of your life. Unless you repent of your wicked ways, and submit your life to His rule, He will chop you down and throw you into the ﬁre.”

However, there was a happy side to his preaching. Everyone, who truly repented would be forgiven. But, how would the repentant be forgiven? John preached a baptism of repentance for the remission of sin. The word ‘baptism’ is derived from the Greek word ‘baptismos’ , which means ‘immersion’.

It is important to note that John baptised people with water — for repentance from their sins, so that they can change their sinful ways and go on to lead a holy life, in the hope that God will forgive them. However, John’s baptism cannot forgive sins — only the blood of Christ can forgive sins. Therefore, only baptism with the ‘Holy Spirit and ﬁre’ can forgive sins.

Crowds Come to John the Baptist In the early Jewish tradition, and until the coming of the Messiah, God used to send every hundred years or so a prophet to preach to the Jews to return to their God and to foretell about the coming of the Messiah, the Saviour who would release them from their bondage. When John the Baptist appeared at the Jordan River, it was more than 300 years since the Jews had a prophet to tell them, “Thus says the Lord ...” The Jews were waiting for either another prophet or the Messiah Himself. Therefore, the word spread like ﬁre through the land, “There is a new prophet preaching at the Jordan ford. There is a message that has come from God.”

The Baptism of the Messiah People crowded to see and listen to the new prophet. Among the crowds were the rich and the poor, the oﬃcials of the church and those of the government, the sophisticated and the plain ordinary people. As they listened, their consciences awoke and they remembered their past sins. They streamed into the water to be baptised by John ... to be cleansed from their sins.

One day, someone asked another, “Can this be the promised Saviour, the Messiah?” In few minutes, everyone was asking the same question. Right away John answered: “I am only a voice crying in the wilderness, a voice preparing you for the coming of the Saviour. Soon, someone will come after me, someone greater than I am that I am not ﬁt to untie His shoes. He will baptise you with the ﬁre of the Holy Spirit.”

Among the crowds, there was a stranger from a faraway city called Galilee. He also stepped into the water to be baptised. But this particular man was different from all other men, This man alone has no sins. He is the only man who does not need to be baptised. Why then does he join the wicked and the sinners at the water’s edge? This thought came to John himself, and the Baptist said to Jesus Christ: “It is I who needs baptism from you, and yet You come to me?” But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

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Something else happened at His baptism. After His immersion into the water, as Jesus was standing, suddenly above His head the heavens opened, as if a crack happened in the sky, and the Holy Spirit descended in the shape of a dove and rested on Him. At that moment God the Father Himself said: “This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Read Matthew 3 and Luke 3)

Epiphany in the Orthodox Church We in the Orthodox Christians consider this event, the Baptism of Jesus Christ, one of the major Feasts of the Church. It is called the ‘Epiphany’ which in Greek means ‘showing forth’ or ‘manifestation’. In this event, Jesus Christ was not only declared by God the Father to be His only Begotten Son; but also it shows forth the three Persons of the Holy Trinity; the Father speaks from heaven, the Son in the Jordan River being baptised, and the Holy Spirit descends from heaven taking the shape of a dove.

On Epiphany Eve, and just before the Divine Liturgy, a special service is held in the Orthodox Church. It is called the ‘Lakan’ which means ‘the blessing of the water’. This is to commemorate the blessing of the water of the Jordan by having Christ baptised in it and by having the Holy Spirit descending on our Lord. In this service, the priest asks God’s blessing of this water. He says: “Bless this water that is set before thee and give it the blessing that you gave to the Jordan by the descent of the Holy Spirit... Let it be a fountain of blessing, a holy gift, a healer of the sickness of the body and the soul ... and a blessing to the homes, ...”

At the end of the service, the priest blesses the people with that water by crossing their foreheads three times.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • If Jesus is the Son of God and He is already cleansed from sin, why did He get baptised?

Lesson Content

Introduce the role that St John the Baptist played before the preaching of our Lord Jesus Christ.

St John the Baptist came before the Lord Jesus to reveal to the people of Israel that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah for whom they have been waiting for many years.

In St John’s declaration of the Messiah, he did two things: (1) when the people came to him, he said that I am not the Messiah, but I am the voice who is telling you about Him. (2) He started to baptise people with water, When the Lord Jesus came with them to him, a declaration was made from heaven that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah Son of God.

Describe in detail the baptism of Jesus Christ from John. Emphasise the declaration from heaven and then the declaration of John to the people that Jesus is the Son of God. The declaration from heaven came like this: “The heavens were opened to Him and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”’ (Matthew 3:16-17). The declaration from St John the Baptist came like this: “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptise with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptises with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and testiﬁed that this is the Son of God,” (John 1:32-34)

The Lord Jesus had no sins so He did not need to be baptised, but He did it for two reasons: (1) So the Lord Jesus can carry on His back all the sins of all those people who have ever lived or will ever live and who trust in God’s salvation. That is why He is called the Saviour. (2) Because the Lord Jesus had to be revealed to Israel through the declaration from Heaven. “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17).

When we celebrate Epiphany we remember the manifestation of the three Persons of the Holy Trinity; the Father speaks from heaven, the Son in the Jordan River being baptised, and the Holy Spirit descends from heaven taking the shape of a dove.

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Did the people of Israel believe the message from St John the Baptist?

Some of them did, some did not believe him or believe our Lord Jesus either despite all the miracles that the Lord Jesus Christ did in front of them. The reason for this was that lots of them thought the Messiah, when He comes, will be a strong king who will lead them to win more wars and become rich. On the contrary, our Lord Jesus declared, “My Kingdom is not from this world.” Everything that the Lord Jesus did was predicted by the prophets in the Old Testament.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Ask the children to repeat saying “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” The children should repeat this verse several times. This was the voice from heaven.

• Everything in life must be in order, i.e., step by step. We must prepare things in advance, for example, we must prepare ourselves before we take communion, pray, repent and confess.

• Before our Saviour Lord Jesus started His ministry, St John the Baptist came ﬁrst to declare to the people that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah.

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Naaman the Syrian Story of a River and a Font of Water

Bible References: 2 Kings 5

Lesson Aim: Introduce the children to the purpose of the Lakan in the various feasts of the church.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The meaning and purpose of the Lakan, its rites, and the spiritual symbols of baptism in the story of Naaman the Syrian Feel: The love of our Lord Jesus Christ when we practice the Lakan, remembering what He has done for us to purify us and save us. Practice: Attending the prayers of the Lakan on the three occasions on which it is practiced.

Memory Verse: Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your ﬁlthiness and from all your idols. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

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Background Information for the Servant

“Lakan” is a Greek word meaning “vessel,” since a vessel is used to hold water for washing. It is also the name given to the liturgical prayers which are said to consecrate the water of the Lakan. The “Lakan” is prayed three times a year: the Feast of Epiphany, Covenant Thursday, and the Feast of the Apostles. It is prayed in the rear third of the church.

Naaman the Syrian The account of Naaman the Syrian most probably took place in the latter days of Elisha the Prophet, during the reign of King Jehu (see 2 Kings 6-7). The Bible describes Naaman the Syrian as being “a great and honourable man.” The word “Naaman” means “the beautiful one” or “the cheerful one”, so it is thought that at his birth, he was beautiful to look upon. Therefore, Naaman considered that leprosy was his greatest aﬄiction.

The Geographical and Historical Dimension Naaman came from the country of Aram (now Syria), which was situated between Assyria and Israel. Because of its location, Aram was a protective shield to Israel from Assyria. God used Aram to protect Israel from the evil of the Assyrians. It was said that Naaman entered into ﬁerce ﬁghting against Assyria. and some reckon that it was in collaboration with the Israelites. However, regardless of this, we can be sure that the Lord gave great deliverance by the hand of Naaman.

Naaman was a commander of the army of the king of Aram, and was a great and honourable man in the eyes of his master. He was a valiant soldier. But he had leprosy. He was highly regarded by all, even the little Israelite girl who was taken captive who wished for him to be healed from his disease. And his servants who accompanied him to Israel called him “my father” and had insisted that he obey the instructions given to him by Elisha for his healing, which shows that he was greatly loved not only by the king, but by everyone, both dignitaries and ordinary people.

His Disease His disease of leprosy was incurable. It spread slowly throughout his body and is characterised by:

• The appearance of skin lesions that are lighter than normal skin, which remain for weeks or months; • Patches of skin with a decreased sensation to touch, pain, and heat; and • Muscle weakness. Leprosy was one of the “unclean” illnesses mentioned in the Holy Bible, and whoever touched a leper would also become unclean. Therefore, while being cured from other diseases was called “healing”, being cured from leprosy was called “puriﬁcation”. However, leprosy could not be cured without a miracle.

The Holy Bible views leprosy as a symbol of sin, in the way it spreads in the body; it can aﬀect certain parts of the body only, or the whole body, and it can spread to both hidden parts and exposed parts such as the face and hands, thereby symbolising both the hidden and manifest sins; i.e. those known only to the sinner, and those known by others also.

Journey to Israel to be Cured In 2 Kings 5, we meet a young girl who was captured by the Arameans in one of their invasions, and was sold as a slave. She was the maidservant of Naaman’s wife. We cannot imagine the suﬀering of the young girl who was once free but then became a slave. No matter how luxurious the house into which she was sold, she was still a stranger and a slave.

She told her mistress, Naaman’s wife, that there is a prophet in her country called Elisha who is capable of healing Naaman. Naaman took the news to the king of Aram, who in turn wrote a letter of recommendation to the King of Israel regarding Naaman. The king of Israel was terriﬁed for he knew full well that he could do nothing for Naaman. The news reached Elisha the Prophet, so he called for Naaman. So he went with his horses and chariot, and stood at the door of Elisha’s house.

Reaction of Elisha Elisha sent a messenger to Naaman, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your ﬂesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.” However, it seems strange that Elisha did not go out himself to meet Naaman,

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (01-3.tex) 47 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church Third Sunday of January though it was the most basic form of courtesy that he could have shown this diseased visitor. Scholars diﬀer in their reasons as to why Elisha dealt with Naaman in such a manner. Some say that Elisha, like any other Jew, was not permitted to approach a leper in accordance with the Jewish law, so that he does not himself become unclean. However, this is quite diﬃcult to believe, given our knowledge of Elisha’s character and position as a prophet. Others say that Naaman stood at Elisha’s door because he saw himself as unworthy to enter Elisha’s house. Although this might be true, that would not have stopped Elisha from coming out of his house to meet him.

It could be the case that Naaman arrived at Elisha’s house accompanied by his army in full military parade, thinking that he was better than Elisha, and taking oﬀense at Elisha for not receiving him in person, for he was a great and honoured man esteemed highly by the king of his country. So, it was imperative for Elisha to teach Naaman a very important lesson: that salvation can only be received by those who are humble and down-to-earth. More importantly, Elisha wanted Naaman to meet with God directly, with no intermediary; Naaman had travelled for around one hundred miles from Aram to Israel to look for an intercessor. Naaman was pinning his hopes on Elisha as an intercessor, but Elisha wanted to disappear, so that God could appear clearly to Naaman. If Elisha had appeared from the beginning, Naaman would have become attached to him, and would not have known God. Thus Elisha was like John the Baptist, who said “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Likewise, the church puts for us the rites of the Lakan so that we may practise the virtue of humility in seeking healing of our souls through repentance before proceeding to receive the holy sacraments.

Lesson Content Purification of Naaman Elisha the Prophet asked Naaman the Syrian, who was leprous, to wash in the River Jordan seven times, and his flesh will be restored, like the flesh of a young boy.

Initially Naaman refused to go, giving the excuse that his country’s rivers are better and greater! But his servants persuaded him to go, saying: “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it?” Naaman listened to the advice of his servants and went to the River Jordan, and dipped himself seven times in the water, as the man of God had instructed him. And his flesh was restored and became like the flesh of a young boy, and he was purified from his disease.

As we have seen in the story of Naaman the Syrian, when he obeyed the words of Elisha the prophet and dipped in the River Jordan seven times, he was healed from his leprosy, which is an incurable disease.

Leprosy represents sin and the washing in the Jordan is a symbol of the puriﬁcation from sin in Baptism. In Baptism we are washed from sin, and are born again by water and the Spirit. We also receive a renewed nature and are clothed with a white garment of righteousness (we put on Christ).

We were all been baptised when we were young. In the feast of Epiphany we commemorate the Lord’s Baptism and our own baptism. In this feast we also pray the Lakan. Abouna prays upon the water of the Lakan that it may purify us from disease and from all acts of the devil. And by our faith, the Lord heals the soul and the body.

The Lakan The word “Lakan” means basin. The basin is made from stone or marble and is put in the western part of the Church (at the back of the Church). In some of the ancient churches the basin was placed in the floor of the church and was filled with water. We find this for example in some of the ancient churches in Old Cairo, and in the monastery of St Bishoy. The Lakan is prayed three times a year, in the following occasions:

• The feast of Epiphany • Covenant Thursday • Feast of the Apostles But why especially in those feasts?

Lakan of the Feast of Epiphany It is prayed so that we may remember the baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. We pray the Lakan after the raising of incense, and the Lakan basin is ﬁlled with water. The members of the

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (01-3.tex) 48 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church Third Sunday of January congregation bring bottles of water to be blessed by the prayers of the Liturgy of the Lakan. Hence our lovely church reminds us that the Lakan in the Feast of the Epiphany is a symbol of the River Jordan where our Lord was baptised.

Abouna prays many lovely prayers over the water of the Lakan. One such prayer is: “sanctify this water and grant it the blessing of the Jordan, so that it may become a source for blessing and a pure gift to grant freedom from sin and expel diseases.” Abouna prays this while holding the cross over the water, since the blessing comes through the Cross.

My children, the use of water in the church reminds us always that we have to wash ourselves very well by repenting. The children of God should be always pure from sin, for the foundation of the sanctiﬁcation of water is our Lord Jesus Christ when he dipped into the Jordan River.

The Lakan of Covenant Thursday Abouna prays the Lakan in remembrance of the washing of the feet of the disciples, for on that day our Lord washed the feet of his disciples and told them, “do to each other what I have done for you.” The church prays the Liturgy of the Lakan on that day, in order to practice the virtue of humility, following the example of Christ when he washed the disciples’ feet.

In the prayer of the Covenant Thursday, Abouna ties a towel around his waist, exactly as our Lord Jesus Christ did, and begins to wash the feet of the deacons and the men. For the ladies it suﬃces to anoint them with water on the head, neck, and hands. This Lakan is prayed during the day, and it is similar to the Lakan of the Feast of Epiphany. Our Lord is teaching us on that occasion a lesson about true humility, and how to serve my brethren and love them as the Lord loved me.

The Lakan of the Feast of the Apostles The Lakan is prayed on this feast to remind us of our fathers the Apostles, who taught us the true faith, and that the ﬁrst thing we must do is to wash ourselves from every sin by repentance, before proceeding to receive Holy Communion. For through repentance we are worthy to be children of God who is holy.

The Synaxarion tells us that on the twelfth day of the Coptic month of Baba, St Matthew the disciple was the one who introduced to the church the custom of using water.

The Orders of Prayers of the Lakan • Prayer of Thanksgiving: This is prayed first because we must thank our Lord Jesus Christ before we do anything. • Verses of the Cymbals: This is a hymn in which we greet all the saints who are present with us. • Psalm 51: That we may all offer up repentance, and to remember that water is a symbol of purity. • The Prophecies: These are readings from the Old Testament that mention water, and are related to the events of that day. • The Pauline: A reading from the a letter (epistle) of St Paul, and is related to the event of that day. This is followed by the Hymn of the Trisagion (Agios). Then the Gospel is read. • The Litanies: These are prayers prayed for all people (e.g. the sick and the catechumens (those who are becoming Christian)) • The Supplication: These prayers differ according to which Lakan is being prayed. Here we ask our Lord Jesus to make the water which we are praying over to be water for sanctification, blessing and healing. • Liturgy of the Water: These are prayers over the water. It resembles the normal liturgy. Finally, after the praying over the water, the priest anoints the deacons and the rest of the congregation. The Lakan is prayed before the Holy Liturgy as an indication of the importance of us being washed from our sins before proceeding to take Holy Communion, exactly as our Lord Jesus Christ washed the disciples’ feet before giving them His Holy Body and Precious Blood.

Application Comprehension Questions • What disease did Naaman suﬀer from? What does this disease symbolise? What is the judgement of the Jewish laws concerning this disease? • What is the name of the river that Naaman dipped himself in? How many times did he dip himself?

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• How many times does the church pray the Rite of the Lakan, and why on those occasions in particular? • Does the Church pray the Lakan before or after the Holy Mass? Why? • In which sacrament is water used? What is the diﬀerence between that sacrament and the Lakan? • Which of the disciples introduced water in the rites of the church? • Describe what you can remember from the rites of the Lakan?

Exercise • Encourage the children to attend the Lakan prayers on its three occasions (to attend early to enjoy the rites of the Lakan). • Encourage them to use the water of the Lakan and to be blessed by it at home.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean. Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Create in me a clean heart, O God. And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

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I Obey my Parents and Respect them The Lord Christ in the Temple Amidst the Teachers

Bible References: Luke 2

Lesson Aim: To obey my parents and respect my family.

Lesson Objectives: Know: How to obey and honour his/her parents. Feel: The importance of obeying our elders. Practice: To be accustomed to obey parents and elders.

Memory Verse: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” (Ephesians 6:1)

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Background Information for the Servant Our Lord Jesus Christ gave us through His life on Earth the best example by His love and respect to His mother, our lady St Mary and St Joseph the Carpenter. We see Him, in His humility, subject to them; “He was subject to them.” (Luke 2:51)

He submitted to Virgin Mary because she was his mother, and he submitted to St Joseph even though he was not his father physically, but he was considered His father because of his care for Him, and even sent Mary said to our Lord Jesus “Your father and I have sought you anxiously.” (Luke 2:48).

It is a very beautiful lesson for us, that the One to whom all the angels and archangels are subject, submitted to both St Mary and St Joseph. The One to whom “every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth.” (Philippians 2:10)

“Honour your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.” (Exodus 20:12) This is the ﬁfth commandment of the Ten, and concerns honouring our parents. The Lord put this commandment before all other commandments relating to our dealings with others, which are the last six commandments: “You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. . . ” (Exodus 20:13-17) Its position amongst those six commandments tells us much about its signiﬁcance and its importance for us not to take it lightly. It also indicates that the one who dishonours one’s father or mother commits a greater sin than one who murders or steals.

When the Lord God wanted to show the depth of His relationship with us and the depth of his love to us, He likened His relationship with us to the tenderness of a father and the gentleness of a mother. Therefore God has raised the state of fatherhood as he has called himself a father to us. He has resembled His love to us with a mother’s tenderness, pity and care. Honouring parents requires us to love, obey, thank, and looking after them. The Lord himself shows us to what extent we should go to carry out and fulﬁl this commandment, as it was said that the Lord “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:8)

Obedience is an intrinsic element in honouring parents. Of all the amazing examples of obeying parents mentioned in the Holy Bible, the example of Isaac with with his father Abraham is probably the most outstanding. Isaac surrendered himself to his father to be offered as a burnt offering to the Lord, and this is a prefigurement of the obedience of the Lord to be sacrificed on the cross. Thus, St Paul the Apostle says: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” (Ephesians 6:1). The phrase “in the Lord” means within God’s commandments. How beautiful indeed is obedience and submission to our parents, but in the Lord.

Sometimes servants care more about looking after their image in front of those s/he serves, forgetting that s/he ought primarily to be an image of our Lord Jesus in the midst of his family and his people. For servants are not there merely to pass on information, but to be a living Bible within his family and beyond. A servant ought to learn cheerfulness and gentleness before starting any service, and oﬀer in their household an example of being successful in their life, whether in their academic life, their working life or their social life. When others see a servant as a good example, they will respect them, and will respect their manner and principles, and will likely take them as a role model in their own lives.

Christ our Lord rebuked the Pharisees and Scribes who neglected honouring their parents with the excuse that they offered a gift to the altar; “He answered and said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded, saying, ‘Honour your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God”— then he need not honour his father or mother.’ Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.”” (Matthew 15:3-6)

Therefore, the Lord declared that honouring your father and your mother with your money when they need is more important than oﬀering a gift to the altar.

There is a very powerful verse concerning this issue in the first epistle of St Paul to his disciple, Timothy, in which he says: “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” (1 Timothy 5:8) So the righteous son or daughter or to exert all of his/her effort to please his/her parents, comfort them and take their blessings and good will. This love and gratitude should continue on on all throughout their lives, and even after they pass away, One must offer prayers and liturgies on their behalf and continue to obey and carry out their will as much as possible.

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I Love My Family A family is like the fingers of a hand; they each differ in length and function, but they all work together and feel pain together. They all sleep at the same time, and are happy at the same time, for they are one unit that cannot be separated. They belong to one hand, but one may be small, another big, another thin and yet another fat. Yet the fingers love each other and work together as one unit, and none of them rejects the other. Each has specific role: for example, the ring finger bears a ring and the index finger is used to point, but in the end they are belong to one hand, and are linked and united together.

Lesson Content When our Lord Jesus was on Earth and was 12 years old, he went to Jerusalem with his mother St Mary and St Joseph the Carpenter. It was the custom of all Jews to celebrate the Passover every year, and they had to celebrate it in Jerusalem, and offer the sacrifice there. They stayed there for several days, and on the way back, St Mary was shocked to find out that Jesus was not with them. So St Mary and St Joseph went back to Jerusalem and were very worried.

They eventually found Lord Jesus in the Temple sitting in the midst of the teachers both listening and asking them questions. His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.” And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:48-49) But Lord Jesus obeyed His mother St Mary: “He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them.” (Luke 2:51) Our Lord Jesus, being God to whom all creation, angels, humans and nature are subject, submitted to his mother St Mary to teach us the importance of obedience.

Obeying our parents is very important to God. When the Lord gave Moses the Ten Commandments, they were written on two stone tablets: one had four commandments concerning God, and the other tablet had six commandments concerning our relationship with each other. The ﬁrst commandment that was written on the second tablet was: “honour your father and your mother.” Putting it ﬁrst shows us that our Lord put obedience of parents and honouring them as more important than all the other commandments, such as “do not steal,” “do not commit adultery,” “do not kill.” It shows us the importance of obeying and honouring our parents.

It is the ﬁrst commandment that has a promised reward; our Lord said that whoever honours his father and his mother; “his days will be long upon the land.” That means that he will bless him all his life.

The Holy Bible is full of beautiful stories of obedience and honouring of parents. For example, Isaac was obedient to his father Abraham to the extent that he accepted to be oﬀered as a burnt oﬀering to God in obedience to his father. Joseph was also obedient to his father, Jacob; when he became the Governor of Egypt and had learned of the place in which his father and brothers dwelt, he sent for them quickly and brought them to live with him in Egypt. He stood waiting for them at the border of the Land of Egypt to receive them, and he gave them all honour.

In the kingdom of Judah the Bible tells us about a young king called Joash. He was seven years old and was very obedient to the high priest who was teaching him. Obedience is beautiful and has many blessings.

There is also a beautiful example of obedience in the life of a holy monk called St John the Short. One day his spiritual father asked him to plant a dry stick and water it every day. Of course, a stick should not be planted because it is dry and will not grow or yield anything. Nevertheless, St John obeyed without arguing or questioning; he planted the stick and travelled a long distance each day to water the stick, and he continued this for two years. The Lord was so pleased with St John’s beautiful obedience that He made the stick blossom and grow into a big tree with fruits. He even took the fruits and gave it to the monks saying: “take and eat from the fruits of obedience.”

Application Drama / Pantomime Act out the story of the Tree of Obedience of St John the Short, as described above.

Exercise • Everyday when I pray, to remember my dad, mum and siblings. • To try to say “yes” to mum and dad even if what they ask for is not what I like. • Draw a picture of our Lord Jesus Christ amongst His family.

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Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Thank You, my Lord Jesus for Your love and care for me. Please Lord teach me to love my family and obey them as You did with St Mary and St Joseph, so that You, O Lord, may dwell in our midst always. Amen

Evaluation

Did the children get the aim of the lesson?

Objective Can the children... Notes

• How the Lord Jesus was obedient to the Virgin Mary and St Joseph. Know • The Biblical examples of obedience in the Church history. • The promised blessing of obeying our parents and honouring them.

Feel • What our parents feel when s/he obeys them.

• Obeying our parents even if it means doing something against our liking. Practice • Praying for the family.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (01-4.tex) 54 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of February

The Sacrament of Repentance and Confession

Bible References: • Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15:11-23) • The Samaritan Woman (John 4: 4-23) • The Thief on the Right (Luke 23:35-43)

Book References: • Fr Tadros Yacoub Malaty, “Repentance and Confession: A Prepa- ration to the Eternal Wedding” • Fr Daoud Lamie, “Explanation of the 7 Sacraments of the Church”

Lesson Aim: Sacrament of Repentance & Confession – why and how to confess? Biblical examples of confessions.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The importance of the Sacrament of Repentance & Confession. Feel: The joy from this great Sacrament/Mystery that gives forgiveness of sin. Practice: The Sacrament of Confession.

Memory Verse: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

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Lesson Content A brief introduction to the Sacraments What does ‘Sacrament / Mystery’ mean? It does not mean a ‘secret’ that is whispered in someone’s ear, which should not be spoken of.

A Sacrament is when the Holy Spirit descends to change a substance visible to us, into something that is not visible. We cannot see it, that’s why it is called a ‘mystery’ or a ‘sacrament’, but we have faith. “...substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

The church has 7 Sacraments: 1. Baptism 2. Meiroun 3. Holy Communion (Ifkharistia) 4. Repentance & Confession 5. Anointing of the Sick 6. Marriage 7. Priesthood

Four of these Sacraments are essential to our salvation. Without those four, we cannot get to the Kingdom of God: Baptism, Meiroun, Holy Communion, Repentance & Confession. Not all of us will receive the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, Marriage, or Priesthood.

Baptism – is the gateway to all other Sacraments. We cannot partake in any of the other 6 Sacraments without Baptism.

Holy Communion (Ifkharistia) – is the crown of all Sacraments.

Priests are the keepers of the Sacraments – only they have the divine authority to invite the Holy Spirit to descend.

How do the Sacraments happen? The priest prays and invites the Holy Spirit to descend on a substance (e.g. water, oil, bread etc) to convert it or specialise it into a speciﬁc Sacrament:

Baptism = the Holy Spirit descends on the water, by being immersed in the water three times in the name of the Holy Trinity, the person being baptised dies with Christ, is buried with Christ, and rises up with Christ. It is a second birth.

Meiroun oil = Holy Spirit or tongues of ﬁre – by being anointed with 36 crosses by the Holy Meiroun oil immediately after baptism, we receive the Holy Spirit to dwell upon us and conﬁrm us in Christ.

Holy Communion (Ifkharistia) = Holy Spirit descends on bread & wine to convert it into Body & Blood of Christ.

Confession = Holy Spirit descends to separate the person from sin.

Anointing of the sick = Holy Spirit descends on the oil, so it gives a consolation to the sick person, hope, healing (in terms of comforting), and conserving them.

Marriage = Holy Spirit descends on two people to unite them together.

Priesthood = Holy Spirit descends on a man to specialise/dedicate him to serving God as a priest. He is then given the authority to oﬃciate the Sacraments of the church, doctrines, and others. Priests (married) are the only people who have received all 7 sacraments.

Sacrament of Repentance & Confession This Sacrament is referred to as ‘Repentance & Confession’, not just ‘Confession’. In order to receive the blessing of this Sacrament, we must truly repent from all our heart, oﬀer repentance to our Lord Jesus Christ, regretting our sins that separate us from Him. This is then followed by a verbal confession to God in front of the priest, the Holy

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Spirit descends to separate the sin from us, and we get an absolution from God, through Abouna’s mouth. By this absolution the confessing person is granted the forgiveness of those sins which he confessed.

As we grow up, we become more aware of our wrongful actions and thoughts such as lying, cursing, swearing by God’s name, hating etc. We learn from our parents and from church that we must stop doing these things, repent and regret our action, pray to God asking Him to forgive us and help us to stop doing these sins. We tell Abouna about these sins, promise God not to do them again, and tell Abouna to ask God to forgive us. Abouna prays for us, asking the Holy Spirit of God to forgive us, Abouna puts the Cross on our head and says an absolution. The sins are taken away from us and put on Christ who has already paid for our sins by His blood and is the only One able to forgive us. Abouna oﬀers us some speciﬁc advice to help us not to repeating these sins again, he tells us to continue to pray, read our Bibles, read about the lives of saints and sing hymns to praise God. We walk away joyfully feeling as if we’ve been baptised again and are as pure as we were after our baptism. We constantly have to go to God to confess our sins and ask Him to forgive us yet again.

Do we have to confess, is it a must? The Bible says we have to confess our sins:

“He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13)

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.” (James 5:16)

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

Biblical examples of repentance and confession: Who can think of examples from the Bible about repentance and confession?

1. Parable of the Prodigal/Lost Son: servant to tell the parable of the Lost Son brieﬂy, focusing on the points relevant to the lesson, which are when The Lost Son returned and said: “I will arise and go to my father...” When the son reviewed what he had done (‘when he came to himself’) he decided to go back to his father because he felt how lonely, poor, exhausted and hungry he had become, to the extent of wanting to ﬁll his stomach with pigs’ food. The best thing he did was to get up quickly and return to his father, without delay, without taking long to think about it. His father had been waiting for him, when his father saw him from afar he ran to welcome him back, took him into his arms and kissed him. The son said to his father “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father had a big celebration because his son was dead and is alive again, he was lost and is found.

2. The Samaritan Woman: the Samaritan woman was a sinner. Jesus Christ surprised her by His knowledge of her past and the present way she had been living. This touched her to the core, so she believed in Him and repented from all her heart, expressing her faith by going back to her village to preaching about Jesus Christ.

3. St Peter the Apostle: when Peter denied Christ three times, he remembered the words of Christ after the rooster crowed and wept, he realised his mistake but did not lose hope. Jesus Christ Himself conﬁrmed Peter’s forgiveness when He saw him at the sea of Tabriah after the resurrection, He asked him “Do you love me?...Tend My sheep.” This is the opposite of Judas Iscariot who was warned by Jesus Christ, yet he still betrayed Christ, he felt terrible, hung himself and died without oﬀering repentance.

4. The Thief on the Right, who confessed his sin, “...for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:41), Christ accepted him immediately.

How to benefit from the Sacrament of Repentance & Confession? 1. Examining ourselves closely: Just as one looks in the mirror to fix any flaws in one’s outward appearance, so the Bible and sermons / Church teachings are our mirrors. The servant may advise the children to regularly make a note of our wrongdoings and thoughts on a pieces of paper (as a memory aid), keep it hidden in a safe place until their confession time with Abouna. This way, one does not forget what they want to say/ask Abouna. After confession, we can throw away this piece of paper because our sins have been forgiven.

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2. Prepare for Confession by praying: repentance is not accomplished on its own without praying. This is a good opportunity to learn the Jesus Prayer “My Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me; my Lord Jesus Christ, help me; I praise You my Lord Jesus Christ.”

3. Honesty: At times, one may worry about looking bad in front of Abouna, therefore one may confess inaccurate things, for example, if one has sinned by lying they may be tempted conceal it during confession by telling Abouna that they ‘were only joking’ or ‘I did not give full information’ instead of saying ‘I lied’. We must be honest by confessing our sins as they are, without embarrassment from Abouna. God is able to take away our sins, but repentance must be from all our hearts.

4. Listen to the advice and guidance that Abouna gives during confession, take it seriously and apply it. Remember that Abouna is guided by the Holy Spirit, we confess to God in the presence of Abouna, then we receive an absolution from God through Abouna’s mouth.

Blessings of the Sacrament of Repentance & Confession 1. Confessing our sins defeats the devil and destroys sins. This is why the devil always tries to delay us from confessing by overcoming us with embarrassment and being too busy to ﬁnd time to repent and confess. We must therefore be vigilant, realise that this is a powerful sacrament, providing blessings and grace.

2. Forgiveness, is the primary blessing gained from confessing – forgiveness is a precious and priceless blessing. Our Lord Jesus Christ is pleased with repentance and confession because He desires everyone to be saved. He has paid the price of our sins and awaits our repentance and confession.

3. The blessing of freedom – Abouna prays ‘release us from the bondage of sin’. Sin can delay/hold us back in bondage and gets in the way like a wall between us and God.

4. The blessing of guidance – during confession we are able to ask Abouna about things, as well as tell him about our fears and the things that trouble us. Abouna prays for us and gives us guidance/advice.

Application Comprehension Questions • What is meant by the word sacrament? • What are the seven sacraments of the church? • What can we learn from the sacrament of repentance? • Can you mention examples of characters from the Holy Bible who confessed and received forgiveness?

Exercise • Practise the sacrament of confession (it’s preferred that a priest attends at the end of the lesson to speak with them about the importance of the sacrament and spiritual guidance, giving time for confession.) • Practise examining oneself at the end of each day during prayer, apologising to our Lord Jesus for every bad thing we committed throughout the day. • Practise asking for God’s support to be victorious over sin and not repeat it. • Practise thanking God for every good thing we do and asking Him to help us to abide in Him.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Thank You, Lord, for Your great love to me. Thank You for You have searched for me despite me being far from You and being busy with the world. Thank You for You have forgiven my sins and drawn me to Your arms. Thank You for You have given me great honour and called me Your son. Thank You for You have given me Your body and blood to be united with You and abide in You. Thank You for You care about me and look after me and organise all my life. Thank You for You prepared for me a good place in Heaven to be with You forever. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-1.tex) 58 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of February

The Lord’s Prayer

Bible References: Matthew 6:9-14

Lesson Aim: In this lesson we learn that God is our heavenly Father who takes care of us and that the mention of His Holy name puriﬁes us. We also learn that we, the Christians, belong to the Kingdom of God. And that in order to live a victorious life over sin, we have to seek the Lord’s help to deliver us from the evil one and to forgive those who trespass against us

Memory Verse: “But when you pray, go into your room and when you have shut your door, pray to your father.” (Matthew 6:6)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-2.tex) 59 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of February

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • What are some of the behaviour that should come along with prayers? • Do we really think of God as our Heavenly Father? • Our Heavenly Father gave us a great gift which shows His highest love towards us, what is that gift? • When we say ”Thy Kingdom comes”, is this kingdom up in Heaven or on earth? • What are some of the characteristics of that kingdom? • Why is it important to forgive the sins of others? • Would God forgive our sins if we don’t forgive those of others?

Lesson Content Our Father, Who Art in Heaven When the Son of God was incarnated, He told us about the nature of the “Father”, “No one has seen God at any time, the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.” (John 1:18)

Deﬁnition of Prayer It is a meeting with the Father. It is a talk from the heart to God. Our relationship with God must be established on the basis of sons and daughters with their Father who is full of love.

Our Lord Jesus Christ came to declare that God is “our Father”: Jesus our Saviour always wanted to draw our attention to the fact that God is our Father: “And your Father knows that you need these things.” (Luke 12:30) Then He gives us generously. “If a son asks for bread from any father among you will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish, or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.” (Luke 11:1 1-13)

This is the main purpose of the birth of the Lord Jesus: to make us sons and daughters of God.

God is everywhere. Why do we then say, “Who art in heaven?” Our Lord Jesus taught us to say that to draw our attention to the heaven. Here are the worldly things and there are the heavenly things. Our Beloved Jesus Christ wanted us to concentrate and give highest priority to heavenly matters. We are going to spend the rest of our life in heaven, after we die. Therefore, we must always think about heaven.

The Holy Spirit also declares that God is “our Father”: “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage to again fear, but you received the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15) Therefore, the Holy Spirit inside us is always crying inside us, reminding us that we are sons and daughters of God.

We are the Sons and daughters of God: “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God.” (1 John 3:1) Hence, as God is our Father, therefore we are His sons.

We are the Sons and daughters of God with Authority: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” (John 1:12)

Hallowed be Thy Name When we were baptised we became bearers of the Holy Spirit. When we pray “Hallowed be thy name” it means that Holiness from the Spirit of God may ﬂow inside us.

When we pray “Hallowed be thy name” we become anxious to be Holy. “Pursue peace with all men, and holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14)

Holiness opens our eyes to our birth from heaven as we declare that we are the sons and daughters of the Holy God.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-2.tex) 60 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of February

“For both he who sanctiﬁes and those who are being sanctiﬁed are all of one origin, for which reason is not ashamed to call them brethren saying ‘I will declare your name to my brethren;’ in the midst of the congregation I will sing praise to you.” (Hebrew 2:11-12)

Hallowed be Thy name is the prayer of the whole church: the priest, the servants, the parents ... everyone is entreating to have holiness.

Thy Kingdom Come This is the second request in the Lord’s Prayer. The Kingdom of God is the right of the children of God and the Lord Jesus is asking us to pray for having it; If we truly behave as children of God, we are certainly members in His Kingdom.

The Kingdom of His Beloved Son: “He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the Kingdom of His beloved Son.” (Colossians 1:13) This means that in this Kingdom we are all His children with our Saviour Jesus Christ as our head (because the Lord Jesus is the Head of our church whom every one of us is a member of).

This is the Kingdom of the children in the bosom of the Father. How do we deﬁne the kingdom of God? It can be deﬁned as follows:

• The Kingdom of Love: It is a Kingdom governed by love. “By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) Let all our matters be discussed and settled in complete love for one another.

• The Kingdom is not from this World: This Kingdom is not established on the materialistic things of this world. This Kingdom is for the meek, the kind, the peacemakers and the pure in heart. The Kingdom of the Lord Jesus is within our souls.

Our Lord Jesus taught us to pray: “Our Father ... Thy kingdom come”, Let us pray slowly and think about this beautiful Kingdom of God when we become members of it.

Please God strengthen us to be part of Your Kingdom so that we discover Your presence with us and inside us. Then we have no fear, no worries and no problems. Also when we say “Thy kingdom come” we are not only praying for the widespread of His salvation to all nations, we are also praying for this second coming in His full glory to have our place in the Kingdom that was prepared for us.

Thy will be done No one can say “Thy will be done” before he says “our Father”. This is because when we realise that God is our Father, we entreat Him as His children to do what is to our beneﬁt as His will.

Children are best to say “Thy will be done”: When a child is walking with his father holding his hands, he does not ask about the road. He is completely under the guidance of his father. “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” (2 Corinthians 11:3) What is preventing us from leaving the full guidance and responsibility to God?

Because we like things to be done in a certain way according to our beneﬁt as we think of them, also we must keep thinking of God as “Our Father” who is in control of everything and knows what is good for our beneﬁts.

Let us not think of the past or the future. We only say “Thy will be done” for all our present needs.

Please Lord let everything in our life be according to Your will because You are “our Father”. We must remember at all times that God is “our Father” and hence we give Him the full control of our life. In our thanksgiving prayers we call God “The Beneﬁcent” because He only does good things. Therefore, when we put our full trust in God we are sure that He takes care of us. Even if things do not appear at the beginning to be good but they are in God’s hands, everything will turn good. Remember two stories; Joseph son of Jacob (Genesis Chapters 37 to 42) and St Peter the Disciple of our Lord Jesus (Acts 12:1-17).

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-2.tex) 61 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of February

On earth as it is in heaven This part is a completion of the ﬁrst three parts:

Our heavenly Father “Hallowed be Thy name” in my life on earth as it is in heaven.

Our heavenly Father “Thy kingdom come” in my life on earth as it is in heaven.

Our heavenly Father “Thy will be done” in my life on earth as it is in heaven,

In the Divine Liturgy: In celebrating the Divine Liturgy we are actually celebrating the coming of Jesus our Lord with His Flesh to the altar and at the same time praising Him with the angels saying, “Holy, Holy, Holy”. Hence, the Divine Liturgy is the best way to get out of the whole world and say, “Let it be on earth as it is in heaven.”

Therefore, we sing saying, “He made the two in one Heaven and Earth.”

This means that the heavenly church comes to us on earth. It also means as God’s will is prevailing in heaven, we are praying for His will to prevail on earth as well.

Give Us this Day our Daily Bread • Spiritual Meaning: The bread of life is the Body of our Beloved Jesus we take when we take communion. “I am the living bread which came down from Heaven, If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My ﬂesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” (John 6:51) When we eat the Body and drink the Blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ in the communion we grow spiritually.

• Literal Meaning: Give us dear Lord our daily needs of life. We are not asking for luxurious things because as children of God we do not care about luxurious things, but we ask for the bread of life. “And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.” (1 Timothy 6:8) Introduce the story of the Pharisee and tax collector who were praying for God.

And Forgive Us our Trespasses, as We Forgive those who Trespass Against Us We are asking the Lord to forgive our sins. This in itself is admittance that we are sinners and that we are asking the mercy of God. Please tell the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector when both went to pray. The tax collector said, “Have mercy O Lord on me because I am a sinner.” The Pharisee only praised himself. The Lord Jesus said after the parable that the tax collector only went home with his sins completely washed oﬀ.

As a condition for forgiveness, we must forgive other people’s mistakes against us. Our Lord Jesus Christ said, “For with what judgement you judge, you will be judged and with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:2)

When we admit that we are sinners and do not blame anyone for our mistakes, God forgives our sins.

And Lead Us not into Temptation, but Deliver Us from the Evil One The Lord Jesus is urging us to pray and say “Please God do not allow us to be tempted by bad things and fall into temptation.”

This is an admittance to God that we are little and weak and cannot withstand any strong temptation.

Why does God allow the devil to tempt us sometimes? • To prune us and bring us back to Him if we did something wrong. • To praise us if we pass the temptation, similar to the example of Job.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-2.tex) 62 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of February

Then the last part of the Prayer, “deliver us from the evil one.” It means the whole thing: keep us with You dear God and protect us. Let us enjoy the peace, love and joy of life with You.

Jesus said, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

We have to pray and be with God at all times. When we lose connection with God the evil one comes to tempt us and try to force us to commit sins. A good example to show the importance of our continuous connection with God is as follows: If we look at the electric wire while it is plugged to the wall, if anyone touches the tip of it, he dies because there is electricity in it. But if we unplug this wire from the wall, anyone can play with it. As long as we are connected with God, the evil one cannot come close to tempt us. But if we are disconnected from God (the source of our strength), the evil one will come and tempt us.

But with You, our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ, we are with our Father; completely protected from the devil‘s harms.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Every time we say the Lord’s Prayer, we must pray it slowly with full concentration and remember that we are talking to our Father. We pray in the name of all the church members by saying “Our Father” not “My Father”.

• The Name of God is Holy. When we pray saying “Hallowed be Thy Name”, we entreat that His name puriﬁes us to become Holy by the action of His Holy Spirit inside us.

• For God to be our Father, it is an honour and obligation. It is an honour because we do not deserve to call God our Father. It is an obligation which means if we are children of God we have to behave like ones.

• When we were baptised we became sons and daughters of God. Since then we belonged to His Kingdom because we became altars of God and the Spirit of God is inside us. We must love one another if we are truly children of God.

• To continue in the Kingdom Of God, one has to stay committed to God in his or her prayers and regular attendance in the church.

• Our spiritual growth is fed by the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus which we take in the Holy Communion.

• From now on when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we should be slow and think about its meaning.

• In every prayer, let us seek the Lord’s help against the devil who is like a lion; going around trying his hardest to tempt and lead us to fall in sins.

• An important element in the spiritual life is regularity. We have to be regular in our prayers, reading of the Holy Bible and attending the church.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Please Lord let everything in our life be according to Your will because You are “our Father”. Please God strengthen us to be part of Your Kingdom so that we discover Your presence with us and inside us. Then we have no fear, no worries and no problems. Give us dear Lord our daily needs of life. We are not asking for luxurious things because as children of God we do not care about luxurious things, but we ask for the bread of life. We ask you dear God to help us because we are so weak in faith and alone we do not have the strength to defeat the evil one. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-2.tex) 63 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Third Sunday of February

Introduction to the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus Christ the Teacher

Bible References: Matthew chapters 5 and 7

Lesson Aim: To learn about ‘Jesus Christ the teacher’ in the Gospel of St Matthew, and about the Sermon on the Mount.

Lesson Objectives: Know: That the Lord Jesus is the teacher. Feel: The Lord Jesus’ teachings in their daily lives. Practice: The Lord Jesus’ words and teachings in all circum- stances.

Memory Verse: “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-3.tex) 64 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Third Sunday of February

Background Information for the Servant The Lord Jesus Tells Matthew to Follow Him Our Saviour went out and met a tax collector. His name was Levi and was also known by the name Matthew. He was the one who later on wrote the Gospel according to St Matthew.

The Jews hated the tax collectors and considered them to be sinners because they worked with the Roman authorities in order to collect money from the Jews. This money was a symbol of the slavery of the Jews to the Romans. Also these tax collectors usually collected more money than they were supposed to, taking a lot of it for themselves.

However, our Lord Jesus did not have any problem adding a tax collector to His group of disciples. Our Lord Jesus, Son of God, knew that Levi would change and become a good Christian. There is always hope for change, no matter how bad the previous life might be. God will help us change if we are willing to listen to Him and follow Him as St Matthew did.

Jesus Christ, our Lord visited Levi at the place of his work. He visits everyone at the place of their work too, whether they are students or adults; a paid worker or a volunteer doing a service in God’s name. He is anxious to help you and bless your eﬀorts if and when you ask Him.

Only two words from the Master to Levi were suﬃcient to let the latter leave his work and everything and follow the Lord: “Follow me”. We have to obey our Heavenly Father and we have to ﬁnd some time to leave everything to pray and read the Bible.

The Pharisees did not like to see the Lord Jesus sitting with sinners because they did not understand that Jesus loves to have the sinners come back to Him. This is exactly like the doctor whose interest is to sit with the patient to know his/her illness and help him/her. Let us not judge others as the Pharisees did.

Levi wanted to make a big celebration, which was occasioned by his new life ”in Christ”. He invited his friends, the tax collectors, and invited the Lord Jesus as well. He wanted to show them how beautiful it was to be with the Lord, and perhaps their life would change too. When we truly meet the Lord Jesus and He becomes everything in our life, we cannot help but inviting others to meet with Him and gain salvation as we did.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Group Workshop Charades • Choose two children to act out the calling of St Matthew by the Lord Jesus to be His disciple (Matthew 9:9–13). • Give them 30 seconds to discuss between themselves how they are going to act it out without speaking. • When they are ready, give them a signal to start acting; the rest of the class need to guess within two minutes the event being enacted.

Lesson Content 1. The author: St Matthew the evangelist was one of the 12 disciples. His name means ‘Gift of God.’ He was also known as ‘Levi’. His father’s name was Alphaeus.

Christ called him to be a disciple whilst he was a tax collector for the Roman Empire. This job is associated with someone who loves money and mistreats others and was hated by the Jews.

When Christ called him, Matthew oﬀered a feast for Christ and invited his friends the tax collectors so that they could hear the words of Christ and repent of their sins.

2. When was it written: Between 60 – 65 AD before the destruction of Jerusalem under the rule of the Roman Emperor Titus in AD 70.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-3.tex) 65 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Third Sunday of February

3. Place where it was written: Palestine

4. The language it was written in: Hebrew

The gospel of St Matthew tells us about the Christ’s Sermon on the mount.

Jesus saw that people wanted to learn from Him so He sat on a high place with His disciples and gave them a beautiful sermon.

We are also thankful that God has allowed St Matthew to be there so that he can record this beautiful sermon.

Jesus started the sermon with the beatitudes “blessed are. . . ” and He repeated the words “blessed are ” many times as if to say you will have a blessed heavenly life as a result.

Also Christ gave us easy instructions so that we can follow His example. He wants us to be the light of the world and guiding lanterns for others.

The gospel of St Matthew also tells us that Christ is not like Moses who received the 10 commandments but He is God the maker of the law and its fulfilment. He gave Moses the 10 commandments to give to His people the Jews in the Old Testament and He finished with a greater meaning so that we can live with a better life in the New Testament. Who of us doesn’t want to be like one off God’s angels.

The gospel of St Matthew also tells us that Christ encourages us that we are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its ﬂavour, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. He also tells us you are the light of the world, a city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Jesus Christ is the teacher and we need to follow His teachings in our lives for us to fully be the light of the world and a beacon for others.

Application Comprehension Questions • What was the author’s name? • What was his job? • What were his writings? • What is the most important thing mentioned in his gospel?

Exercise Choose one characteristic that you ﬁnd in Jesus Christ e.g, being merciful, to be a peace maker, to be humble...

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Dear Lord Jesus, we thank You for You took our nature and taught us Your beautiful characteristics: peace, humility and mercy. Lord, You always help us and change us to more and more in Your Image. Without You, Lord, we cannot do anything. Please Lord allow us always to be in Your beautiful Image, so that when others see us they love You more and more. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-3.tex) 66 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Fourth Sunday of February

The Good Samaritan

Bible References: Luke 10:30-37

Lesson Aim: To show that we must have compassion on people regardless of their skin colour, age, sex, nationality or religion.

Memory Verse: “When He saw him, He had compassion on him.” (Luke 10:33)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-4.tex) 67 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Fourth Sunday of February

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • Which do you think is more important, to learn our religion by ways of rules and laws or by ways of action and daily practices? • If your enemy was down and needed your help, would you walk away from him or stop to help him because our religion teaches us to love our enemies?

Lesson Content

Our Lord Jesus used parables in His teachings to illustrate an idea to the people using a story or as a typical example from their life.

A certain lawyer (who knew a lot about Moses’ Law) stood in front of the Lord Jesus Christ and tried to test Him on the one hand and to ”justify himself’ on the other hand. This lawyer had no true compassion or love for others, but relied only on his knowledge of Moses’ Law without applying it to his life. Hence, the Lord Jesus wanted to teach him and others that religion is not the mere knowledge that we keep in our heads or the words that we say, but rather that religion must become a way of life and should be the transformed action and deeds of love towards others. The Lord Jesus, therefore, gave him the parable of the priest and the Levi who failed to apply religion and have compassion on the wounded man, though as a priest or Levi, one would expect that they would practice what they preach. On the other hand, a Samaritan who had the least knowledge of the Laws had compassion. This is what counts and we call him “The Good Samaritan”.

A man was going from Jerusalem to Jericho when robbers hurt him badly.

A priest and later on a Levi passed him by, looked at him and did not help him.

The Samaritan (though the Samaritans are known to be bad people) had compassion on the injured man. He helped him, took him to an inn and took care of him.

Our Beloved Lord Jesus told the man who asked Him “Who is my neighbour?” that his neighbour is the person who helps him when he is in need. Jesus then, asked him to be like the Good Samaritan, i.e. have compassion on others.

Love your neighbour as you love yourself.

The Son of God came down to our world to become our friend. He carried us not to an inn but to His church. He did not give us two Denali as the good Samaritan did, but He gave us His own Body and Blood so that He abides in us and we in Him. In His second coming, the Lord will take us with Him so that we live with Him forever.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Have compassion when you deal with all people: younger or older, brothers and sisters, mommy and daddy, all children at school regardless of their sex, colour or religion. Most importantly have compassion on anyone who asks you for help. Go the extra mile with the needy.

• We must have compassion on others as the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour has great compassion on us.

• When we deal with people in a merciful way God will also have mercy on us.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (02-4.tex) 68 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue First Sunday of March

The Great Lent

Bible References: Matthew 6:16-18, Matthew 4:1-11

Lesson Aim: To learn that Fasting is a method that helps us to grow in our spiritual life by being less dependent on materialistic things and become closer to God; this could happen to us.

Memory Verse: “When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face.” (Matthew 6:17)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-1.tex) 69 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue First Sunday of March

Background Information for the Servant What is Fasting? The purpose of fasting is to master yourself and to conquer the passions of the ﬂesh. It is also to liberate yourself from depending on the things of this world in order to concentrate on the things of the Kingdom of God. It is to strengthen you spiritually so that you would not yield to temptation and sin.

People fast to be delivered from carnal passion through the humiliation of the ﬂesh.

Fasting without eﬀort in virtue is wholly in vain.

In fasting, the spirit is working through prayers and contemplation. The heart is working through love of God and mankind.

“Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to lose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free ... is it not to share your bread with the hungry ...” (Isaiah 58:6-7)

In fasting one must not only obey the rule against gluttony in regard to food but also refrain from every sin so that while fasting, the tongue may also fast, refraining from slander, lies, evil talk, degrading one’s brother/sister, anger and every sin committed by the tongue.

Someone who fasts wisely wins purity and comes to humility and proves himself/herself a skilful builder.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • What is fasting and what are the spiritual beneﬁts that we can attain from fasting? • What sort of behaviour should we have when we are fasting? • Do we fast only by food alone?

Lesson Content

There are various fasting periods in our Coptic Orthodox Church: the Christmas Fast (called Advent), the Holy Forty-day Fast (called the Great Lent), the Apostles’ Fast, the Fast of the Virgin Mary, Fast of Nineveh and every Wednesday and Friday of the week (except in the Lord’s feasts and during the ﬁfty days after the Feast of the Resurrection).

The oldest of these fasts is the great lent that our church is celebrating these days. It is called the Holy forty-day fasting because we remember in it our Lord Jesus who fasted for us forty days and forty nights.

This fasting is 55 days: 1 preparation week + 40 days as our Lord Jesus fasted for us + 1 week which is called the Holy Week or the Pascha Week.

What is fasting?

It is a method that helps us defeat the devil. Our Saviour Jesus Christ Himself, although He did not need to fast, did so to teach us that fasting will help us defeat the devil. Fasting does not mean abstaining from food only, but it also means refraining from lies, evil talk, anger and all other sins. We have to do our best and seek the Lord’s help in order to overcome falling in sin.

We should start to practice fasting from a young age. But be careful! Stop doing any bad things that you might be doing, for example, not listening to your parents. You will have special power from God during the fasting period to defeat the devil when he comes to you to force you to fall in sin.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-1.tex) 70 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue First Sunday of March

If an individual cannot fast the whole duration of the lent (because of health reasons or age or any other reasons), he (or she) should consult his (or her) father of confession and seek an advice for an adequate period of fasting to suit him (or her).

Teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ about Fasting (Please read Matthew 6:16-18):

Our Lord Jesus Christ did not talk about the details of the fasting period but He focused on the “spirit” of fasting. The ultimate aim of fasting is the purity of the heart. The details of the fasting period were left to the church, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to set to the believers.

The Fasting of our Lord Jesus Christ (Please read Matthew 4:1-11): • “And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.” (Matthew 4:2) This shows us that an important element of fasting is to become hungry. Hence, fasting in our church has two parts: in the first part we are not supposed to eat anything, i.e., skip a meal or two and in the second part we eat only foods without meat or meat products or milk or milk products. • Fasting was the weapon that our Beloved Jesus Christ offered to His believers to have in the spiritual wars, together with prayers. • Our Lord became hungry at the end of forty days to emphasise his humanity because if He fasted more than Moses (Exodus 24:18) or Elijah (1 Kings 19:8) (both of them fasted for forty days and forty nights) the people may think that He did not have a true flesh like ours. Fasting is supposed to be in secret, i.e., do not go around showing off to people that you are a religious person and that you are fasting. Go back to the memory verse and explain it.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Let us make a commitment to dedicate the Great Lent (the Holy forty-day fast) to God. Let us remember that fasting is not just changing from one type of food to another but we must be also careful in staying away from any sin.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-1.tex) 71 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity Second Sunday of March

Being Ready for Heaven The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price

Bible References: Matthew 13

Lesson Aim: How to be prepared for Heaven.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The parable of the pearl of great price. Feel: A desire to go to heaven. Practice: Doing good things and to stop doing bad things.

Memory Verse: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-2.tex) 72 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity Second Sunday of March

Background Information for the Servant

In the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price, we can observe a kind of person who strives and perseveres till he finds God. For example, Saint Augustine who lived sinful life, and Saint Moses the Strong was a murderer; both found the Lord Jesus Christ through different ways. Thus, we can say that they found the pearl of great price and they sold everything they had to buy it. But we must ask ourselves what is this pearl? 1. It may be the Kingdom of Heaven, for at the beginning of the parable, it says “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls.” So, the pearl is the Kingdom of Heaven and Salvation. 2. It may the Lord Himself, for the Kingdom of Heaven is the Kingdom of God, so the pearl is God and His kingdom. 3. We can also say that the pearl is “the good part which will not be taken away from us” as the Lord told Martha, Mary’s sister. Saint Jerome says: “Unless we stand in the crossroads, we cannot find the one road. What are we to understand by the many pearls, the many roads, the many courts, so that we may find the one pearl, the one road, the one court? Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; Moses, Joshua son of Nun; Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the twelve prophets; David, Solomon; all were courts. They are our courts; they are the courts we enter first; and from them we arrive later at the court of the Gospels and there we find Christ.”

Lesson Content

One day there was a merchant who was trading in pearls; selling and buying pearls. Who knows what pearls are? Pearls are very small balls, shining, found in the sea, and because they are very difficult to find, they are very expensive; more expensive than gold. Anyhow, while this merchant was walking, he found someone who wanted to sell a pearl, but this pearl was different than all the other pearls. The pearl was very big and very nice and very rare so he wanted to buy it. He went to the man who wanted to sell to ask about its price.

How much do you think something like that would have cost? Of course, it would have been way too expensive! The merchant was very upset when he knew that it was too expensive for him to aﬀord. But a pearl with that size and beauty, he just had to buy it. That’s why he didn’t give much through to what he was going to do because the solution was obvious; he went and sold everything he owned. He sold his house, his car, his mobile phone; he sold everything he had till he was able to buy the pearl. He was very happy that he bought it, even though he sold everything owned.

The most important thing in that story is to know what the most important thing in our life is. For us, what is the pearl that we are looking for? The servant waits for the answers of the children.

Then the servant tells the children: The expensive pearl is our eternal life in heaven with our Lord Jesus. Which means the place where the Lord Jesus and the angels and saints are, full of joy and peace, where there is no sadness or tears or any bad thing. Isn’t that place worth selling everything for? Of course, it is worth it, even if other things in our eyes are also expensive and important but compared to heaven, they are worth nothing.

Do you think that there are things we should give up in order to reach heaven like the merchant who wanted to buy the pearl and sold everything he had? Indeed, I should give up every bad behaviour I do, not only that, but also attend the liturgy even if I want to play or go out on the same day I am going to the liturgy. I also have to learn good behaviour, which make the people around us surprised, exactly like when the people were surprised from the merchant’s behaviour who wanted to buy the pearl and sold all what he had, and the things he had represents anything which can take me away from our Lord Jesus.

Application Comprehension Questions • Who told us this parable? • What was the merchant collecting? • What did the merchant want to buy? • What did the merchant do to buy this pearl? • What is the meaning or symbol of this pearl? • What are the things we should give up to gain the eternal life?

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-2.tex) 73 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity Second Sunday of March

Exercise Encourage the children to give something they have to a poor person.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Thank you, my Lord Jesus for Your great love, and for the eternal life that You prepared for me. Teach me how to give up everything that doesn’t help me to be close to You and to do everything that gets me closer to You. Like what the saints did when they gave up everything which was taking them away from You. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-2.tex) 74 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of March

Life of Responsibility The Prodigal Son

Bible References: Luke 15:11-32, Matthew 25:14-30

Lesson Aim: We have to learn to be positive in our thinking and in our attitudes and be responsible in what we do.

Memory Verse: “Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.” (Luke 15:1)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-3.tex) 75 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of March

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • What does it mean to be responsible? • What are some of the responsibilities that we have currently in our lives? • Who do we have a responsibility towards?

Lesson Content

From the beginning of the world, Adam and Eve were held responsible for their disobedience to God. God said to Eve after the sin, “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children, your desire shall be for your husband and he shall rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16) As for Adam, “The Lord sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So he drove out the man.” (Genesis 3:23-24)

Also Cain was held responsible when he killed his brother. Eve bore Cain and Abel. Abel became a keeper of sheep and Cain became a tiller of ground. “Cain brought an offering of fruit of the ground to the Lord. Also Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat.” (Genesis 4:2-3) So Abel offered his best to God. God respected Abel and his offering and He did not respect Cain and his offering. Cain became so angry and killed his brother. Then God told him, “So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your land.” (Genesis 4:11) Cain was held responsible for killing his brother and was punished. We are responsible for everything we do.

We are responsible to God for what we do: Please give two examples: 1. The Parable of the Lost Son: Luke 15:11-32 The younger son wanted to take his portion of goods from his father, spend it as he wishes and be away from his father. He was held responsible for his action. He was involved in a very bad situation after he left his father’s house. “And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.” (Luke 15:16) After the lost son had suffered a lot, he took the positive approach. “He came to himself ... I will rise and go to my father and he arose and came to his father ... when his father saw him, he had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him ...” (Luke 15:17-22) 2. The Parable of the Talents: Matthew 25:14-30 Every one of the servants received his share of the goods from his master. Some of the servants used their goods (i.e. their talents) and made profits and produced some more. They took their reward from their master. He said to them, “Well done, good and faithful servant, you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things, enter into the joy of your Lord.” (Matthew 25:21) The other servants who did not use their goods (i.e. their talents), they also got their reward. He said to them, “You wicked and lazy servant. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:26-30) We are responsible toward our families:

Success of the family life is based on cooperation of every member of it. Everyone should share the responsibility. Our Lord Jesus was helping Joseph (to whom his Mother was betrothed) in his work as a carpenter.

At our age of Grade 3 or 4, we can do a lot of things around the house. We can also help our younger brothers and sisters on behalf of our parents.

We are responsible toward the society and the church:

We have to spare some of our time to serve the church and the society. We also have to abide by the laws and the system of the society.

Application

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-3.tex) 76 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of March

Exercise What do we learn from this lesson?

• We are not babies any more. We must become responsible for what we say or do. • We should use our talents which the Lord gave us to serve Him, to serve in His church, to cooperate in the family life and to serve the society that we live in.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-3.tex) 77 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Fourth Sunday of March

Palm Sunday Jesus Enters Jerusalem as King of Peace

Bible References: Luke 19:29-44

Lesson Aim: To describe the events that led to the triumphal entry of our Lord Jesus Christ to Jerusalem as King of Peace. The Lord Jesus is the only one who can grant the true peace.

Memory Verse: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.” (Luke 19:38)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-4.tex) 78 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Fourth Sunday of March

Lesson Content Introduction Our Lord Jesus went on ahead going up to Jerusalem after He told His Disciples and all the people around Him the parable of the Minas. Therefore, St Luke said in Chapter 19:28, “When He had said this, He went on ahead going up to Jerusalem.” In the parable of the Minas, our Lord described various types of human behaviour towards His Kingdom. Some people accepted Him as the king in their lives; they took the gifts from Him, used these gifts eﬀectively and welcomed Him to reign over them. The Lord Jesus welcomed each of these people saying, “Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.” (Luke 19:17) Others did not use the gifts that their Master gave them and received Him in a very bad manner. For those people, the Lord Jesus said, “But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.” (Luke 19:27)

Our Lord Jesus mentioned this parable just before His entrance to Jerusalem because He was then talking about the people in Jerusalem who had refused Him; they refused Him despite the fact that He was very merciful to them and performed a large number of miracles. Those people who refused the Saviour will be punished on the last day.

Please read first (with the children) Luke 19:29-44 and explain the various parts as follows: • The Lord Jesus knows everything because He is the Son of God. He told His Disciples to enter the village opposite to them and, on entering the village, they will find a colt. He told them what to say to the owner of the colt and that the owner will let the colt go. • The Lord Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a colt, not a horse. It was known in these days that when a king entered a city for war, he rode a horse. He said to His Disciples one time “Peace be with you” and he taught His disciples that when they enter a house to teach people, they should first say “Peace be with you.” • In the memory verse, the Disciples were singing, saying: blessed is the king because our Lord Jesus is the king of kings who deserves all praise, who comes in the name of the Lord, i.e. He is coming from God as a declaration of God’s love for people. The Disciples continued saying: peace in heaven and glory in the highest. Our Lord Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem because of His kindness and because He knew in advance about the destruction that would happen to the city.

Jerusalem was a chosen city by God to have the only altar that was deemed fit, according to the law, to have the offerings to God. It was expected that this city will be the first to receive Jesus and follow His teachings and believe in Him. However, the people in Jerusalem refused Him and they became very vicious. Please read Ezekiel 22 3-31 to see what God was saying through the prophet Ezekiel about Jerusalem.

Jerusalem’s last chance: when the Saviour entered the city, this was their last chance to gain salvation and they did not know this “You do not know the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:44)

The prophecy of Jesus about Jerusalem was fulﬁlled. After 35 years from the entrance of Jesus to Jerusalem, Rome attacked the city and completely demolished it, not even leaving a stone unturned. The blood was all over. Why? Because the city did not know Jesus and its inhabitants led a vicious life.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • As true Christians, we must accept the Lord Jesus Christ, who created us and gave us the gift of life, to reign over our lives. We follow what He taught us, praise His name at all times and put our lives in His hands. • If the Lord Jesus is truly the King of our hearts, we will enjoy His heavenly peace which is only for Christians. Let us entreat Him in our prayers to reign over our hearts, our feelings and our thoughts. • As in the case of the people in Jerusalem, there will always be a group that rejects the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, consequently, they will lose. There will also be a group who will welcome Him, and therefore, will win everything.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (03-4.tex) 79 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April

Between the Temple and Bethany Pascha Week

Bible References: Matthew 21, 26 and 27, Mark 14 and 15, Luke 22 and 23, John 11, 12, 18 and 19.

Lesson Aim: To know about Pascha Week.

Lesson Objectives: Know: What Jesus did during Holy Week, and how the church looks during this week. Feel: The suﬀering of the Lord Jesus during Holy week. Practice: Repentance and confession, and avoid TV, computer games and social media.

Memory Verse: “For indeed, Christ, our Passover, was sacriﬁced for us.” (1 Corinthians 5:7)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 80 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April

Background Information for the Servant From the diary of one of the fathers the monks, from a book of Bishop Yoannes the general bishop. On Monday: In the early morning, I came to my God and knelt in front of Him. He looked at me with His loving, healing eyes and took me in His arms. He then looked at the Fig tree and told me “Look at this tree.” When I looked at it from afar, I found it full of leaves, but with no fruit (which is what I was looking for). Mark 11:13. I replied to my beloved Lord: maybe this tree symbolises my life which many times appears to be fruitful, but lacks spiritual fruits, and my heart is full of many sins. Here You are, my beloved Lord, about to undergo lots of pain and suﬀering on my behalf for my sins and the sins of all humanity. He calmly looked at me with His loving eyes. From the depth of my heart, in genuine repentance, I replied: “Yours is the power, glory, blessing and majesty, in my life, forever; Emanuel, my God and King. Amen.”

On Tuesday: We meet our Lord teaching in the Temple. The monk says: I sat at the feet of my Master, listening to Him teaching the high priests and elders with parables about the end of time and the coming Judgement. I meditated a lot in this hour about my eternal destiny. In the evening, on our way to Bethany, I rushed to walk beside my good Saviour and spoke with Him about the parables He mentioned and the coming Judgement. He told me in His great kindness: “Concentrate a lot, my beloved: your short life on Earth determines precisely your long eternal life.”

On Wednesday: We meet God in His quiet day at Bethany. The monk says in his diary: It was six o’clock in the evening and the place was so quiet and calm, and my Master was sitting alone looking into the distance. I rushed and knelt in front of Him. He took me in His arms, with His gentle face, full of love and kindness. I asked Him: “Why didn’t you go to the Temple today?” He answered in His Glory: “Did you not read in the Old Testament that the lamb is preserved for four days and will rest the day preceding its slaughter. Therefore, I spend this day in quietness and solitude to prepare myself to be slaughtered on your behalf and on behalf of your brothers.”

On Thursday: We meet the Lord on Covenant Thursday while He is washing the feet of His disciples. The monk says in his diary: I came to my beloved in the home of St Mark. I knelt in front of Him. He received me joyfully and hugged me. I asked God “What are you about to do, my Lord?” He said “I will wash the feet of my disciples, then your feet, and your brothers’ in Humanity.”

I became disturbed and trembled. “How come my Lord? How come?” My Beloved smiled quietly and said “You will see.” “He rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.” (John 13:4-5).

Then He looked at me, the God of Glory, with His face full of light. He told me: “Come, let me wash your feet.” I froze in my place and wanted to say, like Peter “You shall never wash my feet.” I came forward shy and tearful. God washed my feet and dried them with the towel. It was a very solemn moment, yet very joyful and wonderful. It is as if a spring of purity had overwhelmed me.

This is what my Lord told Peter: “He who is bathed is completely clean.” He said: “What do you feel, My beloved?” I was crying a lot. With diﬃculty, I replied: My beloved Lord: You washed our feet, You the holy God, and commanded us to wash the feet of one another after giving us an example by washing our feet. How many times have I bossed my friends about and treated them arrogantly? How many times have I humiliated them and hurt their feelings? How many times have I refused to meet them? How many times have I refused to accept their apology? Who am I, my beloved God, but some dust and ashes (Genesis 18:27). How great are my sins and mistakes! It is my sins and the sins of humanity that You will carry in Your innocent Body (1 Peter 2:24) and undergo suﬀering on our behalf to give us salvation. You will go through all that pain to give us such a salvation (Hebrew 2:3). Then I screamed with all my heart with the rest of the congregation saying: “Yours is the power, glory, blessing and majesty, in my life, forever; Emanuel, my God and King. Amen.”

He also said: “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” (Matthew 26:42). It was a very solemn situation. I was puzzled, full of tears, looking at my Holy God who created Heaven and Earth praying tearfully with screams! Then the Master went to His disciples again and found them asleep, as they were very sleepy. He left them again and went to pray again for the third time saying the same words of Matthew 26:42. I had no energy to come forward and kneel to my good Saviour. I screamed with all my heart, troubled with my tears, saying: “Yours is the power, glory, blessing and majesty, in my life, forever; Emanuel, my God and King.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 81 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April

Amen.”

Then, I saw with the eyes of my heart, a very surprising scene. I saw as if the sins of all generations were being collected as a dark heavy cloud to be poured on the beloved and holy God, because He had to carry all our sins as He went through pain and suﬀering on our behalf. I saw amid these sins all my own sins and mistakes that I committed in my life. It was a very horrible scene. It was so cruel for God, Who is holy and pure, to carry the sins of the whole world. All this I saw with the eyes of my heart.

Suddenly, I saw my God praying more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground (Luke 22:44). It was very cold. “What is this?” I asked my Beloved Holy God. He appeared very solemn at that moment. I asked “What is happening to you my good Saviour?” Your face is very red, and Your sweat has become like great drops of blood falling to the ground, yet it is cold and we are in the open air. The holy and beloved Lord answered: “Do not worry my son. It was not an ordinary matter that I carry all the sins of the world. It was a very heavy burden. Didn’t you read Isaiah: ‘He was taken from prison and from judgement.’(Isaiah 53:8).” Then the Lord said: “Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.” (Mark 14:42).

On Holy Friday: While He was being whipped, it was about 10 o’clock in the morning on a Friday. I managed with great eﬀort to enter the place in the Praetorium for whipping. I waited a little while till the Roman soldiers responsible for the whipping arrived. My Saviour arrived with another group of soldiers. He looked very exhausted as He had not slept all night and He was exposed to a lot of pain in the houses of Ananias and Caiaphas, the chief priests. This was in addition to His state in Gethsemane, my God, the good Saviour.

It is this way that we meet our God in Pascha Week. We follow the steps of our holy Redeemer in His passion throughout the week. We observe His feelings and suﬀerings saying with the apostle St Paul: “that I may know Him. . . and the fellowship of His suﬀering.” (Philippians 3:10).

My beloved God who went through suﬀering alone, You have gone through all this suﬀering and tears, and You went through the cross and slaughter on my behalf and on behalf of my brothers and sisters; for our sins and our cruel hearts.

Please show us the depth of Your heart full of love for us that made You undergo all this suﬀering, on our behalf. You were wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:5). Open the eyes of our hearts to see the secrets of Your Life-giving Cross, so that we may leave the world and give our lives totally to you. This is like the saint that was asked why you gave your life fully to God. He said: “I received a letter written by the blood of Christ saying: ‘I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name; you are mine.’ (Isaiah 43:1).”

Lesson Content Passion Week: • Passion Week (also known as “Holy Week” and “Holy Pascha”) is the holiest time of the year. During this week, the church shares in Christ’s passion along every step, and everyone takes time off their work to be completely free to share with Christ in His passion. And no one watches the television or the news, and no one reads stories or books not related to this atmosphere. But everybody spends most of the time at church in total focus on Christ and His Passion. • So, we should also free ourselves as much as possible during that week, so we can share with Christ; we go to school and do our homework, but besides that we keep ourselves from doing anything that keeps us busy from Christ. • The word “Pascha” means “Passover”. In it we remember the days of Moses when the people of Israel were in Egypt, and the angel of death passed over the houses that have the blood of a sacrificed lamb on it’s doorposts and lintels, and didn’t destroy the first born son of that house. The blood that they painted in their houses is a symbol of the blood of Christ which saved us from death and destruction.

The atmosphere of the church is spiritual and holy, so let’s get to know this nice rite: • Everything in the church is covered in black: the pillars, the lectern, the cross, even the curtain of the sanctuary. This is to remind us of Christ’s Passion during this week, and to make us sorrowful for our sins which caused Christ all this pain. • The tone of the hymns during Passion Week is quite distinct from that of the rest of the year; it is sad because we share Christ’s Passion; even the readings we read are all focused on Christ in each step of His Passion, and that is so we can focus with all our hearts and minds on the events of this honoured week.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 82 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April

• The curtain of the sanctuary is closed during most of the week and the people pray outside the sanctuary, because the sanctuary is a symbol of Jerusalem, and Christ was cruciﬁed outside Jerusalem.

What does the city of Jerusalem symbolise? • The city of Jerusalem is the place in which Christ was present with the believers. It had in it the Temple which is the place in which God was present in the midst of His people. According to the Jewish law, God commanded the people that there shouldn’t be anything unclean in the city because it is the place of God’s dwelling, and it is not appropriate that God is present where sin is also present. So, a leper would be cast out of the city, and likewise, a person who is crucified would be crucified outside the city. • When Christ was tried and judged, and unjustly sentenced to death by crucifixion, He was crucified outside the city. That’s the reason the curtain of the sanctuary is kept closed during the whole of Passion Week, for the sanctuary represents here the city, and we stay outside the sanctuary (the city) to be with Christ wherever He is present. As we mentioned, we follow Christ in each step during this week. • The city is also symbolised by our hearts, for the heart is the place where God is present, and it’s not appropriate that there is anything unclean in our heart. That is why we continuously keep trying to repent and confess to cast out everything that is not appropriate from the presence of Christ, so we can keep the heart (city) pure and clean. • The church this week doesn’t practise any sacrament except for repentance and confession, so that we can keep focused on Christ in these holy days; for example, we do not practice the sacraments of baptism and matrimony as these are joyous sacraments that do not fit with the solemn atmosphere of the week. There is no unction of the sick either, although a general funeral is prayed on Palm Sunday in case someone dies during Holy Week. • In Holy Week, we also do not pray the Agpeya prayers, for it represents to us various occasions like Nativity and Resurrection and we want to focus only on the Passion of Christ. But what do we pray instead of the Agpeya? Do we not pray at all? No! There are 12 psalms in each hour of the Agpeya, so we likewise, in each hour Holy Week, pray 12 times “Thok te ti gom...” which means “Yours is the power...” We chant this hymn along every step of His Passion: while He is in front of the high priests being tried, or in front of the soldiers being mocked and scourged and crucified. • Each day throughout Holy Week we pray five hours in the morning and five in the evening, and these are the first, third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours. • In each hour, prophecies are read, then we chant “Thok te ti gom” 12 times, then the Psalm and the Gospel in Coptic and Arabic/English are chanted in a sad tone, and finally a commentary is read. At the end of each hour we pray a very nice litany in which we ask for God mercies on all people and in every aspect of our life. This litany is accompanied with Metanoias in the morning but not in the evening as we have to be abstaining from food while we are doing Metanoias. • But for Covenant Thursday and Good Friday are two important days, they have certain rite which is a bit longer than that.

Our Lord Jesus Christ faced different situations which were important (use a picture for each day to illustrate): • Sunday: He entered Jerusalem in a great honour riding on a donkey; a colt, the foal of a donkey. • Monday: Christ saw a fig tree which had only leaves and no fruit, so He cursed it, because God doesn’t like people to appear righteous while their hearts are full of sin. • Tuesday: Christ taught the people in the temple. • Wednesday: Mary poured fragrant oil upon the Lord Jesus Christ and He rested in Bethany. At the same time, Judas was plotting with the Jews to deliver Christ to them. • Thursday: Christ ate the Passover with His disciples and established the sacrament of Holy Communion. He also washed the disciples’ feet and prayed in Gethsemane and they arrested Him there, and all night he was being tried and mocked for our sake. • Friday: Christ was crucified, and they put Him in the tomb in the evening. • Saturday: After Christ died on the Cross, He went into Hades to free the saints who were there and took them to Paradise. • Sunday: The Lord Jesus rose from the dead in great glory.

• We notice a very important thing: that Christ, during this week, was going to the temple then He was resting in Bethany. Which means that He was travelling between the Temple and Bethany.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 83 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April

1. Why is the Last Supper a very important event during the Holy Week? 2. What did Our Lord Jesus Christ introduce to the disciples in that supper that we are still practising till now in our Church? After our Saviour had entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, two main events happened before He was cruciﬁed on Friday: The Last Supper and the time that He spent with His Disciples in Gethsemane.

Our Lord Jesus celebrates the Lord’s Supper with His Disciples: Matthew 26:17-30

The Disciples asked Jesus “Where do You want us to prepare for You the Passover?”

Why did the Disciples ask Jesus this question?

From this question it may be clear that Jesus did not have a home or a permanent place to live in.

Also His Disciples, who left everything and followed Him, did not have a suitable place for them to prepare for the Passover with their Master.

Our righteous Saviour washed His Disciples’ feet. Then on the table the Lord Jesus declared that one of them was going to tell the chief priest how to capture Him. The Lord talked about the Disciple who was going to betray Him without declaring his name or personality in order not to hurt his feelings. But when Jesus saw that they were “exceedingly sorrowful” and each of them began to say to Him, “Lord is it I?” (Matthew 26:22), He was concerned about their peace and declared that “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me.” (Matthew 26:23) And, in order to remove any doubts from the Disciples’ minds that whatever was going to happen to Him was going to happen, He said, “The Son of Man goes as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” (Matthew 26:24) This means that what was going to happen was taking place according to God’s plan but what Judas did was a sin done by his own free will. Remember that Judas did not repent, but he went and killed himself.

Jesus washed His disciples’ feet to teach us to be humble and also to teach us that we have to be clean in spirit and body before we take communion.

On Thursday, at St. Mark’s house, the Lord Jesus Christ and His Disciples celebrated the Passover. After this celebration was completed, they had another more important celebration which is the Lord’s Supper.

In the Lord’s Supper they had one bread and one cup of wine. These were transubstantiated by the Lord Jesus into His own Body and Blood. He said to them, “Drink of it, all of you for this is My Blood of the new covenant.” (Matthew 26:27). Hence, He established the sacrament of the Holy Communion. Please note that Judas attended only the ﬁrst celebration which was the Passover, but he did not attend the Lord’s Supper.

The Lord Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane after the Lord’s Supper (Matthew 26:36-56)

“My soul is exceedingly sorrowful.” (Matthew 26:38) The Lord Jesus said this not because He was scared of the suﬀerings that He expected but because of the amount of sin that He had to carry.

Our Saviour knew that the hour was very near for Judas to betray Him. Jesus was praying to teach us that we should pray at all times. He said to His Disciples “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” (Matthew 26:41)

Our Lord Jesus asked His Disciples three times to “Watch and pray.” But they could not and on the third time He said “Are you still sleeping and resting?” This teaches us that we must be alert and pay attention to our spiritual life. “The spirit indeed is willing, but the ﬂesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41)

The Lord wanted to teach us to submit ourselves to the guidance of God. Jesus said, “not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26:39)

So why Bethany? In Bethany, there was the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus and this is the place where Christ raised Lazarus from the dead. This house was full of love, for in it Mary poured on Christ fragrant oil and Martha was serving. Which means that Christ was resting in a place full of love. Therefore, throughout the whole week, we try to prepare our

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 84 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church First Sunday of April heart so that it can be like Bethany, full of love, purity and cleanliness, so Christ may come and rest in our hearts. This is not only during Holy Week, but of course during the whole year.

Application Comprehension Questions • What does Holy Week start with? • How did the Lord Jesus spend His time? What are the important events during this week? • Why did Christ choose Bethany? • Who lived in Bethany? • What does the church look like during this week? Do you remember the rite (the prayers) of each day?

Exercise • To not watch television or open the computer during Holy Week. • To read a small and suitable book related to the events of Week. • To practise the sacrament of repentance and confession, and to keep the purity of his/her heart. • To perform an act of love with someone, just like Mary and Martha did to Christ.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord Jesus, grant me, with understanding and realisation, to grasp the strength of your Cross. Help me not to feel defeated when I am faced with diﬃculties in the world but to feel victorious through the power of Your Cross. My Lord Jesus, give me Your Spirit, who is full of love, who said to those who cruciﬁed Him: “My Father forgive them for they do not know what they do”, for it is by this prayer that made the thief captivated by your loving arms. (From the sayings of Father Bishoy Kamel)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-1.tex) 85 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Weeks 2-3 of April: No lessons due to Palm Sunday and the Feast of the Resurrection. Feasts Fourth Sunday of April

Resurrection of Christ The Power of the Resurrection

Bible References: Matthew 28 and Luke 24:1-12

Lesson Aim: To learn that through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, we have gained special blessings and power in our life. When we are united with the Lord Jesus we can defeat the devil, sin and death as He defeated those by His Resurrection.

Memory Verse: “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” (Luke24:5)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-4.tex) 87 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts Fourth Sunday of April

Lesson Content

Describe (in a story fashion) the events of the resurrection of the Saviour Jesus Christ as mentioned in Luke 24: early on Sunday morning after the Sabbath had ended, Mary Magdalene and other women took ointment to the tomb but they did not ﬁnd the Lord Jesus. Two angels told Mary Magdalene that Jesus rose from the dead. Later on our Lord Jesus met Mary Magdalene and told her to tell the Disciples and Peter about His resurrection.

St Peter and St John came to look for the Lord Jesus in the tomb since Mary Magdalene had told them that He had risen from the dead. St Peter was older than St John. St John arrived at the tomb ﬁrst but he did not go inside; instead he let St Peter who was older enter ﬁrst. Please read John 20:1-9. We should have a special respect for older people.

The Lord Jesus rose from the dead by Himself; He did not need the angel Michael to open the gates of the tomb. The angel came only to make the announcement; Jesus arose from the dead with the stone rolled at the door and the guards beside the stone.

The guards said (by the advice of the chief priests) that His Disciples came at night while they (the guards) were sleeping and took His body. This was a big lie.

The Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead and defeated the devil to enable us also to rise from our sins. If we do not rise from our sins and defeat the devil then we cannot claim that we have beneﬁted from the resurrection of Christ. Every time we fall in sin, and then we rise, repent, confess and never do them again, we are actually defeating the devil. All the powers of the devil were defeated when the Lord rose from the dead declaring no authority of the devil. “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57)

By the resurrection of Christ, He conquered death and death has no power on the believers. As Jesus rose from the dead, He will raise us also from the dead. Therefore, the prophecy of Hosea “O Death I will be your plagues! O grave, I will be your destruction.” (Hosea 13:14) was fulﬁlled. Our church in the intercession for the deceased says “Raise them up on the day appointed according to Thy faithful and true promises.” Then the church continues to say “For there is no death for Thy servants, but merely a departure.”

At the end of our Orthodox creed we say “And we look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come, Amen.” The resurrection and the life of the world to come were granted to us through the cruciﬁxion and the resurrection of the Lord. “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11)

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, He granted us (the believers) special blessings and life of victory over sins and death. • In our everyday life here on earth we must live through the power of the resurrection. This means we live through Jesus and defeat the devil, the sins and all the lust of the world. • On Easter we greet each other by Khristos Anecti.. Alithos Anecti”, which means “Christ is risen.... He is indeed Risen.”

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (04-4.tex) 88 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts First Sunday of May

Resurrection is Joy Jesus Appears to the Disciples in the Upper Room

Bible References: Luke 24

Book References: • HH Pope Shenouda III, “Contemplations on the Resurrection”

Lesson Aim: To know the joy of the Resurrection.

Lesson Objectives: Know: That Christ rose from the dead by Himself (by the power of His Divinity). Feel: The true joy and the power of victory over sin. Practice: Being happy and thankful all the time.

Memory Verse: “The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” (John 20:20)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-1.tex) 89 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts First Sunday of May

Background Information for the Servant The Resurrection is joy: “The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” (John 20:20) Joy remained with them as a plain course of their life.

They rejoiced at the Lord’s resurrection. They were very happy when He showed Himself to them. They rejoiced at His true promises and at the resurrection in general. They rejoiced at His triumph over death. They were glad because the Jews would not gloat over them anymore. They rejoiced at the power they were given. They were very glad because of the mission which the Lord gave them after the resurrection. They were delighted with the spreading of preaching the Gospel. They were happy in spite of the persecutions and the difficulties they met because of their testimony in favour of God. The Bible said about them “So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.” (Acts 5:41) They rejoiced also because He fulfilled His promise and sent to them the Holy Spirit. They rejoiced when He said to them “But tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.” (Luke 24:48)

They rejoiced at His saying “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20) and His saying “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

The two angels said to them “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!” (Luke 24:5,6)

The phrase “The living Christ” caused great joy to the disciples and to us also.

Psychologically, the day of crucifixion was a mournful and a distressing day where as spiritually, it was a day of deliverance. The people witnessed the pains, scolding, insults, spittle and nails only, but they did not witness either the deliverance or the opening of Paradise’s gate and how the leaping in hope were transferred to it. The disciples were filled with terror but they rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Equal to the disciples’ grief and restlessness on Friday, there were much more joy on Sunday because of the resurrection. Thus, the words of the Lord were verified “but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.” (John 16:22)

They rejoiced because they saw the Lord. They saw Him alive outside the tomb after thinking that there would be no future meeting. They, also, rejoiced because the Lord obtained victory in His combat against falsehood and that He “... who always leads us in triumph in Christ, ...” (2 Corinthians 2:14) They also rejoiced because they got rid of their enemy’s gloating and malevolence as well as their disturbance, anxiety and disappearance. At that time, they were able to go out of their places and face the situation and speak publicly with might and power about Christ’s resurrection. They rejoiced because the cross was not the end of the story. The end of it was the gladdening and cheering resurrection which removed and eliminated the pains of Golgotha and Gethsemane and the events which took place before and after them.

He said to them “I will see you again and you will rejoice.” We celebrate the joys of the resurrection which give the sensation that the Lord is living with us and among us and that no tomb can enclose Him, who holds all men in His heart.

The disciples rejoiced at Christ’s resurrection. They also rejoiced when they saw Him. His resurrection was the point which changed both their history and the history of Christianity. All that their enemies can do, is to threaten them with death. But what can death do to those who have seen the resurrection and believed in it!? Thus, Christianity believes that death is mere transition and “To die is gain” and “it is better by far” and ”never feared by anyone.”

The disciples rejoiced because the Lord kept His promise with them. Because the promises of Christ, that He would rise and that they would see Him, were fulﬁlled; they believed in the other promises as “... I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:2,3) They had conﬁdence in what He said about sending the Counsellor to them (John 16:7) and that “they will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on them.” (Acts 1:8) They believed in His promise “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20) All these promises gave them power, faith and joy.

Not only did the disciples rejoice at the resurrection but they also, with pleasure, met the pains caused to them as a result of giving testimony in favour of the resurrection. Pain had a new conception in the minds and feelings of

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-1.tex) 90 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts First Sunday of May the disciples because they had the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16) They became convinced that pain was the way to glory as it happened with Christ through His crucifixion. They put this perception before them “We suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” (Romans 8:17) So, he tolerated and suffered pains saying “As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.” (2 Corinthians 6:10)

The resurrection became joy to all the believers and good news for the general resurrection. The resurrection gave the Christians hope and trust in the other world. So, they concentrated all their desires in it and renounced worldly pleasures. They rejoiced at the kingdom and the eternal paradise which would come afterwards. Saint Paul, the Apostle, could say about these matters “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) The same apostle spoke about the crown prepared for the righteous saying “Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” (2 Titus 4:8)

Thus, the resurrection gave us hope to be with Christ forever. The joy of the resurrection is not only to rise from death but also to rise with Christ and live with Him. So, the resurrection, in itself, became a means and not end aimed at. It is a means to live with God and enjoy His companionship in continuous inexpressible and glorious joy, with the queues of His angels and saints. The resurrection has become the desire and the passion and the faith of all men. They consider it the way to eternity and living with God which is the aim of our life on earth. At the time of Christ’s resurrection, the disciples who had been afraid of being related to Him, rejoiced at being His followers. In the past, they were so terriﬁed of being attributed to Him! Now, after the resurrection, they became proud of Him.

They rejoiced because the Lord, by His own will, appeared to them for forty days, in the upper room in Jerusalem, on the shores of the sea of Tiberias, and in Galilee. They were ﬁlled with joy because the Lord spoke with them, tranquillised their hearts, forgave Peter’s denial, convinced Thomas of his doubts and came down to their weakness in order that He might elevate them to his power without rebuking them because of their escape, hiding, and doubt.

The disciples rejoiced because, after the resurrection, they were trusted with a mission. The Lord said to them “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19,20) “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptised will be saved ...” (Mark 16:15-17)

Thus, they had a mission, a great and important one for which they live for and do their best for its ascertainment. Thus, they will be crowned and the words of the Lord “I will make you ﬁshers of men.” (Matthew 4:19) will be realised. Undoubtedly, Peter has rejoiced when the Lord said to him after the resurrection “Feed My lambs.”, “Tend My sheep.” (John 21:15,16)

No doubt, all the disciples rejoiced when the Lord, after the resurrection said to them “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. ... As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” (John 20:21-23)

After the resurrection, the disciples rejoiced at the spiritual body because The Lord Jesus Christ will raise their bodies as He rose. This transﬁguration which will happen to human nature after rising from death was mentioned with extended detail by Saint Paul, the Apostle who said “So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown perishable, it is raised imperishable, it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” (1 Corinthians 15:42-44) He also said about Jesus Christ “Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, ...” (Philippians 3:21) Take note of “Like His glorious body”, these words give us an idea how beautiful the other world is. They, also, give us a notion about its spirituality and the resplendence of the spirit when it is freed from the bonds of materiality and the abilities of the spirit and its talents.

(From the book Contemplations on the Resurrection – by HH Pope Shenouda III)

Lesson Content Important points in the Resurrection for the servant: • It should be emphasised that Christ rose from the dead with a gloriﬁed body yet He ate with His disciples. This was to prove to them that He wasn’t a shadow or a spirit.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-1.tex) 91 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts First Sunday of May

• Christ carried the marks of the crucifixion on His body to remind us of His salvation and His great love for us despite the nature of the luminous body. • The resurrection of Christ confirms His victory upon death for which He gave Himself up by His own will. • The Resurrection confirms the divinity of Christ (He rose of His own power) and the Incarnation confirms His humanity (He was the Son of man). • The Resurrection is true joy for us, and it is the foundation of Christianity, for without the Resurrection our faith is void.

The Lesson: I will tell you a story and I want you to choose its ending ...

One day, a beautiful baby was born named Jesus. He was born in a manger in Bethlehem, the smallest town in Israel. Jesus grew up and was unique in all that He spoke; when He entered the Temple teaching the elders, He was only 12 years. They all wondered where He got these wise words from and who taught Him.

When the Lord Jesus was 30 years old, He started His ministry, which was marvellous full of love for all people. He was able to do anything; He healed the sick, raised the dead, healed the blind, caused nature (the sea and the wind) to be subject to Him, and He blessed the five loaves and two fish. They were all beautiful and marvellous miracles and finally He raised Lazarus after he had been dead for four days.

But the Jewish elders were so afraid of Him and witnessed His power so they fabricated accusations against Him that He is a blasphemer and that He said wrong things about God. Although they didn’t ﬁnd anyone to testify to this, so they resorted to getting false witnesses (who took money to say untrue things).

In the end, they judged Jesus and sentenced to be cruciﬁed. So Jesus died ...

What do you think was the ending? (Discuss with your children)

If Christ died and He didn’t rise again, then death would have triumphed over Him.

The foundations of Christianity are the Incarnation, the Cruciﬁxion and the Resurrection. If Christ incarnated and lived and died normally, then there would have been no salvation, and He wouldn’t have give us resurrection and victory; the authority of sin and death would have remained as before.

If He was only cruciﬁed without resurrecting, death would triumphed over Christ. Then Christ would never be God.

So the resurrection of Christ was essential, as it is our true joy and proof that Christ triumphed over death, and it is proof of His divinity.

We can read the part related to the appearance of Christ to the disciples in the upper room in Luke 24:33-43:

“So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, ‘The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!’ And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, ‘Peace to you.’ But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. And He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.’ When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. But while they still did not believe for joy, and marvelled, He said to them, ‘Have you any food here?’ So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. And He took it and ate in their presence.”

The Lord Jesus Christ appeared many times to His disciples. At ﬁrst He appeared to the Marys, and also to Mary Magdalene who thought that He was a gardener and said to Him: “They have taken away the Lord, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” However, when He called her “Mary” she knew Him, and He told her to tell His disciples about His resurrection. He appeared to the two disciples of Emmaus and walked with them on the way and when they found out that He is Christ; when He broke bread with them, they knew Him, and rejoiced and went back quickly to Jerusalem and told the disciples what had happened.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-1.tex) 92 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts First Sunday of May

While they were together (ten disciples without Judas and Thomas), Christ appeared again, although the doors and the windows were locked from the inside by the disciples. He said “Peace be with you.” Entering a place through a wall was something that Christ had never done before; although as God He was capable of it, yet before the Cruciﬁxion He was clothed with our body with all its human characteristics.

They were terrified because they were sure that He died but were not sure that He rose again. Not only that, he rose with a luminous and glorified body, carrying the marks of crucifixion to confirm that He is Christ. Yet He ate with them to reassure them of His real presence with them, and to remind them that He had explained everything (His crucifixion and resurrection) to them before it had happened, for He is God the Pantocrator.

Christ talked to them normally like before explaining to them everything and giving them peace and true joy. That’s why they could preach to all people the good news.

And when Thomas arrived, he said: I don’t believe, I must see for myself. So, the Lord Jesus appeared to them for a second time and said to him, ‘Reach your ﬁnger and put it into My hands and My side...’ And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Our Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Many other apparitions of Jesus Christ with His disciples conﬁrmed His resurrection and gave them great joy. That is why we rejoice greatly when we think of the Resurrection and are with God all times: during prayer, while reading the Holy Bible, and in the Divine Liturgy. As the disciples rejoiced by being with Him, we also rejoice by being with Him.

Application Comprehension Questions • To whom did Christ appeared ﬁrst? • Who was in the upper room? • Describe the feeling of the disciples when they saw the Lord Jesus in their midst? • What did Christ say to them? What did He ask for? • What was the feeling of the disciples after Christ ate with them and showed them His wounds?

Exercise • Try to see God in everything around you in order to be joyful, just like the disciples; see Him during your prayer, in the liturgy, in the people around you. In every person you meet remember that they are made in the image and likeness of God, so be happy to see them; help them and accept them just as God accepts all people with their faults. • Meet with God in quietness and practise thanking Him always. Rejoice with Him during tribulations and thank Him for them so that He may send you joy and peace.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. O Lord, Who changed the sadness of pain to joy through Your resurrection: teach me to see You every day so that I may be joyful. Help me to enjoy talking with You during prayer, to delight in reading Your words in the Holy Bible and be satisﬁed by Your presence in the Eucharist so that I may always rejoice in being with You. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-1.tex) 93 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Second Sunday of May

The Lord Jesus Christ Gave His Disciples the Power to Serve

Bible References: Matthew 28:16-20 and John 20:19-28

Lesson Aim: The resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead has given divine power to the Disciples and to all the believers (us). We must always remember the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Memory Verse: “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suﬀerings.” (Philippians 3:10)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-2.tex) 94 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Second Sunday of May

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: 1. What is very important about Our Lord’s resurrection? 2. Did the resurrection have any inﬂuence on the disciples? 3. How did the disciples change by our Lord’s resurrection?

Lesson Content

When the Saviour rose from the dead, He did two things: 1. He showed Himself to His followers so that their belief would become complete; that Jesus Christ is the “Son of God” who rose from the dead by His own Divine Power. 2. He solved their problems (that originated from the events of His cruciﬁxion) of “fear” (i.e. as the Disciples were hiding in the upper room) and “sadness” (as Mary Magdalene was weeping). Then our Lord Jesus gave His Disciples the power to serve. Jesus said to His Disciples “All authority has been given to Me, in heaven and on earth.” “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

Jesus gave His Disciples power to do great things and preach Christianity all over the world. Their success was based on their belief on what He said to them “I am with you always.”

St Paul had the power to do great things in serving the Lord Jesus. St Paul had some hard times. But God’s power always helped him get through them. Remember that St Paul travelled a great deal to preach the word of God and the ship was broken in the sea several times; he was jailed and he stood in front of kings and emperors talking about Jesus who rose from the dead. Jesus granted St Paul the power of the resurrection and never asked Paul to do anything without giving him that power.

The power of the resurrection also turned St Peter who denied Jesus before, into a believer who preached in many places and completed his life on the cross similar to Jesus. Also the power of the resurrection turned St Thomas from a person full of doubt (mention what happened with him (John 20:24-29)) into a believer. The rest of the Disciples also gained divine strength. Consequently, Christianity was able to begin spreading from the mouths, and actions, of 12 individuals.

Their preaching was focused on the Lord Jesus Christ Who was cruciﬁed and rose from the dead on the third day.

The power of the resurrection united the hearts of the Disciples. Remember that unity results in strength. Those Disciples before the resurrection were at times saying “Who is the greatest among us?” After the resurrection, the book of Acts says the following about their unity and love to each other: • “These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” (Acts 1:14) • “Now when the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” (Acts 2:1) • So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:46-47) Therefore, their unity resulted in their success in preaching the word of God. They gained this unity after the resurrection of Jesus.

The Lord Jesus gives us power to do everything especially when we remember that Jesus defeated death. Therefore the “power of Jesus’ resurrection” must influence my life and behaviour. It influences my life. As a Christian since I was baptised I was buried with Jesus and was raised with Him from the dead to the new life as “born from God”. It influences my behaviour by living a life of victory over sin and all the temptations of the devil.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-2.tex) 95 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Second Sunday of May

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • The resurrection of our Lord Jesus gave His disciples divine power to preach Christianity. His resurrection was the focus of their preaching. • The resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ has provided power to everyone as individuals and church congre- gations. Now I can say “I can do everything in Jesus Christ who strengthens me”. I can do well at home, at church and at school through the power which the Lord Jesus Christ has granted me. • I must not be ashamed of the cross. In fact I must be proud of it once I add the resurrection. Therefore the resurrection gave meaning to the cross.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-2.tex) 96 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of May

The Resurrection Appearance at the Sea of Tiberias Having Faith of the Heart

Bible References: John 21

Lesson Aim: Our faith in the Lord should not be of the intellect only, but of the heart too.

Lesson Objectives: Know: Our faith should not be of the mind only, but of the heart too. Feel: That God loves him and cares about him even in diﬃ- cult situation. Practice: Asking God to give him a strong faith of the heart, a faith that does not doubt his care.

Memory Verse: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-3.tex) 97 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of May

Lesson Content

After the Lord appeared to the disciples in the Upper Room on two occasions, he appeared a third time by the sea of Tiberias, this time to only seven of the disciples. This appearance is mentioned in the gospel of St John chapter 21. “After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going ﬁshing.” (John 21:1)

We notice here that Simon Peter is mentioned ﬁrst, followed by Thomas, and then Nathanael, followed by the two sons of Zebedee and ﬁnally two others whose names are not mentioned. One might wonder why these disciples in particular are mentioned. We should remember that every word in the Holy Bible is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and has a purpose and a meaning for our life. Even the order of the names is divinely inspired.

Simon Peter is mentioned first. Simon Peter is a symbol of “faith” for he is the first one to confess that Christ is the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16). But we know that he afterwards denied him three times. In the passage in John 21 he signifies those whose faith is dependent on knowledge and facts. Such persons look to the resurrection as a historical event, but it has no effect in their life.

Nathanael is the third name mentioned. He also confessed Christ as the Son of God, but he added the “King of Israel”: “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:49). “King of Israel” means “King of kings.” He represents those whose faith is dependent not just on knowledge, but who have faith of the heart. But why does Nathanael signify faith of the heart? The name Nathanael is made up of two parts: “Nath” means “people” or “family” and “El” means “God”. So Nathanael means “family of God”. He signiﬁes those who have faith in God from the heart, trusting in Him like a son with his father. When we give our hearts to God and ask him to reign over it, we will be his sons and daughters. The one who confesses Christ as the King of Israel is the one who has submitted his heart to God to reign over it.

Thomas is mentioned between Peter and Nathanael. He is referred to as the “Twin”. The word twin is used, not because he had a twin sibling, but to signify the one who has a wavering or doubting faith. He is placed between Peter and Nathanael because doubt is like a wedge that drives itself between faith of the mind (Peter) and the faith which is of the heart (Nathanael). The person whose faith is based on knowledge only might stumble when doubts arise in his mind about the word of God in the Holy Bible. But the one who has faith of the heart accepts the word of God without doubting.

The two sons of Zebedee are mentioned after Nathanael. The name Zebedee is similar to the Arabic word Zibda, which means “butter”. It refers to slackness or laziness, or fragility in faith; thus the saying in Arabic, “Your words are like butter, but in the evening you won’t ﬁnd it”, which refers to the one who does not keep to his word. But the Gospel tells us that Christ afterwards called these two disciples Boanerges, that is “sons of thunder”, which is a sign of strength. This signiﬁes how God is able to change our weakness into strength, and our fragile faith into a solid faith. There are several other examples in the Holy Bible where God changed a person’s name. For example, Abraham was originally called Abraam. Abraam means barren, and Abraham means Father of many nations. So God is able turn us from being barren to being fruitful. And God can also turn my darkness into something beautiful, as He said in Song of Songs: “You are dark but beautiful.”

Finally there are the two disciples whose names were not mentioned. It seems strange that St John would forget their names, since there were only 11 disciples. But there is a divine purpose behind every word in the Holy Bible. By omitting the names of the two disciples, the Holy Spirit is telling us that if we allow doubt (Thomas) and laziness (Zebedee) to enter our life, our names will be not be mentioned in the book of life.

“Do you have any food?”

Our Lord said to the 7 disciples, “children do you have any food?” He called them children not because of their innocence, but their immaturity. By going out to fish again, they lost all sense of their responsibility as disciples. Although they were privileged by being chosen by Christ to be his disciples, and saw his many signs and wonders, yet they fell into laziness and doubt. And so they went fishing, and cast their net into the sea. They fished all night but did not catch anything.

“That night they caught nothing”

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (05-3.tex) 98 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Virtue Third Sunday of May

The “night” here signifies our life on earth which will come to an end. In the parable of the ten virgins, we are told that Christ will come in the middle of the night. Our lives could end at any time. The period before the night is your life with all its toil and troubles. The disciples fished all night but caught nothing. Likewise we labour and toil in this life, but when we leave this world (the night) we will take nothing with us: “naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there.” (Job 1:21) We can realise verse when we observe a baby after it is born; we see it clenching its fingers together as if grasping onto something. But when a person dies their hands are wide open, for they die without taking anything with them.

“Children do have you any food?”

The word “fish” here is synonymous with “goodness”. Traditionally, when someone went to buy fish in the marketplace, he would say to the seller: “do you have any goodness.” If the seller did not have any fish, he would say: “God will send”. If he does have, he will say “Thank God.”

By asking the question “children do you have any food?”, the Lord was reminding them of the verse in Psalms: “I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.’” (Psalm 16:2) NRSV

“Cast the net on the right hand side of the boat”

The right side symbolises the believers who will be saved, who are the sheep at his right hand. We notice also on the cross that both thieves who were cruciﬁed with the Lord were seeking to be saved. But the left hand thief was seeking only an earthly salvation, to be saved from the cross. The right had thief however, sought for his eternal salvation, and he believed in the Lord and accepted him as his king, and said to him “Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

The number of ﬁsh they caught is 153, a speciﬁc and small number. It symbolises those who are saved, for they are few, and known to the Lord. We can interpret the number 153 as follows: 153 is given by 100 plus 50 plus 3. The number 100 symbolises perfection of spiritual fruit, 3 refers to the Holy Trinity, and 50 refers to the day of Pentecost, i.e. the descent of the Holy Spirit. This gives the following meaning: we can achieve perfection only in the Holy Trinity, and through fellowship of the Holy Spirit which we receive in the sacrament of holy Myron.

Application Comprehension Questions • Why did the disciples go ﬁshing again? • What type of people does Simon Peter symbolise? • What type of people does Nathanael symbolise? • What does the character of Thomas symbolise?

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Feast of the Ascension Christ’s Love in His Ascension

Bible References: Luke 24:44-53

Lesson Aim: To learn that the Lord Jesus Christ was giving His blessings up to the last minute. The last thing He did on earth was the blessing of His Disciples.

Memory Verse: “While He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.” (Luke 24:51)

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Background Information for the Servant Notes on the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ Nobody has ever risen from the dead and ascended to heaven except the Lord Jesus Christ Son of God.

The ascension of Jesus after His resurrection is proof of His Divinity.

When Jesus talked to Nicodemus He told him “No man has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.” (John 3:13)

So the Lord Jesus, when He was speaking with Nicodemus, He was in heaven at the same instant.

But Jesus ascended with our ﬂesh, which He took from the Virgin Mary, that is with my ﬂesh and yours. Hence, Jesus blessed our bodies and opened the gate of heaven for us.

“And raised up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:6)

He ascended into heaven so that we could realise that our true place is in heaven. We should be thinking about heaven and should not let the things of the world control our lives.

We can remember the ascension in the following: • Every time we pray the Lord‘s prayer and say “Our Father who art in heaven...” we realise that Jesus meant that praying should be to our Father in heaven. • During The Divine Liturgy, when we stand close to the altar, we are considered as if we are standing in heaven. • Every time we neglect the world and concentrate on Jesus we ascend to heaven with all our being.

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: 1. When our Lord Jesus Christ resurrected from death, after how many days did he ascend to heaven? 2. Our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished so much when He was with us on earth, what things did we learn from Him?

Lesson Content

The Lord Jesus ascended to heaven on the fortieth day after His resurrection

Before the Lord Jesus’ ascension, He wanted to emphasise to His Disciples a few important things: 1. He is the Messiah, Son of God, in Him all things were fulfilled which “were written in the Law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms.” (Luke 24:44) 2. What were those things that were fulfilled in our Lord Jesus Christ? “It was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” (Luke 24:46-47). 3. The main aspect that the Saviour wanted His Disciples to concentrate on in their preaching was what He just summarised to them as stated here in the first two points. “And you are witnesses of these things.” (Luke 24:48). The Lord Jesus showed His love in practical ways at all stages during His life on earth: • First of all He came to our world in a humble way and was born from the Virgin Mary. He came to save us. • During His lifetime on earth He did a large number of miracles: He healed the sick and raised the dead. • Even during His crucifixion, He was kind to the right-hand robber and granted him salvation. He also asked for the forgiveness of the people who crucified Him, He asked His beloved disciple John to look after His mother and she was a blessing in his home. • After His resurrection, He solved the various problems that His people had: the sadness of Mary Magdalene, the doubt of Thomas, the fear of Peter and the rest of the Disciples.

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In His ascension He showed His love as follows: • He blessed His Disciples. • He told His Disciples before He left them to go back to Jerusalem. They were afraid before and refrained from going to Jerusalem, but now their Master told them to go and stay there until He would send the Holy Spirit to strengthen them. • The land which did not accept Jesus and which crucified Him, took his blessings before He ascended to heaven. The last thing that Jesus did on earth was to bless His Disciples telling them “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creation, he who believes and is baptised will be saved.” (Mark 16:15-16) • The Disciples went back to Jerusalem with great joy. We can now compare their joyful feeling while Jesus was ascending to heaven in front of their eyes with their sad feeling when Jesus was telling them before His crucifixion that He was going to leave them. “But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me ‘where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.” (John 16:5-6) The Disciples’ feelings had changed because their faith has been augmented after they witnessed His crucifixion, His resurrection and His ascension with a special blessing from Him before He left them, His blessings gave them complete peace and joy.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Jesus who blessed His Disciples at that time (time of the Ascension) is also now blessing us, but we must have faith in salvation by His Name. • As our Lord Jesus showed His love to His Disciples and to many people by His actions, we also should not express our love in mere words but in loving actions. If you love God, obey Him. If you love your parents or your brothers and sisters, do not yell at them but treat them nicely. If you love the church, serve her.

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The Book of Acts St Peter the Great Fisherman

Bible References: Matthew 16:18, John 15:16-21, Book of Acts

Lesson Aim: To learn from the life of St Peter, the ﬁsher of men.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The story of St Peter’s life. Feel: His/her role in the life of those around them. Practice: Taking the life of the Lord Jesus as an example of how he/she should act regardless of where they are.

Memory Verse: “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:20)

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Lesson Content

Interview with St Peter the Apostle

“You are Simon son of Jonah. You will be called Cephas.”

Can you introduce yourself to us?

I am Simon son of Jonah but Jesus called me ‘Cephas’ which means ‘Peter’. Cephas is an Aramaic name which means Peter in Greek. Peter means ‘stone’. So I was chosen to be named this way by our Lord Jesus Christ. I was one of the twelve apostles who Jesus chose out of His followers, who were called disciples. I was born in Bethsaida in Galilee. I was born about 10 years before Christ. I worked as a ﬁsherman, like many of the men in my town.

How did you meet our Lord Jesus Christ?

I ﬁrst met Jesus after my brother Andrew had told me about what John the Baptist was saying about Him. Andrew told me that they had found the Messiah and he took me to see Jesus. When I met Jesus, He looked at me and told me “You are Simon son of Jonah. You will be called Cephas.” (John 1:35-42)

When our Lord asked me to become one of his disciples, He had just performed the miracle of the many ﬁsh. He assured me saying “Follow Me, and I will make you ﬁshers of men” (Matthew 4:19). After this, we drew our boats to the shore and, with my brother and the two sons of Zebedee, left everything and followed Jesus. (Luke 5:1-11)

I was one of the two disciples who prepared the last Passover, and one of the three who saw Jesus raise Jairus’ daughter from death. I saw the Transﬁguration on Mount Tabor, I prayed with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before He was arrested, and I was one of the four who He prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple to.

Can you tell us about your character?

As you know, I was originally a follower of John the Baptist. After I followed Jesus, I witnessed many of the miracles He did. Jesus chose me, along with James and John, to see many wondrous events the Gospels wrote about, like the Transﬁguration for example.

I had a very powerful love and passionate jealousy for our Lord. I was often quick to speak and weak in understanding, so I tried to prevent Jesus from dying (Mark 8:31-33). When Jesus told me that I would deny Him three times before the rooster crows twice, I told Him that I would die for Jesus before abandoning Him. When Jesus was arrested in Gethsemane, I drew a sword to defend Him Whose kingdom is not of this world! I needed to go through a trial that would shake me for me to recognize my weakness.

I denied my Lord and teacher and swore in front of a servant that I did not know Him. When I heard the rooster crow I realised what I had done and I was ﬁlled with regret and wept bitterly. On the day of our Lord’s resurrection, I went to visit His tomb early in the morning. Jesus appeared to the disciples and I by the Sea of Galilee after His resurrection. He asked me three times if I loved Him, reminding me of the three times I denied Him. He told me to take care of his sheep and accepted my repentance.

How did you begin your service?

After the church was established on the day of Pentecost and we received the Holy Spirit, I began preaching to the Jews. The Lord gloriﬁed Himself with many signs and wonders, like: 1. The healing of the lame man at the gate of the temple (Acts 3) There was a man who couldn’t walk or work, so he would be carried to the gates of the temple (these gates were called Beautiful). He would sit and beg for money all day. He would ask God every day to heal Him so that he could rise and walk. One day, John and I were going to the temple and we met this man sitting at the gate. He asked us for money so we replied to him “silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk”. He stood up and walked in front of all the people and they were greatly astonished. So I took hold of the opportunity and preached to the people about God’s grace, and how He loved us so much that He sent us His only son.

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2. Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5) There was a man called Ananias and his wife was called Sapphira. They lied to me and told me that they sold their property and gave all their money to us apostles for the mission. The Holy Spirit told me that they lied, and when I confronted them, they died so that God could show everyone that they should respect Him and be honest. 3. The healing of Tabitha (Acts 9) There was a girl called Tabitha. She was a very giving person. She befriended the poor and the needy and made them clothes to wear. One day she became very ill and no treatments made her better. They sent a messenger to come get me to see her, but by the time I arrived she was dead. So I prayed next to her and told her “Tabitha get up” and she rose from the dead. 4. Cornelius’ faith (Acts 10) There was a centurion called Cornelius. He feared God and gave generously to those in need. One day he had a vision where an angel of God told him to send for me. When I came to his house and was speaking with him and his family, the Holy Spirit descended on them. This was the beginning of the conversion of the Gentiles. I preached the gospel to many parts of Asia Minor — Antioch, Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia.

What about your writings?

I wrote two epistles in the New Testament — 1 Peter and 2 Peter.

Application Game The servant chooses a group of children and asks them to act the life of Peter the Apostle in brief.

Comprehension Questions • What do you remember from the life of St Peter? And how did he become an Apostle? • What are his writings? • How did he start his service, and where? • What do we learn from Peter the Apostle, and how do we apply it in our own lives?

Exercise • Learn to share with those around you and love everyone without bias. • Learn from the life of our Lord Jesus Christ in how He dealt with St Peter, and apply that in your dealings with others. • Learn from Peter the Apostle repentance, no matter how big the sin is. • Be a role model to those around you both in word and deed. • Know that you are responsible for those around you and that you have a duty to pray for them.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Truly, O Lord, we are not able to save ourselves with our own eﬀort but we need Your grace to support us. We need Your Divine help, that we may be ﬁrm in You and that we may save others as well, by the working of Your Holy Spirit in us. O Lord, we learnt that according to our human nature we fall into sin. Truly, O Lord You said: “Without Me you can do nothing.” By You and through Your help to us, we are strengthened and are victorious, so we say: “I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.” Amen.

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The Apostles’ Feast The Wonderful Life of the Young Converts

Bible References: Acts 2:41-47

Lesson Aim: To know the wonderful life of the young converts and learn to be glad and fully united together as they were.

Memory Verse: “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47)

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Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • Whenever a person converts to Christianity, what is the ﬁrst thing that they must receive in order to become one?

Lesson Content

Please read Acts 2:41-47 and give illustrations and discussion verse by verse.

This young church in Jerusalem had almost none of the things we now think to be essential in performing church services. They had no church building of their own. They met in people’s homes, in porches of the temple, in a borrowed synagogue, in a vacant lot or by the sea side.

The Happy Steps to Christian Success: • “Then those who gladly received his word were baptised and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.” (Acts 2:4 1) There is a direct connection between verse 4 and verse 41. In verse 4 “And they (the Apostles) were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” In verse 41, we see that the people gladly accepted their teaching and were baptised. Preaching in the fullness of the Holy Spirit must have a positive result on others to the extent that they are saved. In the Bible we often find the connection between Spirit-filled witnessing and sinners being saved. Please mention in detail the following examples: 1. Luke 1:15-16 2. Acts 4:31 as it relates to Acts 4:33 and Acts 5:14. • “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” (Acts 2:42) They had a daily study of the word of God. They joined themselves together, i.e., were fully united. This membership included fellowship and breaking bread. They continued daily and regularly in earnest prayers. “Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles” (Acts 2:43), The Lord supported the preaching of the Apostles with powerful miracles and signs. These miracles and signs prompted the people to be serious and fear God. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” (Proverbs 1:7) In our church, before the deacon reads the gospel he says, “In the fear of God stand and listen to the Holy Gospel.” We love God and He is our Father but we have to fear His anger and we must give Him full respect.

“Now all who believed were together and had things in common.” (Acts 2:44) They were united by the power of the Holy Spirit. Unity is very important at home, at church and even at school for any group to be successful.

“And sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.” (Acts 2:45) They learned to give and share joyfully. Their hearts were connected with winning eternal life and hence the possessions and goods had no signiﬁcance and they just divided everything among themselves as anyone had need.

“So continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.” (Acts 2:46) They visited each other, ate with each other and rejoiced to see each other. They were not complicated in dealing with each other, accepting everything in a simple way. When we sit at home to eat our meals, do we sit and eat with gladness?

“Praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47) They praised God because He saved them through the preaching of the Apostles. We can see from the word “daily” that the church was growing at that time because of the eﬀect of the Holy Spirit. This is the reason for saying “and the Lord added” and the verse does not say “and the apostles added”.

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Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • Living together in unity and love brings gladness and simplicity, in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us always preserve the spirit of unity at home, at school and at church. Avoid arguments, aggressiveness and insulting expressions to others. • We must pray that our church today grows with the addition of new Christians, as was the case of the church in the Apostolic era.

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Friends in Heaven St Anthony the Great & St Paul the Anchorite

Book References: • Synaxarion 20th Toba and 3rd Amshir • HH Pope Shenouda, “Comparative Theology”

Lesson Aim: Friendship of saints.

Lesson Objectives: Know: The stories of St Anthony and St Paul. Feel: The beneﬁts of befriending saints in heaven. Practice: Praying and asking the saints for their intercessions and prayers.

Memory Verse: “Pray for one another.” (James 5:16) “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven; and come, follow Me.” (Matthew 19:21)

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Lesson Content St Antony’s life This righteous man was born in the year 251 AD in the city of Qimn El-Arouse at Beni Suif in Egypt to rich parents who loved the church and the poor. They raised him up in fear of the Lord. When he was twenty years old, his parents departed, and he had to take care of his sister.

One day, he entered church and heard the words of the Lord Christ in the Gospel, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven; and come, follow Me.” (Matthew 19:21)

He returned to his house, and decided to fulﬁl this commandment, considering it directed to him personally. He gave his wealth to the poor and needy, and took his sister and placed her in a house of Christian virgins. At that time, monasticism had not yet been established. All those who wanted to live a solitary life went and lived on the outskirts of the city. This was what St Anthony did as he dwelt alone, worshipping and living an ascetic life.

The devil fought him there by afflicting him with boredom, laziness and temptations of lust He overcame the devil’s snares by the power of the Lord Christ After that, he lived in one of the tombs where his friends used to bring him food. When the devil perceived his ascetic life and his intense worship, he was envious of him, and he beat him mercilessly, then left him unconscious. When his friends came to visit him and found him in this condition, they carried him to the church. After he recovered, he went back to the same place. The devil again resumed his war against St Antony, only this time the phantoms were in the form of wild beasts, wolves, lions, snakes and scorpions. They appeared as if they were about to attack him or cut him into pieces. But the saint would laugh at them scornfully and say, “If any of you have any authority over me, only one would have been sufficient to fight me.” At this saying, they disappeared as though in smoke, for God gave him the victory over the devils. He was always singing this psalm, “Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered; let those also who hate Him flee before Him.” (Psalm 68:1)

St Anthony used to prepare a quantity of bread that would sustain him for six months. He did not allow anyone to enter his cell, and whoever came to him, stood outside and listened to his advice. He continued in this condition of solitary worship for 20 years. Then by God’s command, he went to El-Fayoum supporting the brethren there in the faith, then returned to his monastery.

During the time of persecution, he longed to become a martyr. He left his monastery and went to Alexandria. He visited those who were imprisoned for the sake of Christ and comforted them. When the Governor saw that he was confessing the Lord Christ publicly, not caring what might happen to him, he ordered him not to show up in the city. But God preserved him and the Governor left him alone. Then the saint went back to his monastery according to God’s will, and many came to visit him and to hear his teachings.

He saw that these visits kept him away from his worship. As a result, he went far away to the eastern desert. He travelled with some Bedouins to the inner wilderness for three days, until he found a spring of water and some palm trees, and then he chose to settle there in a cave. On this spot now stands the monastery of St Anthony the Great. The Bedouins came to him with bread, and the Lord drove away all the wild beasts from this place, for his sake.

One day, he was bored, and he heard a voice telling him, “Go out and see.” He went out and saw an angel who wore a girdle with a cross, one resembling the holy Eskeem, and on his head was a head cover (Kolansowa). He was sitting while braiding palm leaves, then he stood up to pray, and again he sat to weave. A voice came to him saying, “Anthony, do this and you will reSt” Henceforth, he started to wear this tunic that he saw, and began to weave palm leaves, and never got bored again. This became the dress code for monks.

St Antony and St Paul One day St Antony was tempted with thoughts that he was the ﬁrst to dwell in the wilderness. The angel told St Antony, “There is a man who lives in the inner wilderness; the world is not worthy of his footsteps. By his prayers, the Lord brings rain and dew to fall on the earth, and bring the ﬂood of the Nile in its due season.” When St Antony heard this, he rose right away and went to the inner wilderness, a day’s walk away.

This Saint was from the city of Alexandria and had a brother whose name was Peter. After the departure of their father, they divided the inheritance between them. When his brother took the greater share, Paul’s feelings were hurt by his brother’s action. He said to his brother, “Why don’t you give me my rightful share of the inheritance of my father?” Peter responded, “You are a young man, and I am afraid that you might squander it. As for me, I will keep it for you.”

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When they did not agree with each other, they went to the governor to judge between them. On their way, they saw a funeral procession. Paul asked one of the mourners about the deceased man. Paul was told that he was one of the noble and rich people of the city, and that he left his riches and wealth behind, and that they were taking him to bury him with only his garment.

St Paul sighed in his heart and said to himself, “What do I have to do then with all the money of this temporal world which I shall leave naked?” He looked to his brother and said to him, “My brother, let us return, for I shall not ask you for anything, not even for what is mine.”

On their way back, Paul left his brother and went on his way until he came out of the city. Paul found a grave where he stayed for three days praying to the Lord Christ to guide him to what pleases Him. As for his brother, he searched for Paul diligently and when he did not ﬁnd him, he was very sorry for what he had done.

God sent an angel to St Paul who took him out of this place and walked with him until they reached the inner eastern wilderness. He stayed there for 70 years, during which he saw no one. He put on a tunic made of palm tree leaves. The Lord sent him a raven every day with a half loaf of bread.

When St Antony visited St Paul, the raven came bringing a whole loaf of bread. St Paul said to St Antony, “Now, I know that you are one of the children of God. For 70 years, the Lord has been sending to me every day half a loaf of bread, but today, the Lord is sending your food also. Now, go and bring me back in a hurry the tunic that Emperor Constantine had given to Pope Athanasius.”

St Antony went to St Athanasius and brought the tunic from him and returned to St Paul. On his way back, he saw the soul of St Paul carried by the angels up to heaven. When he arrived at the cave, he found that St Paul had departed from this world. He kissed him, weeping, and clothed him in the tunic that he asked for, and he took his ﬁbre tunic.

When St Antony wanted to bury St Paul, he wondered how he could dig the grave. Two lions entered the cave, bowed their heads before the body of St Paul, and shook their heads as if they were asking St Anthony what to do. St Antony knew that they were sent from God. He marked the length and width of the body on the ground, and they dug the grave with their claws, according to St Antony’s directions. St Anthony then buried the holy body and went back to Pope Athanasius and told him what had happened. St Athanasius sent men to bring St Paul’s body to him. They spent several days searching in the mountains, but they could not ﬁnd the place of his grave. St Paul appeared to the Pope in a vision and told him that the Lord would not allow the revelation of the location of his body. He asked the Pope not to trouble the men, but to have them brought back.

Pope Athanasius used to put the palm ﬁbre tunic on three times a year during the Divine Liturgy. One time, he wanted to let the people know about the holiness of the owner of that tunic. He put it over a dead man, and the dead man rose up instantly. The news of this miracle spread all around the land of Egypt.

When St Anthony felt that the day of his departure had approached, he commanded his disciple to hide his body and to give his staﬀ to St Macarius, and to give one sheepskin cloak to St Athanasius and the other sheepskin cloak to Anba Serapion, his disciple. He stretched himself on the ground and gave up his spirit. The angels and the saints took his spirit and carried it to the place of perpetual rest St Athanasius wrote his story which was spread across the world, resulting in the spread of monasticism.

Think about: the friendship between these two saints and how we can be like them. We need friends in our lives so we can encourage each other to pray and read the Bible together. We can also take a saint as our friend who can pray for us before Christ to help us with all our situations in life and to help us ﬁnd the right route to heaven.

Application Comprehension Questions • If you had a problem, which saint would you call? • Mention situations where the intercession of the saints is a reason for blessing?

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Exercise • Each one must choose an intercessor for themselves, ﬁnd out about their life story, and venerate him/her on their feast day and occasionally. • Assign an saint to each subject you study at school, so that they may pray for you in that subject, for example: - English: St George - Maths: St Mina - etc

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. We ask You our Lord Jesus Christ to be with us, just as You were with the saints, and purify us from every sin. Through the intercession of the Virgin St Mary and all the saints who pleased You since the beginning. Amen.

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Obedience St John the Dwarf

Book References: • Synaxarion 20th Baba

Lesson Aim: To teach the children about the blessings of being obedient to your elders.

Lesson Objectives: Know: That God is pleased with us when we respect our elders. Feel: The blessing that comes from being obedient. Practice: Being obedient to elders.

Memory Verse: “And, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him.” (Hebrews 5:9)

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Lesson Content

Once upon a time there was a small boy whose name was John or Jonah. He was born in a village in Upper Egypt. He loved the church and loved living his life with God very much. He saw how much time monks would spend with God so he decided he had to become a monk. He was called John the Dwarf because he was very short.

When he was 18 years old, he decided he wanted to become a monk. He went to the wilderness to see Abba Bemwa (‘the great father of the wilderness’) and asked to become his disciple. But Abba Bemwa refused and told St John that he was still too young to become his disciple. St John pleaded with Abba Bemwa, telling him that he would listen to every word he says. When Abba Bemwa saw how much St John wanted to be a monk, he asked him to wait three days. Abba Bemwa fasted and prayed for three days until an angel appeared to him saying “ordain John a monk because he will be a great monk and father of many children.” Abba Bemwa fasted another three days and then dressed St John in a monk’s robe. St John was very obedient and listened to his elders.

Abba Bemwa wanted to test how far St John’s obedience would go with a little teSt One day, he gave St John a very dry stick and asked him to plant it. What a strange requeSt.. why would you plant a stick? But St John didn’t question Abba Bemwa; he went and did what he was told without thinking of anything else. Not only did he plant the stick, but he would journey every day to a well to collect water, then journey back to the stick and water it! Can you guess how long he did this for? Not days, not weeks, not months but three years! His obedience pleased God very much because St John listened to Abba Bemwa for three years, despite his instruction not making much sense to us at all. God was so pleased with St John that one day St John went to water the stick when he found that it had sprouted leaves and even fruit! St John was so happy. He took some of the fruit and went to give it to Abba Bemwa, telling him that it was from the stick he planted three years ago. This pleased Abba Bemwa very much and he called the other monks and told them “come eat of the fruit of obedience.”

His spiritual father wanted to test him even more so one day he told him that he can’t live with him anymore and kicked him out. St John stayed outside the doors of the church for seven days, doing metanoias and praying saying “forgive me father for I have sinned.” On Sunday, his spiritual father saw him outside the church, and he saw angels putting seven crowns of light on St John’s head. He ran to St John and embraced him with love and joy.

May the prayers and blessing of obedience of this saint be with us always. Amen.

Application Comprehension Questions • Where was St John the Dwarf born? • At what age did he want to become a monk? • Who is the saint whom St John chose to be his spiritual father? • What was the test that Abba Bemwa put to St John the Dwarf to test his obedience? • Did God answer to the obedience of St John? After how long? • How can I practice obedience in my life? Open a discussion.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord Jesus, You Who humbled Yourself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the Cross, please plant Your obedience within our hearts. Let us be obedient so that we may please You always. Do not reject me because I am weak, for You alone are my refuge, and soften our hearts that we may live for the glory of Your name. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-2.tex) 115 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Third Sunday of August

The Seven & Four Praises of Kiahk The Intercessions of St Mary

Bible References: John 2

Book References: • HH Pope Shenouda, “Our Lady the Virgin Mary” • Fr Louka Sidarous, “Contemplations on St Mary’s Life” • Fr Bishoy Kamel, “Contemplations on Seven and Four”

Lesson Aim: The intercessions of St Mary to Jesus Christ.

Lesson Objectives: Know: How much God honours St Mary. Feel: That St Mary is our mother. Practice: Always praying for her intercessions.

Memory Verse: My soul gloriﬁes the Lord. (Luke 1:46)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-3.tex) 116 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Third Sunday of August

Lesson Content

1. Kids, do you know what the fifth commandment is? “Honour your father and mother so that your days on Earth may be long.” 2. Did Jesus follow this commandment during His life on Earth? Of course He did! 3. How did He? He was obedient to St Mary, who is His mother, and He answers the prayers we ask her to make on our behalf. This is why our beautiful church teaches us to pray through the intercessions of our mother St Mary, even before the intercessions of the angels or the heavenly hosts. “You, O Mary, are higher than the Cherubim and the Seraphim.” We call St Mary the Faithful Intercessor of the People. 4. Ok, so what does ‘intercession’ mean? Intercession means a strong advocate to God. So when we pray “Lord hear our prayers through the intercessions of our mother St Mary”, it’s like saying “Lord hear our prayers for the sake of our mother St Mary.” The intercessions of St Mary are very strong and are accepted by her Son, Jesus Christ. 5. Does anyone know a story in the Bible that explains St Mary’s intercessions? The miracle at the wedding of Cana (John 2). Jesus and St Mary were invited to a wedding. When the wine that was being served to the wedding guests finished, St Mary saw that the hosts of the wedding needed help. She simply told Jesus “they have no more wine” and before she even asked for His help, Jesus performed a miracle. He turned water into wine for all the guests. 6. How does the church venerate and honour St Mary? - Before the Creed, we say “we magnify you, O Mother of the True Light.” - We remember her in the third and sixth parts of every hour of the Agpeya prayers. - We observe a fast of St Mary (in August). - We chant a praise of St Mary in the Theotokia in every Tasbeha. In the Tasbeha there are three types of praises: Hos: This is a Coptic word that means ‘praise’ or ‘worship’. They are prayers of worship to God only and aren’t there for the purpose of asking for things. Theotokia: This word comes from the title, ‘Theotokos’, which means ‘birth-giver of God’. In the Theotokias , we praise St Mary for giving birth to Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word of God. Psali: This is a Greek word that means ‘hymn’. Psalis are full of poetry that worship God and praise the saints. This is how the church fulfills the verse “My soul glorifies the Lord.” These praises carry on from night into the early morning, ending with an early liturgy that worships God and honours His mother and mother of us all, the Holy Virgin St Mary.

Application Comprehension Questions • What does the word intercession mean? • Mention three stories from the Holy Bible that explain intercession? • On which level does the church put the intercession of the Virgin Mary? • How does the church venerate and honour Saint Mary? • Why do we call the Seven & Four Praises of Kiahk as such? • What are the meanings of Hos , Theotokia , and Psali ?

Exercise • Encourage the children to participate in the praise and veneration of the Virgin Saint Mary in the Seven & Four Tasbeha, and to note the parts of the Tasbeha that makes them joyful and touches them. Then ask the children to share the parts they liked during Kiahk month so as to encourage each other. • Ask the children to pray the third and last troparion of prayer of each hour in the Agpeya which venerates the Virgin Mary. • To participate in the veneration of our Lady St Mary.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-3.tex) 117 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Faith Third Sunday of August

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. You are more worthy than all the saints to ask on our behalf, O full of grace. You are exalted more than the patriarchs and honoured more than the prophets. For you are truly the pride of our race and the intercessor of our souls. Intercede for us, before our Savior, that He may keep us ﬁrm, in the upright faith. That He may grant us, the forgiveness of our sins, in order to win mercy, through your intercessions. You are our intercessor before your beloved son, and exceedingly honoured O virgin mother of Light. And you are our mother feeling each one of us who is sad or tired and ask for them even before they ask, we thank you our exceedingly mother. Ask your beloved son to forgive us our sins. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-3.tex) 118 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Community Fourth Sunday of August

Our Behaviour

Bible References: Luke 6:43-49, James 3:1-12

Lesson Aim: To learn that we must have consistent behaviour in our life. We must do good deeds that would tell that we are good Christians i.e. show and tell Christianity.

To learn that controlling the tongue requires our utmost attention for our own beneﬁt as well as others. If what we are going to say is not constructive, we do not have to say anything.

Memory Verse: “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good.” (Luke 6:45) “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless.” (James 1:26)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-4.tex) 119 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Community Fourth Sunday of August

Activities to Introduce the Lesson You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: • How can we tell if a Christian person is good or bad? • Describe some of the behaviour that a good Christian should have? • In your opinion, what is the easiest type of sin that a person can sometimes do without even noticing? • What should we do in order to stop our tongue from saying bad words?

Lesson Content Our Saviour Jesus Christ taught His Disciples His commandments as mentioned in Luke 6:20-42. Then He declared to them that it is not enough to listen to His commandments and teachings without applying them to their lives. He said “But why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord”, and do not do the things which I say.” (Luke 6:46)

Every one of us has spiritual practices: we come to church every Sunday, we pray every day in the morning, we pray every day at night before we sleep and we pray before every meal. Now the real test comes: • Our younger brother is really causing us a lot of problems because of his noise. Do we go out and slap him on the face? What shall we do? We should be patient with our younger ones. • We broke the window while we were playing with the ball in the backyard. Nobody saw us. Later on our mother came and saw the window. She was mad and asked who did that? What shall we do? Remember no one saw us. God looks and everything is clear in His sight. If we lie, it is a sin and we will be punished for it by God. So, the Bible is teaching us not to lie and in a situation like this we must not lie. We must tell the truth and apologise for what had happened. • At school, the student beside me is being silly. He is cutting my papers. Oh I am getting mad. Shall I slap him on the face? What shall I do? In the part of the Bible mentioned above: Luke 6:43-49, there are two examples:

(a) Tree • The good tree brings good fruits. • The ﬁg tree brings ﬁg, and so on. A Christian is like a tree. If the Christian is a good Christian, then his deeds must be good.

(b) Building What is firstly done to establish a building? The first thing is to dig deep and lay the foundation. When the wind or the flood comes, it cannot break that house. Similarly, if we build our life on the foundation of faith in the Saviour Jesus Christ, then, when the devil comes along to destroy our life, he cannot because we are with our Father in heaven.

A good example of the people who did not have a consistent life, i.e., the inside is the same as the outside, were the Pharisees and lawyers. Our Lord Jesus said to them, “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.” (Luke 11:39) Then the Lord said, “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.” (Luke 11:42)

Start by reading the Bible from James 3:1-12 and then verse 2 explaining what it says about the tongue.

Our Lord Jesus said, “Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” (Matthew 15:1 1) Therefore, saying any bad words, not only it is a sin, but it also defiles us.

We must train ourselves to control our tongue. St James emphasises that a religious person without controlling his tongue is nothing.

The people who wrote the Bible used to dedicate one pen to write the word “God”. This pen is used exclusively to write the word “God”. In the same way, the tongue that is used to take communion and praise the Lord should not be used to say bad words.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-4.tex) 120 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Community Fourth Sunday of August

It is not easy to control the tongue. We have to give it so much attention. St James said, “No human being can tame the tongue.” We must observe what we say. If we do not know what to say, we should be silent.

When we speak in a kind manner to other people, our words normally have good eﬀect on them. Actually it pays to be kind. Please tell the story of Jacob and Esau and read here the good words that Jacob said to his brother Esau and the eﬀect they had (Genesis 33:1-20). Jacob said to Esau about his children, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” (Genesis 33:5)

St Paul wrote to his disciple Timothy saying “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)

Whatever is expressed by the tongue reﬂects what is in the heart. Our Saviour Jesus Christ said. “Beware of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.” (Matthew 12:34-35)

A small sin by the tongue can be a serious thing. It can be the start of a bad road that leads to losing eternal life. A story to illustrate that a small thing can lead to a serious problem: A man passed away; one of his friends came to his funeral and asked one of the relatives “was the dead man sick?” The relative answered, “He only had a cold,” This example showed that a man died without being seriously ill; he only had a cold. Also, a man can lose eternal life just by neglecting to control his tongue and getting used to say some bad words.

Exercise What do we learn from this lesson?

• We must be consistent in our life. If we truly love our Saviour Jesus Christ and we have various spiritual practices, we must then behave well at home and at school. • When we read the Holy Bible or listen to a Sunday school lesson we must apply what we learn in our daily life. Even the Lord Jesus did what He taught. • We must remember in our prayers to seek the Lord’s help in purifying our hearts and our tongues. We must also try our best to control our tongues. We have to make sure that we only say constructive things. • We must think ﬁrst before we talk. We must listen to others and give them enough chance to express their opinion without interrupting them.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (08-4.tex) 121 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity First Sunday of September

Heaven is my Crown Abanoub the Martyr

Book References: • Synaxarion of 24 Abib

Lesson Aim: The teach the children that it is our good behaviour which distinguishes us.

Lesson Objectives: Know: Saint Abanoub’s story and the strength of his faith. Feel: The love of eternal life and the have the desire to gain it. Practice: Asking for the intercession of Saint Abanoub and adhere to good deeds and refuse bad ones.

Memory Verse: “...having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” (Philippians 1:23 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (09-1.tex) 122 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity First Sunday of September

Lesson Content The word Abanoub means “father of gold”. Saint Abanoub was born in a village called Nahisa in the 4th century (about 1700 years ago). His parents, Makarah and Mariam, loved God so much.

The child Abanoub often looked at the sky, and would ask his parents: “what is beyond these clouds and blue sky ... outer space, planets and stars, and then what?” They would reply: “The Paradise of Joy in which live the souls of the righteous after death, and after that the Heavenly Kingdom in which God dwells, and where the righteous, saints and martyrs will dwell after Judgement Day. This is the place that all humankind desires; there they will dwell in endless joy with God and His angels and saints.”

When Saint Abanoub was 12 years old, his parents died. He was very upset because of their departure, but he knew that they were in the bosom of the Lord Jesus, and wished that he could join them. One day, the child Abanoub entered the doors of the church during one of the feasts and heard the priest encouraging the congregation to endure persecution, saying: the earthly struggles and persecution take us to a very high place in the heavenly kingdom and when we tolerate persecution we become illuminated in the sky as the sun where “the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” (Matthew 13:43). The greatest place in heaven will be that belonging to the martyrs who shed their blood for the sake of Christ. That’s why Saint Paul the apostle says: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)

Abanoub went to pray to the Lord that He may grant him the crown of martyrdom. He went to a city called Samanoud and found several churches that had been destroyed by the Romans, and people there were scorning Christians. Abanoub prayed for the Lord to support him, so Archangel Michael appeared to him saying: “God will take care of you personally, and He will always be with you and strengthen you in the tortures, and heal you from all tortures.” So Abanoub was very happy that he’ll be granted the crown of martyrdom.

Abanoub went to the Roman governor in Samannoud who offered Abanoub many promises (toys, food, gold, money and a palace...) So Abanoub surprised him saying that whatever the ruler offered him, he would never deny Christ. So, the governor was very angry and ordered for him to be beaten on his stomach, but Archangel Michael came and healed him, so he was filled with joy and became encouraged.

Abanoub was sent to prison and found there Christian prisoners, so he started to encourage and comfort them, and they became happy when they found the strong faith of that young boy, who gave them more power to withstand tortures. Afterwards, Saint Abanoub prayed with them and told them that they will be rewarded greatly in the Kingdom of Heaven and they will live in endless joy in the bosom of the Lord Jesus Christ, where there will be no fear, torture, worries, sadness, hunger, but joy and peace amidst the saints and angels.

The following day, the Roman governor slayed 1000 Christian prisoners, and the angels descended from heaven carrying illuminated crowns to place on the heads of the Christian martyrs and carry them up to heaven in great glory.

The Roman governor summoned Abanoub and tied his feet to the mast of a ship heading to a city called Atrib, where the governor said sarcastically, “let’s see whether Jesus will come and save him.”

Abanoub cried “O my God” so the governor became paralysed and the cup dropped from his hand, and the guards became blind and the boat was illuminated by the light of Archangel Michael who came to save Abanoub. So, the Roman governor asked Abanoub to pray for him to be cured, but Abanoub told him that he will be healed when he reached Atrib, so all the guards who were on the boat believed in the Lord Jesus.

The ruler of Atrib tortured Abanoub, but the Lord Jesus appeared to him, as did Archangels Michael and Gabriel, and the Lord cured him from all his pains. Throughout all this, Abanoub became stronger, and many people believed in the Lord Jesus.

The ruler started to see that the number of Christians were increasing because of Abanoub, so he ordered for Abanoub to be sent to Alexandria bound in chains. Abanoub encountered a woman in Alexandria who was possessed with an evil spirit and he prayed for her and the evil spirit left her, and she believed in the Lord Jesus. One of the guards was annoyed by this, so he killed her and she was granted the crown of martyrdom.

Armanios, the governor of Alexandria, ordered Abanoub to be thrown into a pit ﬁlled with hungry snakes, but the Lord Jesus sent him Archangel Michael to save him. The boy Abanoub came out clutching a few serpents, and one

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (09-1.tex) 123 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity First Sunday of September of them wrapped itself around the neck of Aramanios. So, Abanoub prayed for him and the ruler was saved, causing so many people to believe because of this miracle.

The governor ordered for Abanoub to be beheaded, so he received the crown of martyrdom and deserved to sit with the Lord Jesus with the saints and righteous.

The church celebrates his day of martyrdom on 24th Abib, which falls on 31st July.

Application Comprehension Questions • What did Saint Abanoub hear which made him think about martydom? • Before how many governors did Saint Abanoub confess the Lord Jesus? • How old was Saint Abanoub? • Which angel appeared to Saint Abanoub more than once and healed him? • What is the secret behind Saint Abanoub’s strong attachment to Christ, his faith, and his fearlessness of the governors?

Exercise To adhere to good deeds, like not hitting or cursing at school or with his friends regardless of the situation, because by doing good, it shows his willpower to behave like children of God and have strong belief in our Lord Jesus.

Pray that God provides strong faith like that of Saint Abanoub.

Ask for the intercession of Saint Abanoub in prayer.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord and beloved Jesus, I ask You to help me to adhere to my faith and to behaviour which pleases You even if the devil tries to make me misbehave. Help me, God, to overcome him so I can enjoy being with You and be joyful with You in eternal life. Amen.

Evaluation

Did the children get the aim of the lesson?

Objective Can the children... Notes

Know • Saint Abanoub’s story and his strong faith.

Feel • To love eternal life and have a desire to be in Heaven.

• Ask for the intercession of Saint Abanoub. Practice • Adhere to good deeds and refuse the bad ones.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (09-1.tex) 124 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts Second Sunday of September

The Feast of the Cross

Lesson Aim: To learn that the Cross is a subject of glory to the Christians. We must look at the Cross and meditate on the love of God for us.

Memory Verse: “But God forbid that I should have glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been cruciﬁed to me and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (09-2.tex) 125 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Feasts Second Sunday of September

Background Information for the Servant The Apparition of the Cross in the Sky Occasions where the Cross has appeared in the sky: • The ﬁrst time it appeared in the sky was to the Emperor Constantine The Great to assure him of victory in the prospective war. He and his oﬃcers saw it like a pillar of light in the sky surrounded by the following words: “With it (the Cross) you will conquer.” • The second time the Cross appeared in the sky was to Julius Caesar on the doors of the city of Antioch. It appeared in the East like a pillar of light which startled all those who saw it. • The third time, the Cross appeared to all the people of Jerusalem. This happened in the Holy Fifty days after the Feast of the Resurrection, to be exact, on 8th May 351AD at about 3 pm (1 pm UK time). A big Cross appeared in the sky on Golgotha stretching to Mount Olive. It was very clear and was seen not only by one or two, but by all the people of the city. It remained for many hours shining brighter than the rays of the sun. All the people of the city came out to see the apparition. They were astounded, and scared, but with great joy they witnessed that heavenly scene. Old and young, men and women of all ages, Christians and non-Christians from all places, praised Jesus Christ, our Lord.

The Feast of the Cross On the feast of the Cross, we recognise the discovery of the glorious Cross of Jesus Christ our Lord. When the Jews noticed the very large number of miracles done by Jesus, they got angry and asked everyone in the Jewish country to collect all the dirt and the rubbish and put it at the top of the Cross. The Jewish people continued to do so for over 200 years until a very large pile of dirt was formed. Saint Helena, the mother of King Constantine, went to Jerusalem and asked about the location of the Cross. Nobody told her, until she met an old man who told her that the Cross is underneath the pile of dirt. She dug out the Holy Cross of Jesus Christ from beneath this dirt. She built a church for it, consecrated it and celebrated for the Honorable Cross. Christians make pilgrimages to that place every year as they do on the feast of the Resurrection. St Helena did this because she loved the Cross since it appeared to her when she was with King Constantine before he went to war and was victorious.

On the 17th of Tout (around the 28th of September) is the commemoration of the consecration of the Church of the Holy Cross, which is built by the empress Helena, the mother of Constantine.

On the 10th of Paremhat (around the 19th of March) is also the Commemoration of the discovery of the Holy Cross by Empress St Helen, and then again by Emperor Heraclius (after the base of the Holy Cross had been stolen).

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Story The Power of the Cross Once, there was a butcher, who was chopping meat for his customers, when a dog came up to him to try to steal a piece of meat. He sat patiently, and when the butcher turned around brieﬂy, the dog snatched a piece of meat with his mouth. When the butcher noticed it, he raised up the meat cleaver he was holding in his hand, causing the dog to become scared, drop the meat and run away.

The following day, the dog returned, and when the butcher saw him, he simply raised up the meat cleaver again and the dog ran away before even thinking about stealing any meat.

This story illustrates the power of the Cross in our lives, that whenever we make the sign of the Cross, the devil ﬂees from us, even before he is able to snatch us away from our Lord Jesus.

Comprehension Questions • What does the Cross remind us of? • Why do we make the sign of the Cross?

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Lesson Content

The feast of the Cross is 16 days after the Nayrouz Feast. Our church celebrates the feast of the Cross twice: ﬁrst feast is on 16th Tout (Tout is the ﬁrst month of the Coptic Year) and on 10th Baramhat (Baramhat is the seventh month of the Coptic Year).

In the first feast, we celebrate the finding of the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by Saint Helena the mother of Emperor Constantine the great. This happened in the year 326 AD. When the people could not recognise the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ from the three crosses that they found, they put each of them on a dead person and only with the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ did the dead person rise from the dead. (Please tell the details of finding the Cross of the Saviour using the background material to the servant.)

In the second feast on 10th Baramhat, we celebrate the second ﬁnding of the Cross in the year 628 AD by Emperor Heracles which happened as follows:

When Queen Helena found the Cross in the year 326 AD, she built a very nice church in Jerusalem and kept the Cross inside it. When the Persian army was defeated by Emperor Heracles and while they were passing by Jerusalem, a Persian king saw a very luminous light coming out from a piece of wood inside the church. The king stretched his hand to touch the Cross and a ﬁre came out of it and burnt his ﬁngers.

The Christians in the army informed him that only Christians can touch the Cross. He found two Christians (who were not actually true Christians) and gave them a lot of money and asked them to carry the Cross to his homeland and they did so. Then, King Heracles heard of what happened and sent a big army to the Persian country and defeated them and went around searching for the Cross because the King of Persia had buried the Cross in his garden. Then with the help of God he was able to ﬁnd the Cross. He took it to the city of Constantinople and built a church on top of it.

The Cross is a sign of glory for Christians (because salvation happened through the Cross). Therefore, Christianity without the Cross is not Christianity at all. St Paul, as we can see in the memory verse, would like to emphasise that the only glory of his life is the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the Cross our Lord Jesus paid the price for our salvation. The price was His precious Blood. Since then we became entitled to become children of God. This means that we have to focus on the Lord Jesus and His love towards us and not on loving the world.

On the Cross, our Lord Jesus proved His love for us. When we carry the cross with us we remember the power of the Cross in our life and what our Saviour did for us. Let us have a cross (or more than one) hung on the walls in our homes.

The sign of the cross is a sign of victory over Satan and death. This is the reason that we put the sign of the Cross on us during the day several times (explain more about this).

Application Exercise We gain great peace every time we look at the cross.

Every time I look at the cross, I remember that Jesus died on my behalf so that I can live and have a share in eternal life. He died not only for me but for all who believe in the name of Jesus Christ, Son of God.

Let us make the sign of the cross on ourselves several times during the day.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (09-2.tex) 127 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Weeks 3-4 of September: Two weeks kept free for Coptic Festival revision and exam. My Eternity First Sunday of Filler Lessons

The Archangels Michael and Gabriel

Bible References: Joshua 5:13-15, Luke 1, Matthew 28:1-10

Lesson Aim: To learn something about the angels and speciﬁcally about Archangel Michael and Archangel Gabriel. We must think about God, heaven and the Angels in our daily life.

Memory Verse: “Are they (the angels) not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14 )

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-1.tex) 129 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity First Sunday of Filler Lessons

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion • Can we ask the angels for their intercession just like we do with the saints? • From the Holy Bible, what are some of the things that God asked the Angels to do?

Lesson Content General Overview of Angels • They are spirits - see the memory verse. • They are in heaven around God. When needed, God sends them to serve us. • God is the only One whose knowledge is unlimited. Even Angels’ knowledge is limited. The angels are free to do what they like to do. The devil was an angel, but he decided not to obey God anymore and wanted to be more powerful than God. The devil said in his heart “I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of congregation the farthest sides of the north.” (Isaiah 14:13). God rejected him and he fell from heaven. (Isaiah 14:12-15) • The angels of God are holy. “When the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the Holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” (Matthew 25:31)

Archangels There are seven archangels. Their names are Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Suriel, Sadakiel, Sarathiel and Ananiel. (Let the children memorise their names and give prizes.) Each one has his host of angels and they do services as God deems ﬁt.

The church is called “the house of God”. She is also called “the house of the angels”.

The angels seek on our behalf (or intercede on our behalf) to God if we ask for their intercession. “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar, and he was given much incense, that he should oﬀer it with the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the Saints ascended before God from the angel’s hand.” (Revelation 8:3-4)

Angels bring pleasant news to good people but the reverse to bad. In other words, angels can be frightening to bad people. An example of this is the Archangel Michael when he brought the good news of the Lord Jesus’ resurrection. “And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men, but the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was cruciﬁed. He is not here; for He is risen.” (Matthew 28:2-6)

Archangel Michael Archangel Michael, the head of the heavenly powers, is the ﬁrst Archangel. He serves in front of the Lord. God sends us His mercies with the intercession of Michael because he is near to God entreating on our behalf.

He was the angel to announce the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Matthew 28:1-4)

He was the angel who helped Joshua in his war (Joshua 5:3-15). Please tell the story in detail.

Archangel Gabriel He was the angel who came to Zacharias to tell him about the birth of John the Baptist.

He was the angel who came six months after the news to Zacharias and told St Mary about the birth of the Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-1.tex) 130 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Eternity First Sunday of Filler Lessons

Application Exercise Every one of us has his/her guardian angel who serve him/her. But we have to listen to God so that the guardian angel (who is a servant of God) does not get mad, but always protects us. At the end of our prayers, let us remember to seek, on our behalf, the intercessions of the Virgin Mary and Archangels Michael and Gabriel; and the prayers of the Saints like St Mark, St George and St Mina.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-1.tex) 131 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of Filler Lessons

Jesus Authority to Raise the Dead Raising Jairus’ Daughter

Bible References: Matthew 9:18-26, Mark 5:21-43, Luke 8:40-56

Lesson Aim: To know that Christ is my God.

Lesson Objectives: Know: That Christ has authority to raise the dead. Feel: Sympathetic to others. Practice: Sharing with others our feelings of sadness and joy.

Memory Verse: “I will not let you go unless You bless me.” (Genesis 32:26)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-2.tex) 132 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of Filler Lessons

Background Information for the Servant The Deﬁnition of a Miracle A miracle is a Divine event that overcomes nature for a speciﬁc purpose. A miracle is extraordinary and above human capability.

Conditions for a Miracle • Holiness and humility of the one performing the miracle: Whoever says openly that s/he is performing a miracle is evil and sinful. • Purity of the method: The miracle should rely on God’s power and not on any magic or satanic methods. • The soundness of the goal: If it causes confusion or distraction then it is not from God. If something is done by cunningness or deception, it is outside the sphere of miracles.

Characteristics of Miracles that the Lord Jesus Performed • They were simple, and done with either a word or by touch. • They glorified God. • They declared God’s love in the midst of human suffering. • They fulfilled Old Testament prophesies about the coming times of salvation in which God would heal the people, both physically and spiritually. • They proved God’s power to save us. The pharisees attributed this power to the devil, but to those who witnessed and saw these miracles with their own eyes, the miraculous works completed and continued His promises and confirmed their faith in Him. Christ also gave the disciples and the church fathers the ability to perform miracles with His power.

The miracle of raising the daughter of Jairus was linked to the miracle of healing the woman with the ﬂow of blood (Luke 8:40-56). Jairus, who was a ruler in the synagogue of Capernaum, knelt before Jesus and begged Him to come to his home as his daughter was dying.

While Jairus showed faith in Jesus’ power by asking Him to come to his home to heal his daughter, the Gentile centurion showed even more faith by not asking God to come to his home or touch his servant, but to just “say a word”. Truly, people will come from east and west with more faith than children of the kingdom (the Jews).

On the way, before Jairus heard that his daughter had died (Luke 8:49), the Lord healed the woman with a ﬂow of blood, so that may see God’s power with his own eyes so that he may not doubt.

The name Jairus means ‘God enlightens’. Jairus symbolises the law and his daughter symbolises the Jewish nation that was sick and about to die. Therefore, the daughter cannot rise from this death unless she is enlightened, and the law guide her, not by the letter which leads to death, but by the spirit which leads to life.

Jairus, as ruler of a synagogue, went by himself to the Lord Jesus, the act of which is considered against his religion, for a faithful Jewish person shouldn’t deal with Him. But he went to be under the feet of a teacher asking for His help. Thus, Jairus got the blessing of our Lord visiting his home with three of the disciples. It is as if his house became a holy temple in which the Lord of heaven Himself dwelt.

The Lord Jesus did not enter with a crowd the room in which Jairus’ daughter lay, because He wanted to show that the power of the resurrection is not for anyone but only for those who look for it and desire it. Also, the miracle was not for show, but to prove to those following Him and are discipled by Him Christ’s ability to raise even the dead.

When Jesus reached Jairus’ home, He found people mourning because she had died. Amidst this sad scene He said: “Do not weep; she is not dead but sleeping.” In the eyes of the people she was dead, but in the eyes of Christ she was merely sleeping, for He was able ‘wake her’ at any the time He wished.

The Lord Jesus held the daughter’s hand and raised her. As St Ambrose prays: “God, please hold my hand and feed me with Your word.”

The gospels describe three miracles of raising the dead which illustrate His Divine work in raising us from the death of sin:

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-2.tex) 133 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of Filler Lessons

1. Jairus daughter was raised while still in her father’s house, which symbolises sin through invisible inner thoughts. This kind of sin needs only a touch from our Lord. 2. The son of the widow of Nain was raised while in a coﬃn, which is a further degree of sin in action. In this instance, the Lord needed to stop the funeral to order the young man to rise. This is a symbol of God’s interference to stop the movement of the sinner towards the grave of sin, so that his sin does not become a habit. Christ presenting the young man to his mother represents the return of the sinner to the bosom of the church. 3. Lazarus had been dead for four days and had started to decay. This symbolises one who is in the depth of sin, and his/her attachment to it. In this instance, the Lord removed the rock from the tomb and ordered Lazarus to come out asking people to loosen him from the strips of linen with which he was wrapped. From these three miracles, we can notice that the Lord is able to raise us from any degree of death (sin). Notice that in all three miracles, the people who were raised were said to be ‘sleeping’. This is because death in the body is only a sleep; a journey to eternity. True death is separation from God.

Returning to the miracle of the raising of the daughter of Jairus, Jesus asked them to feed her as proof that she is alive again.

The Real Miracle The real miracle is that God came down from heaven and took ﬂesh, and we saw His glory. He died for us, and resurrected again, and agreed to dwell in my poor heart. Some Church Fathers talked about the real miracle which can take place in one’s soul by repentance. For example, it was mentioned in the book “Paradise of the Fathers” that some monks came asking St Pachomious: “Tell us father, what can we do to gain the ability to perform miracles?” He answered them, smiling: “If you want to seek something, seek spirituality from above. Don’t ask for the ability to perform miracles as it is tinged with pride, but rather seek to gain the ability to perform spiritual miracles. If you ﬁnd someone worshipping an idol and light the way for him to know God, you raise one from the dead. If you cause a heretic to return to the right faith, you open the eyes of a blind person. If you help a greedy person become generous, you heal a paralysed hand. If you cause a lazy person to become active, you provide healing to a paralytic. And if you change an angry person to a pleasant and humble person, you cast out devils. Is there anything better that this one could gain?!

A Prayer I will not look for miracles, but I will ask for one miracle: Your presence in my life. I want You more than miracles. The real miracle to me is your word in the Holy Bible, receiving Holy Communion, the work of the Holy Spirit in my life and in the souls of the people for which you gave me responsibility. It is enough for me to hear Your gentle voice “My grace is suﬃcient for you.”

Lesson Content

Our Lord Jesus was at the sea and a lot of people gathered around Him to hear Him teaching, as was usual every day. While they were sitting, a man called Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue, came to Jesus. He fell at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his house to heal his daughter because she was so ill and was going to die. So, He agreed and went with Jairus to his house, and there was a lot of people around Him.

When the Lord Jesus was on the way to the house of Jairus, one of Jairus’ servants came to Jairus and told him: “Don’t bother Jesus anymore; your daughter is dead.” Jairus became so sad for his daughter. But the Lord Jesus said to him: “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”

He took with Him Peter, James and John and ﬁnally they reached the house of Jairus, and when they arrived, they saw the people weeping and mourning. So, Jesus said: “Why are you weeping?” and started to calm the people, telling them not to be upset and not to weep, “the girl did is not dead; she is sleeping.” So the people laughed at what the Lord Jesus said and they didn’t believe Him. But the Lord Jesus took the girl’s father and mother, as well as Peter, James and John, and entered the room where Jairus’ daughter lay. Then He held her hand and said: “Little girl, arise.” Then she arose immediately, and the people became very happy and couldn’t believe what had happened.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-2.tex) 134 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Second Sunday of Filler Lessons

Application Comprehension Questions • What was the Lord Jesus doing in the midst of the people? • When our Lord Jesus was sitting with the people, who came to Him and what did he ask Him? • Did the Lord Jesus accept Jairus’ request? • How many entered with the Lord Jesus to the room where the girl was? • What did our Lord Jesus Christ say to Jairus when the servant told him that his daughter had died? • What was the reaction of the people when the Lord Jesus raised the girl from the dead?

Exercise • To trust the ability of God in everything, for nothing is diﬃcult for Him. • Share with others in their emotions, whether it be joyfulness or sadness. • Pray for others, whether it be because of sadness, disease, sickness or a certain problem (a particular point may be ﬁxed for prayer for the coming week)

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. Thank You, my Lord, God and Saviour, Jesus Christ for your love for us. Thank You for Your power and authority over everything You created, even raising the dead. Thank You Lord for You are strong and You always and support and help Your children everywhere and by every means. I ask You my Lord to help me to believe in Your strength and to always ask for Your help in any diﬃcult situation. Help me and my friends to learn from You, Lord, as You help us and support us in diﬃcult times. Amen.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-2.tex) 135 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church Third Sunday of Filler Lessons

The Holy Bread El-Qorban

Lesson Aim: To learn the special way and the features of making the Holy Bread (El-Qorban) in our Coptic Orthodox Church.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-3.tex) 136 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London My Church Third Sunday of Filler Lessons

Activities to Introduce the Lesson

You can use one of the following ways to introduce the lesson:

Discussion Opening Questions: 1. There are many symbols that we see on the Qorbana, what are these symbols? (A Qorbana can be used for demonstration). 2. Can anyone make the Qorbana or does it have to be a special person?

Lesson Content

A deacon or Abouna (or at least someone who is serving God) makes El-Qorban. This means not anyone can participate in making Qorban.

Whenever we come to attend the liturgy at church, and even when we do not partake of the Holy Communion, we take a “Qorbana” from Abouna. The Qorbana is not made like regular bread. It is made in a special way and has special features. Let us discuss them now.

Have you ever seen the deacons making “Qorban”? While it is being made, the Psalms are read because the Psalms have prophecies about the Lord Jesus Christ and His suffering for our salvation. No salt is added to the dough like any other dough. Why? Because salt is added to regular food to give it a nice flavor; however, the Lord Jesus, Who is represented by the “Qorbana”, does not need flavor because He is the salt of the world. Yeast is added to the dough because yeast is a symbol of sin, and our Saviour carried our sins in His Body.

Why is the “Qorbana” round and not rectangle or triangle in shape? Because it refers to Jesus who is the Sun of Righteousness and the sun is, of course, round. The other reason is that the round shape has neither beginning nor end; it refers to God because God has no beginning or end.

What do you see in the centre of the “Qorbana”? You see a big Cross, representing the Cross of our Lord Jesus surrounded by twelve small crosses who represent the twelve Disciples, and these in turn represent the whole church. You notice some Coptic writings around it. What do they say? They say Holy God, Holy Almighty, Holy Immortal.

If you look carefully at the “Qorbana”, you notice that there are five holes. These are a symbol of the sufferings of Jesus. Three of them are a symbol of the three nails in Jesus’ hands and feet. The fourth hole is a symbol of the spear with which Jesus’ side was wounded. The fifth hole is a symbol of the crown of thorns put upon Jesus’ head.

Next time you eat a “Qorbana” in the church, look at these features and try to remember the meaning of each of them. Remember that everything on the “Qorbana” is not done haphazardly, but has a special purpose and meaning.

One of these Qorban is selected by Abouna at the beginning of the service for the Oﬀering.

There are lots of symbols in our church. The purpose of these symbols is to remind us of the implied meaning because we tend to forget.

Ask every student to draw El-Qorban and memorise the meaning of the symbols on it. Give prizes to the children who could memorise.

Application Exercise What do we learn from this lesson? • There are several spiritual lessons and blessings for us when we look at or eat El-Qorban. We remember our Beloved Jesus Who suﬀered and died on the Cross for our salvation. We remember the twelve Apostles who, by the support and guidance of the Holy Spirit, carried the Christian faith to the whole world. • When we eat a piece of Qorbana it is a blessing for us because it has crosses on it, it has the name of God on it and the people who prepared it prayed the Psalms on it. • When we partake of the Holy Communion, we eat the true Body and drink the pure Blood of our Lord Jesus. Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-3.tex) 137 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Fourth Sunday of Filler

An Introduction to the Book of Genesis Abraham

Bible References: The Book of Genesis

Lesson Aim: To learn about faith and obedience in the life of Abraham.

Lesson Objectives: Know: General overview of the book of Genesis and Abraham’s personality. Feel: Obedience is an expression of one’s love for God. Practice: Obeying God’s commandments in the Holy Bible.

Memory Verse: “Even as Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (Galatians 3:6)

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-4.tex) 138 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London Bible Fourth Sunday of Filler

Lesson Content The book of Genesis tells us about the beginning of everything created by the Lord God, who has no beginning. The book was written by Moses the Prophet by the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Main events: 1. God created heaven and earth and everything therein. (ch 1-2) 2. The fall of Adam and Eve as a result of their disobedience. (ch 3) 3. The life of Adam and his children on earth. (ch 5) 4. Noah obeys God and builds an ark and is saved from the flood (ch 6-11) 5. Abraham descends from the lineage of Shem, the son of Noah. He obeys God and leaves his land and family. (ch 12-14) 6. Abraham waits on God’s promise for Sarah to conceive, and the birth of Ishmael. (ch 15-18) 7. The birth of Isaac and the fulfilment of God’s promise. (ch 19-21) 8. Abraham’s obedience and his offering of Isaac as a sacrifice, and God providing an animal sacrifice instead. (ch 22) 9. Sarah’s death and Isaac’s marriage to Rebecca and then Abraham’s death. (ch 23-25) 10. The birth of Jacob and Esau, and Esau sells of his birth right. Jacob steals the blessing and escapes from his brother and goes to his Uncle Laban. (ch 25-28) 11. Jacob’s marriage to Lea and then Rachel, and his 12 children. 12. The selling of Joseph, his imprisonment in Egypt, becoming ruler over all of Egypt, arrival of his brothers and his father, and their dwelling in the Egypt.

Application Comprehension Questions • Who wrote the book of Genesis? • How did Noah survive the ﬂood? • Of which of Noah’s sons is Abraham grandson? • Who was the son that God had promised Abraham? • What was the most diﬃcult thing in which Abraham obeyed God?

Exercise • Obey God in a speciﬁc commandment, for example, not using bad words or inappropriate expressions.

Prayer Meditate on the following prayer, live it, and pray it at the level of the children. My Lord Jesus Christ, as Abraham the forefather loved you and obeyed you, please help me to listen to you and do by all your commandments and your word in the Bible. Amen.

Evaluation Did the children get the aim of the lesson?

Objective Can the children... Notes

• Who wrote the book of Genesis? • How did Noah survive the ﬂood? Know • Of which of Noah’s sons is Abraham grandson? • Who was the son that God had promised Abraham? • Which was the most diﬃcult thing in which Abraham obeyed God? • Act the joy of Abraham upon the birth of Isaac. Feel • Draw how Abraham looked like when he left his land. • Not speaking in an inappropriate manner. Practice • Arranging with friends under your supervision to read together one of the books from the Holy Bible.

Yr3 Sunday School Syllabus (F-4.tex) 139 Coptic Orthodox Diocese of London