Book Translated and Produced By Archangel Michael and St Bishoy Coptic Orthodox Church, Sydney Australia With the Blessings of His Grace Bishop Daniel, Bishop of the Diocese of Sydney and Afiliated Regions. For more information please contact Tasony Sara, St Marks Festival Cup [email protected] Application Book Year 1 and Year 2 APPLICATION FORM Name Church Diocese Phone Servant Name ACTIVITY FORM Name Church Diocese Phone Servant Name Sport Activity All Stages Studies & Scouts: Special Needs Competition: HG Bishop Research Moussa Competition: H E Metropolitan Bakhomios HG Bishop Macarios HG BishopPaula Rafael Church HG Bishop HG BishopBettors and Coptic Tunes HymnsLanguage Competition : competition: HG Daoud HG Bishop Tawadros Primary and Infant studies Under the Guidance of his Holiness Pope Shenouda III Visual & HG Bishop Daniel Performing Arts Abram Abram Competition: HG Bishop Bishop HG HG Bishop HG Bishop Armia Bimen competition: HG Bishop Morcos HG Bishop Cultural and sports sports and Cultural Martyros Activities: Church & Ecclesiastical competition: IT & Electronics Electronics & IT Media and Engineering Introduction competition: The Central Committee Introduction We thank God for the eagerness of our children in joining us in the St Mark Festival Cup. This is due to God’s grace and the encouragement and support from H.H. Pope Shenouda the third, who especially rejoices with children’s services, in that it is the church of the future, “The church of the day after tomorrow”. Also on the keen supervision from fellow bishops, each within his diocese and the blessed church fathers and servants in all their services. The competition this year educates our children in spiritual, ecclesiastical and familial faithfulness, faithfulness in investing their gifts and success in relationships. This is evident in the children’s and the servant’s books utilising suitable stories, inventive teaching methods and practical applications. Through the supervision of His Grace Bishop Tawadrous and the committees preparing for this stage. May the Lord bless the works in his church with the prayers of our beloved father, Pope Shenouda the third. God’s grace be with us all. Anba Moussa General Bishop Children’s Vision The Children’s Committee of the Festival Cup in the youth bish- opric presented its latest services in the competition, the ‘Chil- dren’s Vision’. Through presentation of artistic events at the 2009 Festival Cup for different childhood stages by staging puppet shows illustrating five stories for each stage. 1. A story of love - on God’s love to us through the annunciation, nativity, salvation and resurrection. 2. A story of prayer - Our Father, Holy, Holy, Holy, Introduction to The Creed and The Creed. 3. A story of invention - T.V., Computer, Internet, Mobile phone. 4. A story of service - The services of the sick, the widows, the orphans and the elderly. 5. A story of success - Nehemiah, Archdeacon Habib Girgis, Ibrahim El-Gouhary and St Shora the child. This event was attended by almost 20,000 children from Cairo and Giza, over several performances, approximately 1000 child attended every session three times a day over six days. Also in the hall at the St Rewis Cathedral, three daily sessions in the form of various stage productions such as puppet shows, black stage presentations, plays and screening television productions were presented in a way that made the children overjoyed as they had participated in all the performances with the servants. This service was fulfilled by many groups of servants from vary- ing places in Egypt. We ask for your prayers that the Lord may help us in repeat- ing this vision once more with stories for every childhood stage through more amazing stage productions. A Word For The First Form of Faithfulness Your Ear 1. It is not just necessary to explain what “Faithfulness” is as such, but to memorise and under- stand it gradually through repetition from the stories so as to grasp its meaning. 2. The word ‘Molly’ is taken from the word moly, which means ‘candle’ in the Coptic language. 3. It is possible to explain to the children what a lantern is. It is a means of providing light at night, which was used at the time of our grandfathers. It resembles the oil lanterns used in church today, full of oil and placed in front of icons of saints. Faithfulness of My Heart 1. The aim of this chapter is to have them pray on their own. We try and train the child to con- tinually pray for the sake of others in different places and situations that the child might be in, for instance: • The House – For my brothers and sisters, father, mother and all members of my family • Church: Pope, bishop, the priest of my church, the servants of my church, my friends and colleagues in church • My School: The teachers, students and cleaner • Outside: My neighbours and garbage man. 2. Beware not to promote to the child that what they pray for will happen. Rather concentrate on their prayer being from their hearts in all faithfulness. Therefore, God will certainly listen to his/her prayers and that is more important. Also stress on the necessity to continue praying and pleading to God. 3. The story of St Peter and the prayer of the congregation for his sake (Acts 1:12-17). - Also mention the first church (The Upper Room) - Herod Agripas, try to point out that he is a different Herod from the one we know in the days of our Lord Jesus. - James – brother of John son of Zebedee, who was the first disciple to be martyred. - Guarded with four rows of four guards – illustrate to the child how fearful King Herod was of St Peter. This shows the importance of St Peter and the worry of King Herod. - Explain how St Peter after being thrown in jail, went into a deep sleep and didn’t awake until an angel poked his side (shows the inner peace and complete confidence in God, of the great St Peter). The term diligently needs to be explained and illustrated to the child, as in it is continuous fervent prayer that comes from the heart. 4. Activity in Childrens Book: Organise a weekly program for the school holidays whereby you and the children you serve, pray everyday each week for a certain character from the stickers in their Festival Cup book. The child writes the date and marks if he/she has prayed for that character. The child with the most marks is given a prize. 1 Prayer From Practical Application: Prepare four candles of varying lengths A Young Age and light them in front of 1 the children. Each candle defines a group of people. The first (longest) candle resembles the person who has been praying to the Lord Jesus since their childhood. So he has had plenty of time enjoying living with the Lord Jesus. The last (shortest) candle resembles someone of old age who remembered to pray to God at the end of their life, when they haven’t had as much time to enjoy life with the Lord as a child would ultimately enjoy it. And so on with the other candles. Image of candles with different lengths Youth Child Elder Mature Pope Shenouda requests from us as servants: “I want from every servant to ask him/herself three things”- FOR THE 1. The spirituality of his/her children in the service. SERVANTS 2. The spirituality of his/her own life. 3. The spirituality of his/her service. 2 Activity: Enlarge and print these images and The Most hand out to children so they can join in acting Gifted Artist out the story of St Peter and the congregation who prayed for him. 2 One of the Peter Disciples Uncle Sirago Rhoda The Angel The children in this stage want to know the reason behind the strength of the disciples and their authority in performing miracles. Help them to understand that the source of the power and the authority is the Lord Jesus Christ. “And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, FOR to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of THE SERVANTS disease. Matthew 10:1”. The children will appreciate the meaning of the miracle and it’s mean- ing as proof of God’s glory and strength, and that the source of all good things in us is the Lord Jesus. 3 Assemble this cube and encourage the child The Cube to put it together. This would allow him/her to hang it near them so as to remind them of Stories of the story of St Peter and the congregation praying for him. 3 Memory Verses: “but constant …………………………… ………………………..” Children of this stage enjoy learning from the Holy Bible, so do not add or delete any information from the script of the Bible... FOR THE SERVANTS 4 Our church teaches us prayer on behalf of oth- Pray For Me ers, as we have litanies of the sick, the travel- lers, the offerings and the meetings. Come with our church and let us pray 4 for one another. Enlarge this page and have the children colour in the characters whom are our brethren and need our prayers. They would then stick the verses, which Bend to show us the urgency and importance of prayer. They would then place the the back and final product in front of them so they can remember the urgency and impor- attach together. tance of prayer for others. 2 Thess 3: 1-5 Prayerfor the Bend sick Prayer this Prayer for the seg- travel- ment for lers under those the last who seg- ment and give their stick them money to together so as God to have 4 seg- ments only 1.Bend 2.Bend 3.Bend to the back to the back to the back and attach to- and attach and attach to- gether.