Faith To Go Podcast: Salt and Fire
Hosted each week by the Faith Formation team at St. Paul's Cathedral in San Diego, David Tremaine, Maya Little-Sana and Jackie Pippin, the Faith To Go Podcast highlight themes from the Sunday Gospel reading for you to take into your conversations throughout the week.
Activity Time: Radical Welcome
Supplies: Construction paper, markers, any decorative things for signs
Provide children with supplies so that they can decorate their own welcome sign. Place this sign outside your home or worship area.
Jesus wants us to welcome all. Sometimes it’s hard, but important to make sure everyone knows that they are welcome in our community.
Story Time: Gospel Reading and Reflection
Watch this video together and then use the discussion questions below to reflect as a family.
Discussion Questions:
1) What does it feel like to be new?
2) Is there anyone new in your class or at church?
3) What can you say or do to make them feel more welcome?
4) Why does Jesus want us to welcome new people?
5) How are kids especially good and opening their hearts to new people?
Dinner Time: Softened Hearts
Below is a prayer with which to start your meal and then discussion questions to explore this week’s topic with your family while you eat.
Prayer- God who traces my coming in and my going out,
Give me confidence and hope.
Keep me safe from darkness.
Bless those who cross my path.
Help me see your light in all people.
Questions:
What does it mean to have a hard heart?
What does Jesus think about how our hearts should be?
How can our church show that our hearts are open?
What can we do at church to make people feel more welcome?
Why is it important to make people feel welcome at church
Bedtime: Reflections for Children at the End of the Day
During your bedtime routine, invite your children into a time of reflection about their day, maybe by saying, "Did you know that God really wants to know what happened in your day today, and that God is always listening whenever you need to tell God something?" Then continue with these questions:
1) What are some things that happened today that you want to tell God about?
2) What is one happy thing that happened today? What is one sad thing that happened today?
3) Did you see God or feel God with you when those things were happening? Where did you see or feel God when those things happened today?
4) Read to your children this week’s scripture selection, then ask the questions that follows.
Mark 10: 2-16
Some Pharisees came to test Jesus with this question: “Is it okay for a man to divorce his wife?” Jesus asked them, “What did Moses say about it?” They said, “Moses said a man could write a letter dismissing his wife, thereby divorcing her.” Jesus said, “Moses wrote this because of your hard hearts. From the beginning of creation, God wanted us to live together faithfully and make new families together. So you don’t put yourself first, but put your relationship with your loved one above your own interest. What God has joined together, no one should try to tear apart.”
Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this. He said to them, “If you divorce your spouse to marry another spouse, you are committing adultery.”
People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them and bless them. The disciples tried to shoo them away. But when Jesus saw this, he was upset and said to them, “Don’t you dare try to keep these little one from me. Let me hold them. The kingdom of God belongs to little ones just like these. If you aren’t open to God’s kingdom like a little child is open, you will never enter the kingdom.” And he picked them up in his arms and laid his hands on the children and blessed them.
Did the story remind you of anything that happened in your day today?
5) What are some things that you want to tell God that you are grateful for today?
Share some of your conversations in the comments below: