QUESTIONS
- Why did the author see Jesus in her Mum?
- Who are the people in your family or community that you see putting the needs of others first?
- Where does the author suggest we look to find Jesus in the ‘places of the dirty and sinful?’
- Why does the author see Jesus ‘sitting with a father who makes the long drive to the prison to visit his son.’
- Highlight or underline each time the author has observed Jesus in an action.
ACTIVITIES
Goats or Sheep?: Read Matthew 25:31-46. In small groups or with a partner discuss: What do those labelled as goats do? What do those labelled as sheep do? In the article, when did you see people acting as sheep? What are some examples in your life where you saw someone acting like a goat? Like a sheep? Why might someone want to be a sheep rather than a goat?
Kindness Challenge: With your class, run a Kindness Challenge. The aim of a Kindness Challenge is to grow in the ways that we act like Jesus and to do little acts of kindness, love and charity for people in your community, school, class, friends or family. Explain to the students that the aim of the challenge isn’t to be seen or noticed for what they do, but to act for the sake of the other, as Jesus does. Before you start the Kindness Challenge, brainstorm ideas and use the examples given in the article as inspiration. Students can do their acts alone or with a friend. Have a box with some pieces of paper or a shared document for students to anonymously write down their acts throughout the week. At the end of the week share the box or document with the class by going around the room and taking turns to take a piece of paper from the box and read it aloud, or by making them into a poster for the wall.
Create a Tally Keeper: Having a way to keep a tally of the good acts you do toward others each day will help to keep you accountable to acting more like Jesus. Each time you use your Tally Keeper, it is a reminder that Jesus is with us and we can see Him in our own actions. A Tally Keeper can also be a good prayer reminder as you can say a prayer of gratitude each time you use your Tally Keeper. There are endless possibilities for the ways you can keep a tally of the small acts of kindness and charity that you do each day or week. Get creative, and make something personal and unique to help you bring more of Jesus into every day. Here are some ideas for making a Tally Keeper:
- Do one act for each bead of a decade of the Rosary
- Add beads to a string with a small knot in the middle, and slide beads to the other side of the knot.
- Rub your thumb over a medallion of a saint that you keep in your pocket.
- Tie knots in a ribbon and see how long it takes until it is so knotted up that you need to add more ribbon.
- Keep count in the back of your diary or have a checkbox on your calendar.
- Fill in one area on a colouring-in sheet or a paint by numbers.
- Sew a piece of coloured thread into an old pair of white or black socks.
FOR YOUNGER STUDENTS
Changing Directions: Sit in a circle. Tell the students that acting like Jesus can make the whole circle change direction. Before you read the article aloud, have each student place their right hand on the left shoulder of the person next to them. Each time the students hear the author find Jesus somewhere, they have to swap their hands, so that their left hand is on the right shoulder of the person on the other side of them.
At the end of the reading, ask the students if sometimes they changed their hands just because they felt the hands on their shoulder change. Tell the students that acting like Jesus is like this. Acting like Jesus and being more kind and more loving can change people even if they aren’t sure why. Ask the students to think about the times when they were kinder or more loving just because someone else was kinder or more loving to them. Brainstorm ways that the students can act more like Jesus with their friends, family and community.