- Each church season—Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week/Easter, Pentecost and Advent/Christmas—is tied to a Mark of Mission.
- For each church season, Sunday schools are encouraged to choose one big idea—an intergenerational community event. Some suggestions follow.
- Consider sharing your experiences through photos or comments—please send these to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Epiphany
To teach, nurture and baptize new believers
Faith Sharing
- Ask the clergy to create a short list of simple questions about faith.
- Pair each child with a senior member of the congregation.
- Each interviews the other.
- Send in photos of the event with quotes.
Church Supper
- Hold a potluck church supper on the 12th day of Christmas.
Labyrinth
- Have an all-ages labyrinth walk.
- You may use a labyrinth you have or create a temporary one outdoors, using stones or flour.
- Prepare for the joyful noise of children!
Note: Self portraits/ iconography — 10 weeks needed
Lent
To respond to human need by loving service
Social Assistance Week
- Find out the amount of money that a family on social assistance lives on.
- Challenge families to live on a similar budget for one week.
- For one week, pray for families on welfare before meals.
- Be sensitive to the possibility that some families of children you teach may be on social assistance.
Food Bank Project
- Collect food for the food bank or
- Bake cookies for a local food bank.
- Serve at a soup kitchen.
Response Project
- Organize a visit to a retirement home.
- Help someone in need—shovel snow, clear the walkway, garden.
Note: Problem solving in education — 5 weeks to complete
Holy Week/Easter
To seek to transform the unjust structures of society
Gifts for Missions
- As a group, choose and make a purchase from “Gifts for Missions” from PWRDF.
Injustice Theatre Project
- Create a drama in which an intergenerational group from the church shares an issue of injustice.
- When the drama is performed, members of the audience call “STOP,” enter the drama and try to fix the injustice.
Problem Project
- An intergenerational church group meets to choose one “problem” in their community.
- The group thinks of a solution and carries it out.
Note: Problem solving using puppets — 2 to 4 weeks needed
Pentecost
To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth
Parish Picnic
- Choose the picnic spot.
- Start to spread the word at least seven weeks before the picnic date.
- Try to consume local picnic food to reduce the “carbon footprint.”
- Bring reusable plates, cups and utensils.
- Leave the picnic spot as you found it.
- Take photos and send them to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Green Sunday
- Challenge everyone to arrive at church using a “green method”—walking, biking, car pooling, public transit.
- Take pictures of people’s arrival and send them to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Plant a Church Garden
- Use space near your church to plant something edible—share with a local food bank.
Note: Garden — 29 weeks
Advent/Christmas
To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God
Create a Nativity Play
- Choose a script.
- Rehearse.
- Perform your nativity play!
- Take photos and send them to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Create a Nativity Tableau
- Create a living picture of the nativity.
- Share your picture with an audience.
- Take photos and send them to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Caroling
- Choose your favourite Christmas hymns.
- Gather a group, choose an area and set the time.
- Bring along your hymn books!
- Take photos and send them to www.anglican.ca/churchmice.
Note: Act out the nativity play; make dough art nativity — 4 sessions, not including rehearsing the play
