I began my Lenten journey while I was away, traveling to Florida and Alabama via car this past week to visit family and attend a graduation. On Ash Wednesday we got a chance to visit the ocean and walk along the beach. It was not as warm as I had anticipated, but the chilly wind was exhilarating and reminded me of my beach back home in Northern California. I could not help but wander from the group. So rare is it to be truly alone in nature these days… In my mind I wondered if I would come across some blackened sea bark that I could somehow press my finger into to get some black dust, and carefully trace a cross on my forehead. Instead, I found the old remains of a large bird, perhaps a pelican or gull, with just its bones left sunken partially in the sand. The others were chasing waves in the distance and I was truly and blessedly alone. “To dust…” I whispered, and then realizing that I did not have to whisper, I spoke the prayer louder with the sound of the crashing waves. “From dust I came, to dust I go, Amen.”

I left the bird to look for shells along the beach and could not help but be drawn to the pop of purple found in these tiny, fragile shells. I collected the purple little things in my pocket as a Lenten remembrance. The thrill of being able to walk alone, the thrill of my tiny-ness near the big-ness of the beach, this ocean. This was always where I found God – my youth. Lent: I am paradoxically precious and ephemeral..The peace of God’s presence, the joy in the prospect of letting something go so that I may be filled only by that presence…

In a word, it was a good Ash Wednesday…

In Godly Play this week we are going to move forward with our Old Testament journey in the desert, and what better place to fix our meditation during Lent. The people of God have received the 10 Best Ways to Live now, and they are very precious to them indeed. They were so precious that they knew they could not just “walk up to something as precious as the 10 Commandments…they needed a way to get ready to come close to them..”

The story we will hear this week, The Ark and the Tent, will detail how the people of God worked with “holiness” and how that expanded and perhaps also, limited their experience of God. God’s Word and presence was so holy to them that they began to create layer upon layer of holiness, and spaces to get ready to get ready to get ready for that holiness. These methods created limits and boundaries for the people so that they could be a set apart community. The people’s experience of God shifts from a more elusive presence as with the Great Family, to one more and more defined. God’s Ways are “put in a box” called an Ark. God’s presence is “put in a box” called the Tabernacle. In the beginning, the box was built to be portable to take with them as they traveled the desert. Later, this box will find a permanent home in the Promised Land in the form of the Temple.

Peace,
Kate

–Transfiguration by Dorothy A. Lee

It seems very good timing to me that we are focusing in the Transfiguration of Jesus story after we have been exploring the story of Moses and the 10 Best Ways in Godly Play. I will be incorporating elements from the 10 Best Ways Lesson in my presentation of the Transfiguration as a way to access connection between the two…

God came so close to Moses and Moses came so close to God that he glowed. His face shown with the glory of God….it glowed so much that he had to put a veil over his face when he was with the people. The only time he took it off was when he went into the Tabernacle to pray to God…

When Jesus was on the mountain with his disciples, he came so close to God and God came so close to Jesus that Jesus glowed. His whole being glowed with the glory of God. The disciples thought they could see Moses and the great prophet Elijah was there with Jesus in the glow…Peter thought they could live on the mountain in the glow for the rest of their days…But suddenly there was a cloud that covered all of them. Then, came a voice, not unlike the voice that spoke when Jesus was baptized… that said…

This is my child, whom I love. With him I am well pleased. Listen to him!

With that the cloud was gone, and all the disciples could see was Jesus. And they could see his face clearly. The disciples were afraid. But Jesus told them not to be afraid.

“Jesus’ face could be seen clearly ..” We can at last gaze upon God’s glory and not be afraid. Humanity and the divine can at last encounter one another close up and personal. Jesus fulfills the law and surpasses it…

Transfiguration Sunday also signifies a shift. It is after these events that Jesus resolutely turns to Jerusalem, towards the Cross. We are getting ready to follow Jesus to Jerusalem. This is the last Sunday before Ash Wednesday, before the beginning of our Lenten journey. We are getting ready to put our light into a deep internal space. It is not going out. It is going from an external brightness to an inner glory.

Peace be with you,
Kate

• Godly Play runs from 9am-11am this week. The session will include a Lesson, Work Time and Feast.
• Please take your child’s coat with you at Drop Off and be sure to pick up a Parent’s Page.

Greetings!

It has been a long detour from the desert… The last lesson we heard before Advent was The Exodus – where the people of God passed through the water into freedom. Our Advent focus has not stopped the children from habitually eating matzo from The Exodus Lesson basket each week however. The matzo is there as part of the lesson “to help us remember the story…” In Godly Play, whenever you would like some matzo, you may take the basket from The Exodus Lesson and first, offer it to everyone in the room. Then you may eat some too. The basket of matzo is always full and it is always available each week. This practice has been a real joy on many levels. One, the use of taste to remember, as remembering is so fundamental and essential to the Jewish people in their religious heritage, festivals and practices. I enjoy seeing the children exercise restraint for their initial desire to eat the matzo and joyfully offer matzo to the other children first. Not only do they have to offer it to everyone, but they have to be conscious of the amount in the basket and make sure there is enough for everyone. I enjoy the freedom they seem to experience too in having the matzo available as a snack, that they may have when they choose. Sometimes, this has served as the informal Feast – again with a spirit of sharing, togetherness and generosity, and hunger filled.

This week, we shall be continuing our journey with the people of God in the desert….

Now that the people are free, they can go anywhere they want to go and do anything they want to do. Where will they go now? What is the best way?

God loved the people so much that God showed them the Ten Best Ways to Live. Sometimes, these are called the Ten Commandments…

I am very excited to present this lesson to the children. Without fail, someone is always interested in working in the Desert Box each week. It is is exciting to continue to offer context for the materials in the room – especially the ones the children are so drawn to. The repetition of interaction with these materials and the repetition of the stories over the course of several years grounds the children in context and meaning. A meaning that expands rather than remains stagnant as they grow and show up to these stories again and again. Is this not the model for us?

Again, in classic Godly Play form, the lesson offers very helpful foundations and language for understanding the material. The Ten Best Ways come in a heart shaped box. Inside the box are three pieces that make the shape of a heart -

Love God
Love People
God Loves You

The Commandments that are related to “Loving God” are shaped the same as the “Love God” piece, and the same goes for the Commandments that relate to “Love People.”"Keep the Sabbath holy” is the only commandment placed between these,meaning to pertain to both. The base of the heart shape is “God Loves You.”

I had the honor to take the course Interpreting the Old Testament I at North Park Theological Seminary last Spring. In revisiting one our texts in preparation for this week’s lesson – A Theological Introduction to the Old Testament [Birch, Brueggemann, Fretheim and Peterson] – I was struck by the following excerpt. Something for you to chew on as we all get ready for this Sunday…

…the law is not presented as a code, a list of laws to be obeyed. The law does not stand alone. Rather, the law is integrated with the ongoing story of Israel’s journey from slavery in Egypt to new life in the promised land. The law functions as a dynamic reality within a living community; the law will not stand still any more than the community will. 

To speak of ‘the structures of covenant life’ can be a helpful way to speak of the law. The language of structure catches up to the theme of creation; the ordering of community is in tune with God’s ordering of the cosmos… The law is good, a gracious divine gift, and is given for the sake of a well ordered community… God gives the law for the sake of the best possible life in community, a life of stability and well being for all, especially the most disadvantaged…’so that you may live and that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land that you are to possess..’ (Deut 5:33). As such, the law is not understood in a static sense, as if the law were given once and for all. In view of Israels’s ever-changing experiences on its journeys, laws will be given and revised and even taken away…

Peace,
Kate

In this process, I became aware that I had taken this lesson somewhat for granted and had marginalized it. Perhaps because it is one of our core lessons and it has been presented many times. Perhaps I was making too many assumptions. Perhaps I was playing favorites.

I find this rather interesting in light of our focus on the Liturgical Calender right now. Part of liturgy’s function, is to hold us accountable to working with the whole material that is the Bible and not just our favorites. Favorite or no, Liturgy challenges us also to work with material again and again and again. This is paralleled in the Godly Play classroom.

Liturgy can also become a hindrance just as much as a help when we rely too much on the structure it provides. It is best used as a tool rather than a rule. It must be balanced and tempered with a space of openness and willingness to change direction as the living need presents itself.

One of the themes/phrases I bring up fairly often with the children in Godly Play, especially for those of us that have heard the material before, is ” to try to see the new in the old.”  This is part of why we say before every lesson the following:

Raise your hand if you have ears to hear.
Raise your other hand if you have eyes to see.
Now bring them together [prayer position] and bring them down, slowly into your lap.
[Stillness]
You can open your palms on your lap like this [hands on lap, palms up.]
[Stillness]
Now we are ready.

This exercise echoes Jesus’ words He or she who has ears, let them hear (Matt 11:15.) And the old Proverb…Ears to hear and eyes to see–both are gifts from the LORD ( Proverbs 20:12) The last gesture of palms up is a way to physicalize this space of openness, anticipation, waiting to receive.

“Seeing the new in the old” is easier said than done for any age. It is so easy to coast and say “I got this” isn’t it? It is so easy to settle on a meaning of any kind of material, and nestle in it comfortably. We remain unchanged… we are bored and uninspired or we’re arrogant and locked. We don’t have ears to hear, we don’t have eyes to see. We’ve made up our minds as to what is relevant and what is not. We think we’ve got it all figured out, or we allow blocks to dominate our hearing, our seeing. Deep down, in our innermost heart and soul… we long for something alive, active, relevant in this material, that speaks to a pressing need in us, in our world.

Each week as I prepare for teaching a lesson, I must challenge myself not to coast. Not to remain complaisant, stagnant, arrogant. This is the definition of deadness to me. Each week, one way or another I must sit with God, sit with the material ( the text itself, the theology, commentaries etc.) and approach it with ears to hear and eyes to see. The process of this may look different week to week, but the desired outcome is the same. It does not matter how many times I have read it, taught it. It must be made new every time. When the ephemeral moment of teaching has arrived, I must paradoxically remember all and forget all from my preparation – and simply be present, open and ready to hear.

This is perhaps why I prefer calling the Bible The Word. There is no word without a hearer.

Until next week, peace be with you.

Miss Kate

Parents, I want to emphasize that if you have any concerns, questions and/or special needs please do not hesitate to contact me. I do my best to anticipate your needs, but it helps a great deal if you keep me in the know so I can facilitate as best as we can. ( :
I understand that many of us are undergoing a great deal of transition with school and all, and/or some of us have our children with us every other week etc. We are more than happy to work with you and your needs. Please remain in communication.

This week in Godly Play:
Time, Time, Time – The Circle of the Church Year

The first few sessions in Godly Play will focus on the more core, “cosmic” pieces of our spiritual practice as Christians. Last week, we came close to the Good Shepherd, who “knows each of his sheep by name.” There is a Table where people of the world can come, even the small children. I wonder if you have ever come close to this Table?

One of the benefits of a Godly Play class is that it invites everyone to notice - adults and children alike. From afar and yet very near, as a teacher I notice what the children are drawn to, what they choose for their work, what they wonder about. It is so essential to be alive and awake to the living moment, the living God who speaks. I am looking for clues from our Lord all the time. The hidden treasures are everywhere.

One thing I noticed from last week is that several of us noticed and were very drawn to the brand new banner in our classroom.

“What is it?” one of us asked immediately. She had not yet even laid out her rug she was so intrigued.

“What do you suppose that could be?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” she said.

“Do you notice anything else like it in our classroom?”

Ah ha.

“…something in a circle like that with all the different colors?”

Ah ha.

It is no wonder that she and another child, both 1+ years of Godly Play under their belt, wanted to make The Circle of the Church Year materials their work, right then and there! I could not deny them some indulgence in this while we waited for the others to arrive.
Later, I noticed that one of us, brand new to Godly Play, wanted the Circle of the Church Year materials to be  part of her work too during Work Time, although she had never heard the lesson. Typically when this happens I do not deny the child play with what they are drawn to. I do make an effort to give context, as simply as I can.

“This is how the church tells time. Every color is for a different time in the year. We are here in the Green and growing time right now…” She worked with the pieces curiously. I am eager to continue to fill in the gaps this week…

The Circle of the Church year is a lesson on our Liturgical Calendar or, “How the church tells time.” Speaking for myself, I never quite understood all the colors or how the church told time, until I encountered this lesson years ago at my Godly Play Teacher Training. It has been an incredible tool in helping adults and children alike make meaning through liturgy.

Time…time…time….Some say time is in a line…In a line there is a beginning and an ending part. But do you know what the church did? It tied the beginning that is like an ending and an ending that is like a beginning together, to make a Circle. So that we will always remember that for every ending there is a beginning and for every beginning there is an ending…. Pay attention! The Church tells time with colors as well as numbers…

Not only do we have materials for which to tell this story and work with, we have our own banner with a moveable arrow piece so the children can begin identifying where we are in the year each week. We have cloths of each of the colors of the liturgical year – Green, Blue, Purple and White – that we place beneath our Holy Family* on the Focal Shelf ( our Altar.) Next week, I shall invite the children to notice the Holy Family and what color cloth is there beneath them. This cloth is changed with the changing of the “times”we are in. Then, in Worship the whole church shall experience an adapted version of the Circle of the Church Year lesson – thus continuing the connections. The Sanctuary too has a banner.

We’ll see how it goes won’t we? Who knows what treasures, that no doubt I cannot foresee, our Lord has for us?

Peace,

Miss Kate

I am so honored to get to be a part of this process we call “Godly Play” and ” Being Church.” You and your child have been in my mind and in my heart, in my prayers. I am so excited to begin a new year together. We are indeed in the Green and Growing Time….

A word about Godly Play, Berry Church and “Covenant”

These past few weeks I have been in great prayer and meditation about how this thing we call “Godly Play” can improve and be even more fruitful to us and to the people in our neighborhood.The more I engage in this work, the more conversations I have with each of you, the more I feel that Godly Play and our church – Berry Church – can and does meet a true need.

I hear a need for a meaningful, thoughtful and loving spiritual formation program for your child. A safe space for wonder, questions; authentic and playful response to Christian material.

I hear a deep need for a responsible handling and communication of the Biblical texts and Theologies.

I hear a need for creativity.

I hear a need for leaving room for the unknown, the ambiguous.

I hear a need for inclusive language and consciousness of “the other.”

I hear a call for justice.

I hear a need for Peace and Sabbath. Renewal.

I hear a need for Community.

What else…..? You fill in the blank canvas.

I believe that Godly Play Sunday School and Berry Church provides something set apart. Sunday School can look like this. The Kin-dom of God can look like this too. We have an opportunity to be a part of something that can take deep root in our children and in ourselves. Something meaningful, truthful and full of love and power.

For those of you who are just beginning your journey ( yes I said your journey) in Godly Play as a family, as a parent, as a child – it is one best experienced fully. Like most things, it will be at its most fruitful for you and your child if committed to all the way. “Commitment” “Covenant” can be scary. Our thoughts often jump to the bigness of the commitment and it is easy to feel overwhelmed by what feels like a Mountain. All the same, the call and yearning for this Kin-dom persists…

The Good Shepherd says in Luke 14:28 the following…

For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he or she has enough to complete it?

Do not be afraid by the prospect of signing a “Parents Covenant.” Our Parents Covenant speaks simply to this: A consideration of “the tower” and its “cost,” and a resolve and agreement of mind, strength and heart to fear not and to “show up.” And keep showing up. That is all.

God will do the rest.

I look forward to continuing the journey. See you all soon.

Peace,
Kate McCandless

Each one of us is a child of God, and all need each other to walk this spiritual journey. “The Body of Christ” is said to be “made up of many parts” – each important as the other and with their own set of gifts necessary for the whole Body to function and be healthy.

Tips for Parents and Church Community on Supporting Children in Worship

It has been said that it “takes a village to raise a child.”

This phrase conjures up the image of a community of people of various ages and abilities sharing the role of “parent.” This “village model” is not what we are accustomed to in this day in age. In general, people and families have become more isolated, and the hard work of parenting rests more and more on the parents and less on the parents plus members of their community. This isolated, individualized “fend for yourself” model has become the norm.

But what if we took this well known phrase and analogy a littler further as it pertains to the church community?

How about …It takes a village to raise a child of God?

Each one of us is a child of God, and all need each other to walk this spiritual journey. “The Body of Christ” is said to be “made up of many parts” – each important as the other and with their own set of gifts necessary for the whole Body to function and be healthy. As it pertains to our children, young and old, it take a village to raise them physically, emotionally and spiritually. It’s a rough world out there, and there is much to learn to cope and survive. Praise God we are not just a body of feet, or a body of noses! There is a great diversity amongst us.

At Berry Church it is part of our core mission to invite all people to God’s table and church – regardless of age, gender, ethnicity/culture, sexual identity, ability or “other”-ness.

In this spirit and in the context of Family & Childrens Ministries, we seek to intentionally invite our children to be with us in Worship and to support them in their Worship, participation and presence in the community of God’s people. We believe this way supports Jesus’ words and attitude surrounding children – to let them come and to not hinder them (Matt 19:13-15.)

We acknowledge that we all play a pivotal role in the guiding, modeling, and “raising” of each other – including our small children – in Worship, in the Church Community, and in our day to day lives.

Trusting the Process

We acknowledge that this may be a new way for many of us, and that we may not know all the hows behind the why. We lovingly embrace the process so that this mission may be lived out fully and fruitfully for all. We will make mistakes in this process. This is how we will learn. A spirit of grace, openness and willingness from the whole community will be needed to be fruitful in this process. Being a village involves the whole.

Communication and Feedback in the Process

Our Worship Team meets monthly to reflect on and take inventory of our Worship Services, including this goal and initiative. We are prayerful and discerning in the process.

We encourage regular and direct (in person) communication with feedback. Please be mindful and discerning when communicating feedback. Email is a helpful tool, but best used in this case to arrange a meeting or if a meeting is not possible, a phone call.

To arrange a meeting you are invited to contact Lay Leader Amy Ellison or Worship Leader Diane Schoff. When specific to Family Ministries, please contact Family Minister Kate McCandless at families@berryumc.org.