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How do I explain Easter to my children (or grandchildren)?
A
good starting point is to realize that Easter is bigger than any of
us ever fully understand so we do not have to know all the answers.
No one ever does. Easter is new life, an empty tomb, forgiveness,
resurrections, and more. That is not something to understand. It
is a reality we have to grow into. The truth is that we understand
different aspects of Easter better at different times of our lives.
Adults respond enthusiastically to the Easter claim and promise of
victory over death because adults understand the finality of death
and fear death. Children, however, have a hard time grasping the
reality, especially the finality, of death. Even after attending
Grandpa’s funeral, a young child will often ask, at unexpected
times, when Grandpa will be visiting. This natural inability to
grasp the finality of death is supported by fairy tale princesses
who awake after “sleeping” for years and cartoon characters who,
flattened by steamrollers, peel themselves off the road. Given all
this, it’s not surprising that children can’t get excited by victory
over death.
Many
books and people try to get around this by focusing on new life,
paying attention to eggs, bulbs, and butterflies as new life
symbols. While children are vaguely interested in these symbols,
“new life” strikes few of them (for whom all of life is “new”) as
particularly significant or exciting.
Instead, for younger children, the empty tomb is the ultimate
victory of the good guys (God/Jesus) over the bad guys (Judas, the
priests, Pilate, the soldiers). On Good Friday the bad guys thought
they had won. They killed Jesus and sealed his body into a guarded
tomb. On Easter morning God/Jesus blasted right out of that tomb
and proved once and for all that God is more powerful than even the
worst evil the worst bad guys can inflict. The natural response to
such a victory is to yell “Hooray for God and Jesus!” and to
celebrate belonging to God who is the most powerful power there is
in the universe!
To
older elementary children, who are focused on friendships and have
clear expectations of “best friends,” the most significant
resurrection story is the story of Peter’s breakfast conversation
with Jesus (see John 21:1-19). Peter had been Jesus’ best friend.
He had promised to stick with Jesus no matter what. And he had been
caught three times on the same night pretending he did not even know
Jesus. As a betrayed “best friend”, Jesus would have been justified
in ignoring or punishing Peter for his denials. But Jesus did not.
For Peter, the resurrection happened when Jesus forgave him,
welcomed him back as a friend, and put him to work building God’s
Kingdom. For older children, Easter holds the promise that Jesus
will forgive them and welcome them back when/if they betray their
friendship with him. Such Easter forgiveness is worth celebrating!
And
remember the starting point - Easter is bigger than we can
understand. We don’t have to know all the answers. We probably do
most harm when we fail to talk with our children about our Easter
faith out of fear that we will not get it right.
From Sharing the Easter Faith with Children
by Carolyn C. Brown. 2005 by Abingdon Press. Reproduced by
permission.
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Ingredients
1
can refrigerated crescent roll dough
8
large marshmallows
Melted butter
Cinnamon
Sugar
Directions
1. Give
each child one triangle shaped section of the crescent roll. This
represents the tomb.
2. Each
child takes one marshmallow which represents the body of Christ.
3. Dip
the marshmallow in the butter and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.
This represents the oils and spices the body was anointed with up on
burial.
4. Lay
the marshmallow on the dough and carefully wrap it in the
marshmallow. This represents how Jesus’ body was wrapped in the
tomb.
5. Make
sure all seams are pinched together well. (Otherwise the
marshmallow will ‘ooze’ out of the seams.)
6. Bake
according to package directions.
7. Cool.
8. Break
open the tomb and the body of Christ is no longer there!!
Celebrate God's Love and enjoy the yummy bread!
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Caterpillars and Butterflies
Caring for your caterpillars
It’s
very important that you always keep your caterpillar container
upright, indoors and out of direct sunlight! Direct sunlight will
cause the interior of the cups to heat up and condensation can form
within the containers. This water can often cause the caterpillars
to sicken and die. To keep the nutrient clean, keep the lid on the
containers at all times. The larvae don’t need anything other than
the food provided inside the containers to live and grow.
A Fascinating Change
At
normal room temperature of 72 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit, the
caterpillars should take approximately 7-10 days to make the
fascinating change into the chrysalides. The caterpillars will
climb to the top of the cups and hang down “head first”. It is
crucial that they not be disturbed at this point as this is
their most vulnerable stage. Although this seems to be a time of
resting in the butterfly’s development, it is really a time of rapid
change. Within the chrysalid, the old body parts of the caterpillar
are undergoing a remarkable transformation to the beautiful parts
that will make up the butterfly.
Moving into the Butterfly Cage
When
your chrysalides have formed, it’s time to put them into the
observation habitat (the cage). The chrysalides should have
attached themselves to lid of each container. Find some scotch tape
so you can attach the disks to the inside of the habitat. Carefully
open the containers and tape each disk inside the habitat a few
inches above the habitat’s floor. If any of your chrysalides become
detached from the disk, gently lay them on a napkin on the floor of
the habitat. Chances are good that they will still emerge as
healthy butterflies. Be sure to put your butterfly habitat in a
place where it won’t be knocked over. Hanging your habitat by its
handle is a good way to keep it safe from unexpected bumps and
accidents. While direct sunlight isn’t as big a concern as it was
when the caterpillars where in the growing containers, keeping your
butterfly habitat out of harsh sunlight and out of a breeze from
AC/heat vents is a good idea. Think of it this way, if they’re in a
spot that would make you feel too hot or too cold, they’re probably
feeling the same way.
The Birth of a Butterfly
Approximately 7-10 days after the chrysalides form, your butterflies
will begin to emerge as adults. The darker the chrysalid, the
closer it is to emergence. Keep your eyes on them now as you may
get to witness the birth of a butterfly! As the butterfly emerges,
it will rest in a vertical position while pumping its wings to full
size. The butterflies to this by forcing blood under pressure into
the veins of the wings. One to two hours after emergence, the wings
will be full-sized and hardened, and the butterfly will be ready to
fly. Don’t be alarmed if you see a red liquid which looks like
blood coming from the tail end of the butterfly. This is called me
conium. It’s the left-over color and unneeded tissues from the
butterfly’s wing formation.
Feeding and Observing
Feeding your butterflies is fun. Mix three teaspoons of sugar into
a cup of water and stir. Decorate the floor of your butterfly
habitat with a bouquet of fresh flowers (such as carnations or mums
or what you have blooming in your yard). Drop the sugar water
mixture directly onto the flowers. An alternative is to use wadded
up tissues or fuzzy pom poms and soak them with the sugar water.
Set the balls on a paper plate on the floor inside the habitat.
Butterflies also like to drink from slices of freshly cut oranges.
Observe the butterflies eating. You will see them unfurl their
proboscis, drink the sugar water or orange juice, then roll the
proboscis back up. Sprinkle the sugar water mixture every day and
remember to keep the sugar water refrigerated between feedings.
Releasing Your Butterfly
You
are invited to bring your butterfly with you to church on Easter
Sunday, March 23rd. We will celebrate Easter with several services
that day. At 10:45 a.m. we will
release all the butterflies from the front porch of the church
(weather permitting). Please make sure you label your
habitat so that none are lost in the hustle and bustle of Easter
morning celebrations. We anticipate having 100 butterflies to
release! If you are unable to come to FUMC on Easter morning,
release your butterflies wherever you might be! What a glorious way
to celebrate our risen Lord!
Why do butterflies remind us of Easter?
In
order for a caterpillar to become what God created it to be -- a
butterfly -- it must give up everything it knows. It must give up
crawling and it must give up eating leaves. Once the caterpillar
becomes a butterfly, it will never look or feel like a caterpillar
again; but being a butterfly is a million times better than begin a
caterpillar!!! Think about how beautiful and free the butterfly
is! The story of the butterfly reminds us of the story of Jesus’
death and resurrection and our promise of eternal life. The
butterfly is a symbol of that new life -- of God's love which lives
in each of us and wants to fill every part of our life!!
Faith Development Note
The
older child (elementary age) is just beginning to understand these
concepts. The younger child (preschool age) by experiencing the
butterfly’s story, is laying a foundation for later understanding.
Let the child take from this experience what he/she is able to and
be satisfied in knowing that his/her faith is growing.
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