Hopefully this book will grow with a family and even teens will be happy to read through it with their parents once they get older - even if just for the holiday nostalgia.
Essentially I wanted to find something like this out there, a beautiful Jesse Tree guide friendly to kids but also younger children/toddlers that a family could pull out every Thanksgiving with their Christmas/Advent decorations and use at night before bed or at dinner time. But I couldn't find it, at all! Some were beautifully illustrated, but too sappy and lacking in substance. Others were WAY over any child's head. Some just seemed to be excerpts from Scripture, but lacked any sort of interpretation or meditation for children and the family as a whole. Most of them were not really for Catholics because they simply covered December, and Advent mostly begins before December does, even if only by a day or two.
I'm certainly not an expert on catechesis, childhood development or psychology. Nor am I a Scripture buff or a outstanding theologian. Hell, I can't even use my "I'm a mother" card to really show superiority on this book (example: I just used the word "hell."). But I was too irritated to wait for someone else to write me what I wanted. So here it is.
Over the next few weeks, (and I hope I can keep up with it) I will be writing nightly reflections for just the toddler version - so everything will be shortened and simplified. But I think that will be sufficient for now, because it's a really good starting place.
Some of the challenge for me will be taking the IMMENSE amount of meaning of each day and making it appear simple, while still leaving room for depth and mystery. (It helps that I can just write this for what my almost-2-yr-old daughter will understand, or at least listen to.)
I hope you benefit from this project as much as I will. Please, please feel free to leave comments to help me along this journey. I can't promise to listen to all of you - but I will at least hear all of it and let it help form this book for the better.
-RMVZ
Jesse Tree Week 1, Day 1
Sunday
Ornament: Tree
Scripture summary for toddlers: He Lord spoke to the prophet Samuel in a special way. The Israelites prayed to God for someone to lead and protect them. When their first king failed in his task, he sent Samuel to give a special marking and blessing to a young shepherd boy named David, the youngest of 12 brothers. He would one day lead and protect the Israelites and show faithfulness to the Lord.
Samuel was told to go to Bethlehem to meet the sons of a good, faithful man named Jesse. Telling Samuel that he would let him know when he had met the one he should anoint, Samuel was introduced to all of the sons of Samuel (there were 12!) starting with the oldest and strongest. But the Lord did not tell Samuel to anoint any of them. Samuel was confused and asked the father, Jesse,
-" Are these ALL of your sons?"
-"Yes, except for one, the youngest and smallest who is still out shepherding the sheep in the hills for the season."
So Samuel asked Jesse to send for him and after a long wait, they saw the youngest son, David, walking toward him. And the Lord spoke to Samuel, telling him "This is the one!"
So Samuel anointed David by pouring oil on his head, and the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him.
Connection & Reflection: Why is the ornament a tree today? The Lord gives us trees, especially "evergreens" to remind us of his constant love, protection and care during the long and cold months of winter. We use this Jesse Tree to remember that the Lord has been preparing for Jesus to come since he created the world - and we can see that very clearly with Jesse & his son David because Jesus would be born generations later as a descendant of Jesse - and also as a king, like David. Just as our trees made roots and grew from those roots, our faith has a deep history and has grown from those roots - and in the end we receive Jesus, God himself in the Eucharist. Just as trees outlast the winter cold and darkness, our faith in Jesus keeps us strong in our suffering and gives purpose to it.
Prayer: Jesus, thank you for showing us your love through your created world. Help us to remember by looking at our Christmas Tree that your love is constant for us, and that you have given our lives meaning by planning it from so long ago.
(Conclude with your favorite family prayer, or an Our Father, Hail Mary & Glory Be)
Family Questions: Why do you think we celebrate Advent for weeks before Christmas? What is your favorite part of these celebrations and why?
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