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SUNDAY 11TH OCTOBER 2009

Twenty-Eighth Sunday of the Year [CYCLE B]

MAIN MESSAGE

[This is for reference only. Please do not read it at Mass]

We bring out the message of todays liturgy by talking about HANDS: hands that are open and

empty; and hands that are closed. Our poster asks the question Which hand do you think God likes?

The rich young man of the Gospel was holding on to his riches and so was not able to accept Jesus

invitation and receive all had to offer him. On the other hand, Peter and the other disciples had left

everything to follow Christ.

We lead the children to be conscious of Gods call to give up certain things and to be open to him:

to move from closed hands to open hands.

INTRODUCTION

Celebrant:

Children, have you ever played Which Hand? with your daddy? He puts his hands behind his back

and puts a chocolate in one of them. Then he closes his hands and shows them to you. He asks you,

Which hand? You look at both the hands carefully, and if you notice that one is looking a bit

bigger, you choose it. If you have guessed right, you get the chocolate!

Look at the poster. Theres one closed hand and one open one. Theres also a question for you to

answer: Which hand do you think God likes? Lets think about it.

LITURGY OF THE WORD:

Commentator: In this reading someone had to choose. On one side there was gold and jewels, health

and beauty. On the other side was wisdom. Can you guess which one he chose?

First Reading: Wisdom 7:7-11.

Psalm: 90:12&14, 16-17abc.

Commentator: In the gospel story we will hear about a man who was holding onto something tight. You

could say his hands were closed. Because of this he couldnt follow Jesus.

Gospel: Mark 10:17-30.

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Homily:

Lets see what you think about the question I asked you at the beginning of the mass. [Refer to

poster] Which hand do you think God likes? The closed one, or the open one? Youre right!

When your Daddy plays Which hand with you, you choose the hand which looks full, because you

want to get a chocolate. But when God looks at us, he chooses empty hands, not hands that are full,

because he wants to give us something. He cant give us anything if our hands are full and if we are

holding on tight to other things.

Do you know how people catch monkeys in Africa? There may be different ways, but Ill tell youone very funny way. The men make holes in tree trunks and they fill the holes with nuts. Then the

men go away and hide in the bushes. Monkeys love nuts, so as soon as the men go away, they come

and put their hands into the holes. They pick up as many nuts as they can, but then, when they try to

pull their hands out they cant, because the opening of the hole is small and now their hands are full

of nuts. So what do you think the monkeys do?... Instead of letting go of the nuts and running away,

they shout and cry because they cant get their hands out! Then the men come and throw a net over

them and catch them.

You must be thinking, What stupid monkeys! But I know many people who act just like them.

Sometimes we act like them too. We hold on tight to money or things and so we cannot get free.

The devil is very happy, because when we love things so much, we cant follow God. But God is sad,

because he wants us to follow him and be happy. In the Gospel we saw a rich young man who met Jesus. He really wanted to go with Jesus and be

happy with him, because he liked Jesus very much. But he loved his money and his things too much.

His hands were full and he couldnt let go. And so, instead of going with Jesus, he went home sad.

Just like the foolish monkeys in Africa.

When Jesus saw the young man walk away he felt sad. He said, How hard it is for rich people to

enter Gods kingdom.

Peter and the other disciples were not like the young man. They had left everything: their homes, their

jobs, their friends and had followed Jesus. Jesus said, You will surely get your reward!

What about you? Are you holding on tight to certain things?

o

If Jesus wants you to give up your window seat in the bus and let someone else sit there, will yougive it?... Or do you love your place too much?

o If he asks you to share your packet of chips with your friend, will you?... Or do you love your chips

too much?

o If he says to you in your heart, Put off the TV and help your Mummy. She is looking very tired.

Will you listen?... Or do you love the TV too much?

If you want to live with Jesus and enjoy his friendship, then try your best to open your hands and let

go. Only then can Jesus fill you with his love.

OFFERTORY:

Celebrant/ Teacher: Be silent now, close your eyes and think: Is there anything that is keeping away

from coming closer to Jesus? It may be something you love too much. Maybe you watch too much TV

and dont have any time left for doing the things you should do.

Choose one thing that you feel is stopping you from following Jesus.

If you are ready to let go, imagine you are putting this thing into your hands Close your hands and

imagine it is in your hands Now slowly open your hands and say in your mind, Lord I give up this to

you. I want your friendship. I want you more than everything else.

APPROPRIATE HYMNS

ENTRANCE: Come Bless the Lord

(All you children of the Lord who stand by day)

OFFERTORY: Do You Want My Hands

COMMUNION: Jesus, What a Wonder You Are

RECESSIONAL: Ive Got Something

PREPARATION REQUIRED:

Practice the readings.

Make the poster and put up.

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Teach us to use wisely all thetime we have.When morning comes, let your

lovesatisfy all our needs.

GOSPEL: A reading from the holy Gospel according to St.Mark.

As Jesus was walking down a road, a man ran up to him. He kneeleddown, and asked,Good teacher, what can I do to have eternal life? Jesus replied, Whydo you call me good? Only God is good. You know the commandments.Do not murder. Be faithful in marriage. Do not steal. Do not tell liesabout others. Do not cheat. Respect your father and mother.

The man answered, Teacher, I have obeyed all these commandmentssince I was a young man.

Jesus looked closely at the man. He loved him and said, Theres onething you still need.

Go sell everything you own. Give the money to the poor, and you willhave riches in heaven.

Then come with me.

When the man heard Jesus say this, he went away sad because he wasvery rich.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, How hard it is for richpeople to get into Gods kingdom! The disciples were shocked to hearthis. So Jesus told them again, Its terribly hard to get into Godskingdom! In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a

FIRST READING: A reading from the book of Wisdom:

I prayed for understanding, and it was given to me. I askedGod for Wisdom, and it came to me.I valued Wisdom more than power and kingdoms. Richeswere nothing compared with Wisdom. I considered her more

valuable than priceless jewels. Gold was nothing but sand,and silver was merely mud, when compared with Wisdom.I loved her more than good health and beauty. I preferredWisdom to light, because she is much brighter. Wisdom has

PSALM: Response: Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we

ALLELUIA: Alleluia, alleluia. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the kingdom

Do wonderful things for us, yourservants,and show your mighty power to

our children.Our Lord and our God,

NB. All Readin s are taken from the Lectionar for Masses with Children