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Introduction to the Sacraments: JK - Gr. 1

Resource: Grade 2 SUS Copts Curriculum | Lesson 2.3 - United in the Sacraments: The Benefits of the Sacraments

Presentation Slides: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1r4GKei8FW_7tZ3hO6g74gR4Cz1BCmW8awOiGCRp3FJI/edit?usp=sharing 

What is a Sacrament

  • Ask the kids who knows what a sacrament is
    • A sacrament is a special and mystical sacrament in our church where God does something divine. We cannot always see it with our own eyes, but it is a blessing, a grace, and a gift from God that God does through Abouna. Through these sacraments, we get united with Christ.
  • Ask the kids how many sacraments we have in the Church. We have seven sacraments in the Church. We receive blessings of the Holy Spirit through the sacraments.
  • Remember, a sacrament is an invisible blessing, but we receive it when we participate in a visible activity a priest performs.
  • There are two parts to a Sacrament: the visible material and the invisible blessing.

Seven Sacraments Overview

  • Ask the kids to try to list all the sacraments. 
    • Baptism
      • The visible material is the water the priests place the baby in. The water represents our second birth from Water and Spirit. The blessing is we become members of God’s family. 
    • Chrismation
      • Chrismation happens at the same event as baptism, but the priest anoints the baby with the oil of Myron. The blessing is that the Holy Spirit dwells in us and unites with us. 
    • Confession
      • When we make mistakes, disobey our parents, or do anything that goes against what God told us to do in the Bible, we need to confess our sins to a priest. Abouna prays a special prayer called the prayer of absolution over us so God can wipe away our sins again, which helps prepare us to take communion. Imagine you are wearing a white shirt, and every time you sin, it gets dirty. When we go to Abouna and confess/receive absolution, the dirty shirt gets cleaned again. 
    • Communion
  • Ask the kids, when we take communion, what it is that we are taking.
      • When we go to liturgy, Throughout Liturgy, the Holy Spirit comes down to the altar to transform the visible bread and wine into the “invisible” Holy Body and Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. Every time we take Communion, Christ abides in us and us in Him
    • Marriage
  • Ask the kids if they’ve ever been to a wedding. 
    • When you go to a wedding, you can see a bride and a groom, two distinct people; however, when they receive the prayers from Abouna the Holy Spirit comes down upon them and unites them so that they are one. On the outside, we see two people but on the inside, they are One with Christ
  • Priesthood
    • A bishop or Pope ordains a man, who accepts the prayers of the Priesthood, to become a priest. As a priest, he gains the grace to become to perform many church services and sacraments. 
  • Unction of the Sick
    • When someone is sick, Abouna anoints them with a special oil (different than the myron in chrismation), and through the priest and oil, God heals the person and protects them/stands with them in their sickness. 


Floating vs Sinking Lemon in Water Activity

  • Run two “mini-experiments” with the kids to help them grasp the idea of a sacrament and the visible/invisible blessings.
  • **Test experiment works before running in front of the kids**
    • Materials
      • Clear jug of water
      • Fresh lemon/lime
      • Table salt
      • Spoon 
  • **Can set up multiple jugs and lemons and get kids to volunteer to come up and run experiments with you** 
    • Experiment 1: Lemon in normal water
  • Ask the kids for their predictions on what will happen when you drop a lemon into a glass of water.
    • Drop the lemon into the jug of water. The lemon should sink to the bottom.
  • Experiment 2: Lemon is salt water
    • Take the lemon out of the water and stir in a few spoons of salt into the jug.
    • Put the lemon back into the jug of water. The lemon should float to the top. 
  • Purpose of the experiment:
    • The lemon is the visible, material component of a sacrament. The salt represents the invisible blessing and the works of the Holy Spirit. We don’t see the salt in the water after we have mixed it in but we know it is there because the lemon floats in the water instead of sinking to the bottom/


Second Activity

  • Match the material and blessing to the sacrament. 
  • Print pages 61-63 from the resource document and cut out the pictures. Get the kids to work in groups together to match them up. 


Slideshow ideas:

  • Have real pictures corresponding with each sacrament as you explain each one. Also, include the material and blessing icons? 




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