Matt 13 and Paper Magic!

A bit of a mixture today – links below for lectionary-based resources, and your liturgy at the bottom, of course, but the major part of this week’s post is an all-age illustration of Jesus’ transfiguration. It comes with a fab demo which can be used for all sorts of occasions and Bible texts. There’s a video of how to make it, a PDF and a bonus script for a different passage too. Goodness me. Don’t I treat you well?

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This week I’ve been tasked with the Intergen slot on Transfiguration, even though I did one not long ago, so I’m scratching my brain for something different to do. I can’t to the chromatography thing, because I did a science-and-faith thing three weeks ago … hmmm … puppets? … sketch? … ah! papercraft!

Here’s the script of the all-age talk with instructions. Great for Messy Church, collective worship (assemblies), kids clubs or – Shock Horror! – adults too! Golly gosh, yes, adults benefit from hands-on Bible study. Sticks in the mind, you know?

You will need:

Four strips of paper, 4cm x 30cm (or larger if you are doing an up-front demo)
scissors
glue sticks

What to do:

Glue one strip of paper into a normal loop.
Glue another strip into a loop, but give one end a half-twist before you stick it. This is a Mobius strip.
Make the other two strips into Mobius strips but MAKE SURE THEY GET TWISTED OPPOSITE WAYS! This is very important. Have a look at the video below if you are not sure. One must be twisted to the right and one to the left.
Glue them together in a cross shape. Again, refer to the video if you are not sure.

Script

Hello, today we’re going to talk about how something that looks ordinary, can be amazingly special. If smaller people would like to come to the front so that you can see better, come along now. Make sure your grown-ups are happy with you being on the live-feed. And I’m going to need two helpers. Bigger children, please, because you need to handle scissors. [Give helpers the two single strips and scissors.]

What do we have here? [Loop 1] A strip of paper in a loop. Pretty ordinary-looking. What do you think will happen if you cut it in two along its length? You will get two loops? Yes, that seems reasonable. Off you go. [Child cuts along middle of loop to make two loops] Great, just as we expected. Nothing surprising here.

Now what about this loop? [Loop 2] It’s very similar to the last one, but is does have this little twist in it. So it’s not quite ordinary. What do you think will happen if you cut it in two along its length? Two loops? Let’s try it. [Child cuts along middle of loop to make one large loop] Oh, that was rather special. Thank you to our helpers, a round of applause please.

Some of you may recognise the second loop as a Mobius strip, if you want to know more, come and chat to me afterwards. But I have a third Mobius strip here, [Loops 3&4] in fact it’s two Mobius strips stuck together. And, I don’t know about you, but I think it looks like a tangle of paper, like I tried to make a paper sculpture and it went wrong. Maybe I should throw this in the bin. What do you think? No? You think I should cut it in half? Alright. [Cut one loop and then other loop as you talk.]

Today, we are thinking about the Transfiguration, that time when something or someone ordinary-looking was shown to be amazingly special. Jesus went up a mountain with some of his disciples and his appearance was changed before their eyes. That’s what Transfiguration means.

When the disciples had first met Jesus, they probably thought he was like our first loop – pretty ordinary. Just a regular guy. Grubby feet and bit sweaty, but good with a hammer and nails. If you had a chair with a wobbly leg, he was the bloke to ask.

Then after they been with him a while, they worked out that maybe he was more like our second loop – a bit special. After all, he told pretty great stories and God answered his prayers for healing, and some of the things he said about himself …

But at the Transfiguration, Jesus showed that he was not our first loop of paper, not even our second loop. Jesus revealed himself as more special than they could ever have imagined.
Jesus shining in God’s glory as fully human and fully divine.
Jesus, God become one of us, to bring each of us to God.
Jesus, who looked ordinary, but who was really amazingly special.

In Jesus, God shows his love to us so that we can show our love to God. [Show two linked hearts.]

Click here for a PDF of this talk. Linked Hearts Transfiguration Talk

There’s video of how to make the double heart Mobius strips here (plus another bonus talk about the Samaritan woman at the well)

Liturgy for Proper 10

Psalm 119:105-112, Romans 8:1-11, Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Confession and Absolution

People who live following their sinful selves think only about what they want. Lord, be merciful.
Save us and help us.

If your thinking is controlled by your sinful self, there is spiritual death. Because anyone whose thinking is controlled by their sinful self is against God. Lord, be merciful.
Save us and help us.

They refuse to obey God’s law. And really they are not able to obey it. Those who are ruled by their sinful selves cannot please God. Lord, be merciful.
Save us and help us.

But you are not ruled by your sinful selves. You are ruled by the Spirit, if that Spirit of God really lives in you. Thanks be to God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Your body will always be dead because of sin. But if Christ is in you, then the Spirit gives you life, because Christ made you right with God. Thanks be to God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

God raised Jesus from death. And if God’s Spirit lives in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. Yes, God is the one who raised Christ from death, and he will raise you to life through his Spirit living in you. Thanks be to God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
Hallelujah! Thanks be to God!

Blessing and Dismissal

May God’s word be a lamp to your feet,
and may your path be lit.
May your heart incline to righteousness,
and may you have life according to his word.

And the blessing of God Almighty,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
be upon you and those you love
This day, this week and for evermore.
Amen.

Go as the good ground, receptive to God’s word
and yielding thirty, sixty or even one hundred-fold for the kingdom.
We will. Amen.