Godly Play at Home - The Holy Family

by Susan Jardin

The Holy Family

Our first Godly Play story this fall is The Holy Family. Why are we starting our season of Godly Play with this story? We don't actually start to talk about the Holy Family until Advent, at the end of November, right? Well, you might have noticed that The Holy Family sit on top of the focal shelf in the Little Wonders and Explorer rooms. They are probably one of the first things you notice when you walk into the room, and the storyteller sits right in front of them when sharing a Bible story. They must be very important. At the beginning of every Godly Play year, in September, we remember the Holy Family because they are the center of our faith, a family out of which new life comes. Did you notice that they now stand on a green cloth, which reminds us that we are in the green growing part of the church year? And, on the shelf right underneath the Holy Family, is the Christ Candle! Can you spot it in the photo below? You know a lot about the Christ Candle - many of you have changed the light at the end of Godly Play time. Is there someone in your family that you can share what the Christ Candle is with?

Make Your Own Holy Family!

Do you have a spot in your room or in one of the spaces in your house where you could put your Holy Family? Would you like to cut out the figures that are enclosed here? You can either color them in, or keep them as they are. Maybe they will rest on top of a piece of green felt or construction paper? Maybe you can draw green grass on a piece of paper to lay them on? Whatever you decide is fine. And now you will be ready for Advent, which is coming up in a couple of months. You will have your Holy Family ready to use when we share the stories of Jesus and Mary making their way to Bethlehem where baby Jesus is born.