7th Week of Easter, Monday

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."

"You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit coming upon you,
and you will be my witnesses, even to the ends of the earth, alleluia."

(Entrance Antiphon)

(Read the quote, then each line slowly, with pauses to allow the children (and us!) to reflect on the questions.)

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven.

We have one more week of the season of Easter, and on Sunday we will celebrate the Feast of Great Love, Pentecost.

Today we will think about another one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (on Saturday we talked about the gift of Wisdom).

The second gift of the Holy Spirit is Understanding.

What do you think this gift could be about?

One way we can explain the gift of Understanding is that it sheds light on us to help us know God more.

What a wonderful gift - something that helps us to know God more.

Thank you, Jesus, for sending us the Holy Spirit. Thank you, Holy Spirit, for the gift of Understanding, to know You more.

(Allow any spontaneous prayers, perhaps leading by example. 3-6 year olds relate most naturally to God through prayers of praise and thanksgiving; 6+ will have started thinking about their needs and the needs of those around them in prayers of intercession. Some children may also just want quiet time to speak with God in their hearts.)

(Sing a simple hymn or chant if your children like singing. Or even if they don't ;) This can also be done at the beginning. )

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."