Note: On Palm Sunday there is usually a blessing of the palms and a procession at the start of Mass, as well as the reading of this first gospel. You could improvise your own procession at home.
Opening Prayer
Hands together, fingers pointing up to heaven, eyes closed.
Heavenly Father, you we thank you for giving us Jesus to be our Light. Help us to follow Him as we get ready for Easter. We ask this through Christ our Lord . Amen.
Sorry Song (to the tune of If you’re happy and you know it)
When we say that you are sorry, God forgives.
When we say that you are sorry, God forgives.
If our sins are large or small,
God will still forgive them all.
When we say that we are sorry, God forgives.
Gospel Acclamation (different through Lent and Easter) to the tune of London Bridge is falling down
Share your word with us O Lord,
Us O Lord,
Us O Lord.
Share your word with us O Lord,
Help us listen.
The Lord be with you. All: And with your spirit. (teach them this)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew All: Glory to you, O Lord. (teach them this)
All: “Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
Gospel Matthew 21:1-11
Jesus and his disciples arrived at the Mount of Olives just outside Jerusalem. He sent two of the disciples to the next village to collect a donkey and her foal. "If anyone stops you, tell them that they are for me," he said. They brought the animals to Jesus and put their cloaks on the donkey's backs so that Jesus could ride on them. When the people heard that Jesus was coming, they laid their cloaks on the road before him and pulled branches off the palm trees to wave in the air The crowds grew more and more excited and shouted at the top of their voices, "Hosanna, Hosanna! Blessed is the one sent by the Lord." Excitement filled the whole city and some people asked, "Who is this man?" The people answered them, "It is Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee."
Suggestions for the Discussion
Has anyone ever been to a parade? They can be really fun. Parades are held to celebrate special events – like the Christmas Parade or to honour a special occasion.
Today we are going to make our own parade. I want you to pretend you have some flags and you to pretend you have some noisemakers (split the group into two and show them what to do). Those of you with flags will need to wave them like this, (wave your hand as though you were waving a flag) and those of you with noisemakers will need to blow them like this, (pretend to hold a noisemaker close to your mouth and say “toot, toot”)! Pretend the parade is getting closer – are you ready? Let’s practice blowing our flags and blowing our noisemakers.
Oh - I can hear the music and I see the floats coming. Here they come! Let’s welcome them with our flags and noisemakers (children will wave their pretend flags and toot toot their pretend noisemakers). We can stop now - they have gone past. The celebration is over.
In our Bible story today, a King was visiting Jerusalem. Who was the King? Jesus. Did He come in a fancy wagon, all dressed up? No. What did He ride on? A donkey.
As He rode through the city, people waved their palm branches and shouted “Hosanna to the Son of God!” Today it is Palm Sunday and we remember His entry to Jerusalem by celebrating with palm branches. Palm Sunday marks the beginning of a week that had many changes for Jesus leading to Easter.
As we prepare for Easter, let us welcome Jesus into our lives by doing our best to live as He taught us to. We can keep working on being kinder and more thoughtful, more truthful and sharing . We should pray every day, ask for forgiveness for our mistakes, and listen to our parents, carers etc. We can also encourage our friends to come to church as we do, to learn about God and Jesus.
Prayer: Dear Jesus, our voices join together like the people in Jerusalem saying, “Hosanna!Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” In Your name we pray. Amen.
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