Jesus Had Special Helpers

Have you ever walked around in a library? Maybe you’ve walked around in the grown-up section, and you’ve seen books and books about things you don’t even understand. Then you know how much
there really is to learn!

In today’s Gospel reading, our Lord reminds us how much there is to learn…about God. Jesus had special helpers, His disciples. God gave the disciples special help so they could help Him. These men were just regular people, but God gave them special help. In the Gospel, Jesus prays, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.”

View and Download this week’s Children’s Word.

SAINT LUKE: THE EVANGELIST

Do you have a favorite author? Maybe you really like a book series, and you wish it would never end. Maybe you keep wanting to read more and more. The Holy Bible was written by lots of authors. And when you get to reading it, you might have a favorite author or a favorite chapter. Today we celebrate the feastday of Saint Luke.

He is called an evangelist, because he wrote down the Good News (evangelion, in Greek) about our Lord, Jesus Christ. Remember, we have four Evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. They all wrote about Jesus’ life, what He said, and what happened to Him.

One great thing about Saint Luke is that he wrote a sequel to his Gospel! You might have heard some stories from the Acts of the Apostles. That’s the chapter of the Bible where we hear about the new Christian Church. We hear about how it grew and grew. We hear about the first Christians who gave so much to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. We hear about the dangerous adventures of Saint Paul and Saint Peter.

Welcome to “The Children’s Word,” a weekly ministry of the Orthodox Christian Network. Each week, Presvytera Alexandra Houck writes this little newsletter for young parishioners! You will find age-appropriate articles, stories, and activities in every edition. The newsletter is provided in PDF format so that you can easily download and print it, and share it.

Each issue includes a message on the Sunday Gospel lesson and on one of the saints for the week. You’ll also find a coloring page and other activities. It is designed for a 8.5 x 14 page, so it can be printed and folded.