Children's Liturgy Series: 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

In today's Gospel, Jesus teaches us how to settle disputes and encourages us to pray to God for guidance in setting disputes.

Father in heaven we praise and glorify you. We thank you for bringing us together for this children's liturgy lesson.  Please send us the Holy Spirit so that we can have the understanding to hear and live out the message you have for us today. We pray this in Jesus's name. Amen.

Jesus said to his disciples:"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that 'every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."

Say: Raise your hand if you have had a disagreement with a friend or family member in the last two days. 

Raise your hand if you’ve had a disagreement in the last week. 

How about in the last two weeks? 

Say: Everyone has disagreements. Even when we love and care for our friends and family members, arguments happen. What’s most important is how we respond to them.

Say: Jesus knew that disagreements would happen. In today’s Gospel, Jesus talks about how we can resolve them. Listen carefully.

Read aloud today’s Gospel, Matthew 18:15–20.
Say: Jesus told us the person we should talk to first when we have a disagreement. Who is that? (the person we have the disagreement with) 

Say: If that person isn’t willing to listen and solve the disagreement, we might need to ask for help from other people.

Ask: Who are some people you might ask to help you with a disagreement you have at home or at school? (Accept reasonable answers.)

Say: We can also pray when we have disagreements. We can ask Jesus to help us calm down, listen respectfully, and ask for or offer forgiveness.

Say: Let’s take a moment to thank Jesus in the quiet of our hearts for teaching us about resolving disagreements.

Conclude by praying: Jesus, help us having loving and forgiving hearts so that we may always live in good relationship with our family, friends, and neighbors. Amen

Using the clay provided, sculpt one of the following objects, to help us remember today's lesson on how to settle disputes:

• Bridge -the bridge signifies the role of communication in bridging differences and finding solutions.
• Peace Dove - the peace dove signifies reconciliation through listening, communicating, and understanding one another.

Father in Heaven we thank you for the lesson today. Please bless each one of us in this room. Please help us to remember to seek your help in prayer when we are trying to settle a dispute with our friends or family. We trust in your guidance and your ability to grant us wisdom in times where we need it the most. Amen.