Incarnation

OBJECTIVE

In this module we will be using the creed to highlight important faith concepts. One of the main authors of the Creed was Saint Athanasius, the twentieth Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church. It was written to specifically address any questions about our faith.

In today's lesson we will build on what we have learned in the past two lessons with a focus on Christ's Incarnation. The fourth graders will learn why God came as Man, His Divinity and Humanity, and the role of our Mother, the Virgin Mary.

INTRODUCTION & HOOK - 5 Minutes

Please review the previous week's lesson on salvation. (5 minutes)

Think of a favorite Saint that you have always wanted to meet in person?

Go around the room and ask the students what they would want to ask them and why it would be different to meet them in person versus just hearing about them.

This week the fourth graders will learn about how God the Son became Man and met His people face-to-face, in order to fulfill His plan of salvation for us.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 5 Minutes

Memory Verse: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14

Have the fourth graders read the Creed together in one voice. Before they begin, tell them to keep their eyes and ears open for the word "incarnate" and how God became Man for His great love for each of us.

We believe in one God, God the Father the Pantocrator who created heaven and earth, and all things seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-Begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages; Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not created, of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made;

Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy spirit and the Virgin Mary and became Man. And He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried. And on the third day He rose from the dead, according to the scriptures, ascended to the heavens; He sits at the right hand of his Father, and He is coming again in His glory to judge the living and the dead, Whose kingdom shall have no end.

Yes, we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Life-Giver, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.

And in one holy, catholic and apostolic church. We confess one baptism for the remission of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the coming age. Amen.

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 15 Minutes

The Creed uses the word "incarnate". Ask the fourth graders if anyone knows what that word means. Give lots of encouragement and positive feedback; even if they get it wrong, it's important to thank them for trying.

Incarnate means when God became Man. It's important to emphasize that He was 100% Human, but also 100% Divine. He never lost His Divinity while He was a Man. The Divine Liturgy tells us, "His Divinity parted not from His Humanity for a single moment, nor a twinkling of an eye; given for us for salvation, remission of sins, and eternal life to those who partake of Him."

But why would God choose to leave His heavenly kingdom to come to earth? Because He loves us After Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, humanity became separated from God. While God could have left us in this state, He instead saved us in His great love and compassion. We see God's love especially in the fact that He did not send anyone, like an angel, a patriarch, or a prophet to save us, but rather, He Himself became human like one of us in order to save all of us. Everything He did in the flesh, such as teaching, healing, raising the dead, etc. was to show us His love and lead us to salvation, which is our true goal in life. No matter how many beautiful and wonderful things God gave us to enjoy in this world, they are ultimately not our true goal and destiny; instead, as St. Augustine famously said, "Lord, we were created to be with You and our hearts will never rest until they find their rest in You"

Our Lord Jesus Christ came down to earth to show us that our destiny is not death, but ‎eternal life. He died and resurrected and ascended to open the door for us ‎to eternal life and the Kingdom of God. Death no longer has power ‎over us, because our Lord conquered death with His death.‎

But how did God become Man? The answer is our beloved Saint Mary We call her Theotokos, because she is the Mother of God. We also call her the Second Heaven, because her womb became the home of God.

In the litany of the first hour of the Agpeya, we read, "for the Father chose you, the Holy Spirit overshadowed you, and the Son condescended and took flesh from you." All Three Persons of the Holy Trinity blessed Saint Mary because she is the pride of the human race and the best of all humanity.

That is why Saint Mary's intercessions or prayers on our behalf are the best, because she is our Lord's mom God said we have to honor our father and mother, so our Lord Himself has to honor Saint Mary

Another name that we call Saint Mary is the "Second Eve." Sin spread from the first woman, Eve, who was the "mother of the living." Salvation came to us in Christ through the Holy Virgin Mary, the "Second Eve," who is not only the "mother of the living," but rather, the mother of Life Himself.

In the Holy Virgin Mary's womb was the Son of God Who came to save us from our great enemies --- sin and death --- and bridge the separation between us and God forever. This is the beginning of our salvation

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 10 Minutes

Show the three icons portraying the Incarnation and Nativity of our Lord to the fourth graders. Discuss what they see in the icons. Offer lots of encouragement and positive feedback to fuel participation. Guide them to observe the following elements in the icons:

  • In the first icon is the Annunciation, the Holy Spirit is depicted as a dove descending on our beloved Saint Mary.
  • Saint Mary is portrayed as a young girl with braids and doing productive work, making thread from wool.
  • Saint Mary has stars on her cloak to represent her rank as the "Second Heaven," because she held God in her womb.
  • In the second icon is the Nativity. The Spanish words in the right hand corner translate to "The Holy Family". This icon was selected because of the portrayal of the blessing of God the Father in the left hand corner, as a hand in Heaven.
  • The last icon is a Coptic icon of the Nativity. The blessings of the Father are portrayed by light shining down on our Lord Jesus.
  • Other elements of the Nativity story are portrayed with the animals, the gifts of the magi, and the Lord's cradle.

LIFE APPLICATION - 10 Minutes

This week we should all try to imitate the Holy Virgin Mary, the Second Heaven, because her way of life and virtues made her worthy to be the Mother of God. She is a treasure of perfect virtues, like purity, humility, obedience, simplicity, faith, love, courage, and many others that we need to learn in order to attain salvation. Through her beautiful service, we were all able to attain salvation in her Son.

Saint Pope Kyrillos tells us the best way to celebrate the Incarnation: "Remember that Christ our Saviour was born in a manger of cattle in order to shore up the brokenness of the despised and the destitute. Do good to all. Do not distinguish in the doing of good between people's race or colour or creed. Make peace between a man and his companion, for your Christ is a Lord of peace and a worker of it."

ACTIVITY - 15 Minutes

Option One: Pictionary

Supplies: markers, two large notepad

Split the class into two teams, allow each group to name themselves with something related to the story of Incarnation, for example: Bethlehem team or Archangel Gabriel team.

Choose one person from each team to draw the clue you will give them on their team notepad. Give the clue to the two artists at the same time, then when they are ready, call "go" Whichever team guesses the clue first receives the point.

Use the following clues: "Second Heaven", "Second Eve", "Bethlehem", "manger", "shepherds", "annunciation", "Holy Family"

Option Two:

Print and distribute the codebreaker activity for the Incarnation memory verse in attachments. Make sure their names are on it, so they can take it home to practice during the week.

SERVANT RESOURCES

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

During your fourth graders' prayer routines this week, remind them to thank God for the great gift of Incarnation. Try to include the Creed in your prayer routines and encourage them to memorize it. Say the Creed on the way to school, before starting homework, and before going to bed. The more we recite the Creed together, it will be easier to memorize and keep the words close to their hearts.