PASSION PLAY

This afternoon I attend a wonderful dramatization of the central events of our Faith - the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord. 

 

Through prayer, drama and song the children of St Joseph's school helped us to meditate on the real meaning of Easter. 

 

Thank you to all the children and staff who have worked so hard in preparing today's service.

Our Jewish brothers and sisters celebrate the Passover as a family.  They remember the escape from slavery at the time of Moses and this sustains them and reminds them of God's everlasting love. 

 

The children explained the meaning and significance of the different elements of the Jewish Passover celebration and how the Jews remember how God rescued them from slavery.

 

They then reflected on how Jesus as a devout Jew came to celebrate the Passover with his disciples.  Jesus however gave a new meaning to the Passover when he took bread and wine, distributed them among His disciples saying that it was His Body and Blood and that when ever they met together they were to remember Him.

 

Through the use of different colours the children helped us to focus on different aspects of the life of Jesus and his Passion.

White is the colour of holiness and perfection, the colour of peace and new beginnings.

We thought about the Suffering Servant as written about by the Prophet Isaiah. 

''Long before Jesus was born a prophet spoke of a time that was to come, things that were to happen.  A person who would save people who were lost - lost like sheep, lost and far from God. He will be beaten and not cry out.  He will be like a lamb going to die.  He will be accused without reason and sent to die though nothing wicked had been in his heart or on his lips.  This is the one who will turn darkness into light and his light will lead us home. 

 

 

Dark colours make us think about sadness and injustice, about times in our lives and in the world when things go wrong. Things are beginning to go wrong when Jesus prays in the garden. 

 

This eventually lead to his arrest, crucifixion and death. 

 

 

As Christians we know that the death of Jesus was not the end of everything.  It is called Good Friday for a reason.

 

We believe that Jesus rose from the dead and is living with us now.

 

Some of our younger children helped us to reflect on the Resurrection by talking about and showing us many examples of new life that we see all around us each day.

 

 

 

 

 

Our celebration was concluded by the youngest members

of our school community singing a delightful song for us.