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Here is an Orthodox Christian Worksheet and Lesson on the Nativity that includes a bit of theology we often overlook. Although it might be for older ones, I hope it offers details that the younger ones can comprehend as well. Click here for the PDF Lesson available at the Orthodox Christian Scribd Group. Wishing you and your families a blessed Nativity ~

Try a "Candy Cane Hunt" with your families, friends, or parishes before Christmas this year. You can print out tags to wrap around each cane if you like with a short spiritual poem. We usually have adults hide the candy canes off fences, tree branches, under low bushes and parking lot car mirrors then dismiss the youngest kids first, giving them a head start to gather candy for their brown lunch bags! It's a great way to get out energy after the Divine Liturgy or during the days home from school!

Every holy-day season it seems Hollywood introduces a film to smear the true Christmas story and our holy Orthodox tradition with jokes, animation, wrongful depiction and false ideas of the persons of Jesus Christ, Mary, the Magi, etc. Last year (2017), the movie was called "The Star."  I am convinced that when we "lighten up" and use humor for holy things the end is not entertainment, but a desensitization to holiness and destruction of true faith. It could be otherwise called blasphemy. They have put words into the onscreen mouths of individuals that never spoke them. And what children see.....children believe... Alternatively, what children don't see....children will use their imagination to bridge the gap, for example, between what they see in an icon and the story they hear from the Gospel. Who today is explaining that Joseph was an honorable widow of 80 years and not the young strapping boyfriend to the most pure Virgin Theotokos?  (Buy this book here )...

God is with us (Matthew 1:23) All the Earth worships Thee (Psalm 66:4)   His name shall endure forever (Psalm 72: 17) He is our God, the God of salvation (Psalm 68:20) There shall come a Star out of Jacob (Numbers 24:17) He will save His people from their sins ( Matthew 1:20-21 ) For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given (Isaiah 9:6) He said, “Thou art My Son; on this day have I begotten Thee ” (Psalm 2:7) We have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him (Matthew 2:2) You will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger (Luke 2:12) For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord ( Luke 2:11) Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel ( Isaiah 7:14) The Angels cried out, Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men (Luke 2:14)   He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting F...

The sayings of the prophets are now fulfilled! Use this study to learn the prophecies of the Old Testament with your children and teenagers. (Download the free printable PDF file here, in color or black/white.) All verses are weaved into the hymns of the Orthodox Church and chanted during the Christmas services. The richness and depth of the season is remarkable!      Complete this "Root of Jesse Tree" by first gluing the Mother of God in place, and adding a prophet as you study them with the verses below. The tradition of this icon can often be found with an image of Jesse reclining at the bottom of the icon as the root - the Mother of God becomes the "rod" who springs forth the "fruit" who is Christ (2nd century Bishop Irenaeus of Lyons, St Ambrose of Milan, and 8th c St Cosmas) Here are the memory verses: A shoot will come forth from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. ( Isaiah 11:1) Her womb was foreshadowed by the burning ...

********REVISED********** Click on the crossword puzzle to the right for a little Christmas trivia! Located for free download here. Hopefully, it will be challenging for parents and kids of all ages. "Make ready, O Bethlehem: let the manger be prepared, let the cave show its welcome. The truth has come, the shadow has passed away..." Sticheron at the Royal Hours by St Sophronius of Jerusalem

In response to those of you who asked for more teen resources, here is a lesson that I believe our teens are capable of grasping. Often, we don't give them enough substance - so get ready to challenge them! Using the text "On the Incarnation" by Saint Athanasios, you can lead your group to a deeper understanding of why God needed to come in what we celebrate as the feast of the Nativity. By drawing out important quotes and asking the right questions, we can essentially tackle the messages of creation, salvation, and theosis with them. If you so choose, make a scavenger hunt of these hidden quotes from the lesson plan alone to lead them through the lesson!  Cut in strips, and hide them around your Church - taking them from places like where we enter our spiritual journey (the door) to where we find refreshing drink (the water fountain) to a reflection in the mirror to better see mankind's position to God. Regroup at the end to compile and discuss the quotes by glui...

Each year, we begin decorating our home on November 15, as we begin the 40 day fast for Christmas. It's beneficial for all to begin seeing the transformation around us and within us.  Here are the 40 days in icons. We're aiming to cut them out, and create an ornament for each day until Christmas. If you follow the old calendar, I can post January as well. Enhance this activity by chanting the troparion for each day, or paste a short story from the Saints' life on the backside of each ornament. At this link, many Orthodox ornaments are sold, and you can get a few ideas: http://www.easterngiftshop.com/Category/CO Paste each icon in the center of a star or snowflake if you wish!  gold star After you're finished, that's forty ornaments! Plenty to fill a tree!

The Nativity lenten season has begun... will God find an available "dwelling place" to be born? Will there be room at our inn? When He comes, as He did then to the city of Bethlehem, to knock on our doors....will there be room in our homes, in our hearts, and in the sometimes darkness of our lives for Panagia to lay and give birth to the giver of ever-lasting peace? What state will He find our caves in? Ready, asleep, or full to capacity with other things? You see, the cave is not only a physical place of historical importance, but a spiritual metaphor for each one of us. Isn't it also interesting that so many monks/nuns in our Orthodox tradition took up residence in an actual cave, where they decorated it with icons and burning vigil lamps living their lives in complete concentration and stillness. Hence, the "Light was born into darkness." Literally, and symbolically. How, might we ask, could God who is grander in size than any other "fit into" the ...

Here is an excellent way to teach the Nativity and meaning of Christmas in an Orthodox Christian animation for your children and teens. It is brief, but rich with iconography and hymnology in three languages! Visit the link below and even send it as a greeting card. http://www.hamatoura.com/GreetingCard/Greetings.php?subject=Nativity%20of%20Jesus%20Christ&link=06JesusNativity-En The hymn proclaims the Kontakion: Today the virgin giveths birth to Him Who is the Servent in Essence and the earth offereth a cave to Him who is unapproachable Angels with shepherds give glory, with a Star the Magi do journey, for our sake a young Child is born, who is pre- eternal God.  

  It seems the most common thing families are looking for are Orthodox coloring icons! So here are the ones I have for the Nativity Christmas season. (Potamitis Publishing has others for sale.) Also a few talking points for the icons St John Chrysostom reminds us of the odd behavior of such a star that led the Magi from the east. It appeared in daylight! It acted like no other by coming down from the heavens to practically eye level. It disappeared while in the presence of Herod, and reappeared afterward. Also, the magi themselves were well trained in the behavior of stars - this was their daily work! Traveling far, their ethnicity symbolizes that the Gospel will reach the Gentiles and people of the East. Their gifts are full of meaning - gold for the King of all ages, frankincense for God of all, and myrrh for His three days in the tomb as fully man. Sometimes we ask why is Joseph turned away? The theological answer is often because he shows us he is not the father of Christ, ...

As we draw near to celebrating the Nativity of Christ, we often ask what gift can we offer to Christ, especially a tangible one for our children to make. It is easy to overlook and under value the simple things that we can do with our own hands. If we are attending Church, one of the greatest offerings we can bring to Christ is the bread used to become His Holy Body. "Prosforo" literally means offering, as in offering a gift....perfect for Christmas! See the lesson below for Scripture quotes and ingredient significance. Many of you may have held Prosforo workshops before at your parishes. Great! Do it again and again - the kids love it! Next time, arrange a few of the following activities to enhance the experience: NEW Lesson Plan & Puzzle activity of the Proskomidi: located here where each child cuts and glues the pieces of the Seal to understand their significance. NEW book from Potamitis Publishing " Yiayia and the Prosphoron" located here in many languag...

As Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Pre-Christmas parties are approaching with great popularity, for us, it is a frequent reminder to "stay the course" and focus on the calendar of the Church. We are Orthodox Christians living in secular societies, and although these conversations can be challenging with other PTA moms and co-workers, I thought I'd share how we at least try to respond. It's not worth it to get into debates about whether or not such activities have pagan roots, or if they are simply harmless celebrations of costumes and candy, of turkey, family and football.  The only question to ask is: Are we giving our children the best chance for a holy life? We often go digging through trash to find a spark of something good to hang on to, especially, in order to justify our participation in events that our consciences speak otherwise about. This struggle can leave us troubled in our thoughts and souls, wondering if we did the right thing. I like to remove all doubt...

(Initially posted in 2009) Here is a small book compiled on the life and miracles of Saint Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra. It is my first attempt to extract scenes from "vita" icons of the Church's beloved Saints in order to bring them to life with simple stories for children and teens. I hope this idea can extend into a series, maybe one day even a published collection, to build our libraries with illustrated books for years to come ~ May it be of some small use to you and your families. A PDF file can be downloaded from the Scribd.com Orthodox Education Collection here.

Just wanted to share our small craft that we'll be doing with kids ages 3-12 for Christmas. We've ordered these very reasonably priced wooden photo frames, which includes a latch backing and clear photo protector. The children will decorate with glitter paint, markers, pencil, beads, crayon,sparkle stars and more...and we will insert an icon of their choice from the Nativity selection.  Here is the site to order the ornament frames and other craft goodies http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?product=15805&keyword=ornaments&scategoryid=0&CategorySearch=&Brand=&Price= We're either considering printing various icons ourselves, to ensure the proper size, or we may even have the children color their icon first. If you are also planning a craft idea or lesson, please do share! The beginning of our fast begins before you know it. How time flies~

 "Children of all ages are invited to enter into the feast day of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ in this second book offered by the Sisters of All Saints Greek Orthodox monastery. Here you will find the rich and poetic words of Orthodox hymnography and illustrations based on traditional byzantine iconography. This humble offering will inspire every reader to worship and bow down to our Creator who became incarnate for our salvation." ORDER NOW the second book of this series as a Christmas gift for your families. Contact the Sisters at hagionpanton@gmail.com All Saints Greek Orthodox Monastery Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, Direct Archdiocesan District P.O. Box 802 1676 Middle Rd. Calverton, NY 11933

“You must understand why it is that the Word of the Fathe r , so great and so high, has been made manifest in bodily form." “Christ has been manifested in a human body for this reason only, out of the love and goodness of His Father, for the salvation of us men ”  “It was our sorry case that caused the Word to come down, our transgression that called out His love for us , so that He made haste to help us and to appear among us. “… the human race was in process of destruction … what then was God, being Good, to do?” “It was unthinkable that God, the Father of Truth, should go back upon His word regarding death in order to ensure our continued existence.” “… corruption could not be got rid of otherwise than through death ”  “For by the sacrifice of His own body He did two things: ' He put an end to the law of death which barred our way; and He made a new beginning of life for us, by giving us the hope of resurrection.” "The word became flesh (that is, man) , th...

If you're not familiar with the idea of an "Orthodox Christmas Ornament Exchange" like the one hosted by Sylvia at www.orthodoxmom.com , be sure to check it out and initiate an exchange in your circle of friends! This fantastic idea has encouraged Orthodox pen pals amongst our children across the globe, and I can honestly say, our 3 year old seems to comprehend the idea, and is quite enthusiastic about it! Pictured here are our ornaments this year. We found things around the house, and used our own very hands to glue, glitter, string beads and weave ribbons! All of which were good practice in the realm of eye-hand coordination skills! Who would have thought those plastic balls from the ball pit jungle gyms could suffice as Christmas bulbs? And the best part - they are light weight to ship and no risk of breaking! So, off to the post office we go tomorrow, to send our small packages of love from Germany ~ We look forward to adding to our tree the new ornaments from your...

Introducing the first book, "Our Hymn to the Mother of God" as part of a full-color hard bound Orthodox children's series now available for purchase by the Sisters of All Saints Greek Orthodox Monastery in Calverton, Long Island, New York. It has been a joy to work with them to publish this special project, as their idea of using the hymnology of the Church to retell the story to children just couldn't be more appropriate! The spiritual poetry on each page is matched with wonderful original illustrations by Sister Theonymphi in the style of Byzantine iconography, which means you won't find anything theologically wrong like a cartoon image of Christ! The heavenly scenes will inspire all children to contemplate our Almighty God. Here are a few sneak peaks, and the information for ordering: The sisters hope to soon make their copies available through Amazon online, as well as parish bookstores, etc.   ISBN Number: 978-0-9835602-0-3 All Saints Greek Orthodox Monas...