Jul
8
Written by:
host
7/8/2009 7:00 AM
When you are a child, starting a new school year is an important event. It takes preparation – getting school supplies and sometimes new clothes. It invokes anticipation and sometimes trepidation – Who will my teacher be? Will I be in the same class as my friends? And as a child advances to a new grade, it is a visible recognition that he or she is growing up. Even as an adult, I find that there is something special about the start of the school year.
Going to school is the “work” that children do. It occupies a large amount of their time. Learning is their job. As the beginning of the new school year approaches, churches have an opportunity to affirm the work of our children and to encourage them to share God’s love as they learn about God’s world. One way to do this is to have a Blessing of the Backpacks the Sunday before school starts. This is also a good time to affirm the work of those adults involved in education – teachers, parents, cafeteria workers, custodians, school secretaries, etc.
You will need to announce the Blessing of the Backpacks a couple of Sundays ahead of time and ask children to bring their backpacks to church on the designated Sunday. (Consider also inviting youth, college students and adults who are in school to bring their backpacks.) At the designated time in the service, invite the children to bring their backpacks forward. If a child has forgotten his or her backpack, assure them that the blessing is for them and that their backpack will still be blessed even at home. Some churches give the children a token as a sign of the blessing, such as a keychain that reads, “God is with me wherever I go” or a bookmark.
There is a litany for Blessing of the Backpacks on the Different Voice website. If you search for "Blessing of the Backpacks" you will also find several services available on the internet. Do you have a service for Blessing of the Backpacks that you would be willing to share? You may do that here.
~Sally Hoelscher
1 comment(s) so far...
Re: Blessing of the Backpacks
I love this idea! I will let you know how it goes if we end up doing it. Thank you!
Also, does anyone who has done this in the past have liturgies, prayers, etc. they can share?
I could also see this being combined with a service project of collecting and donating new backpacks to underprivileged children and youth...
This is great stuff. Thanks for sharing the idea.
By MikeP on
7/8/2009 7:14 AM
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