One of the ways to bridge the Sunday Morning “box” to the home is with a Jesus Doll. After adding a home kit, it has been a wonderful tool to tie our parish and faith to a family’s home life. Children have loved their turn with the doll and kit. Parents love having a format to discuss Jesus and faith.
The family gets the Jesus Doll and Home kit on Sunday morning and return it the following Sunday. I send an email during the week to let the coming family know their turn with the doll and kit will start the coming Sunday. I, also, send an email to the family who has the doll, asking them to send pictures and reminding them to bring it with them on Sunday.
The photographs returned are full of smiles as the child(ren) take Jesus on their different adventures. Jesus has visited preschool classes, parks, parties, and zoos while with the children. Jesus, also, joins the family at dinner and bedtime.
Parents receive a letter in the kit:
This is your week with St. Paul’s Jesus Doll and bag. Enclosed in the bag, you will find a folder with an activity sheet for each child in your family as soon as Jesus comes home and then an activity sheet when Jesus is ready to come back to church. Please, return the sheets with the doll and book in the bag. They will be used to make a display and a book.
The bag, also, contains the book If Jesus Came to My House. Please read this with your child and use it throughout your time with the Jesus doll as a time to talk about Jesus in our homes and in our lives.
Please email a photo of your child(ren) with the Jesus Doll and one photo of Jesus doing an activity with your family. These with the words will be put into a Shutterfly book that will travel with the doll in the future. Copies will be available for purchase if you would like your own.
Included in this folder is a Parent Insights Page. Please write anything you would like to share about this experience for your family.
Please, return the doll and the bag with all the contents the next time you come to the church. The doll and bag with new sheets will be passed on to the next family.
Any discussion questions you have with your children that you would like to pass on, please let Lauren know and those will be compiled to travel with the doll.
Enjoy your visit with Jesus at your home and I hope you find ways to include Jesus in all your activities even beyond the doll’s visit.
Additionally, each kit contains
- Two Activity Sheets for each child: one sheet asks the child to write or draw what they would like to do with Jesus during the coming week and the other is what their favorite time was with Jesus (write or draw) for child to return and then are displayed.
- Insight Page for parents to return
- Book: If Jesus Came to My House
- Jesus Doll
- Photo book from previous year
I only send out the Jesus Doll and Home Kit one season a year, to keep it fresh. Lent or Easter are excellent liturgical seasons for getting families to think about faith at home. Summer is great when looking for something to tie families to their parish while so many are traveling and most program year offerings are on hiatus.
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