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Prayer
Download Lesson Plan
as a pdf
Summary:
Why do we pray?
1. Prayer is conversation with God.
"Prayer is conversation with God. " -`Abdu'l-Bahá
2. Prayer is food for your soul.
“Remembrance of Me is a healing medicine to the souls.”
- Báha'u'lláh
How do we pray?
1. Sit respectfully when you pray.
“When you wish to pray, you must first know that you are
standing in the presence of the Almighty.”-`Abdu'l-Bahá
2. Use a loving voice when you pray.
When do we pray?
1. Pray every morning and evening.
"Recite ye the verses of God every morning and evening."
- Báha'u'lláh
2. Pray whenever you want to talk to God or ask for His help.
Memorize:
"O Son of Being! Make mention of Me on My earth, that in
My heaven I may remember thee; thus shall Mine eyes and thine be solaced."
- Báha'u'lláh
Lesson Plan for a Baha'i Children's
Class
Opening Prayers:
We will begin by saying prayers. Please remember to: Sit properly, be
silent, sit still, close your eyes, and use a loud, clear and loving voice.
I will say the first prayer and then we will take turns in a circle.
“O God! Educate these children. These children are the plants
of Thine orchard, the flowers of Thy meadow, the roses of Thy garden.
Let Thy rain fall upon them; let the Sun of Reality shine upon them with
Thy love. Let Thy breeze refresh them in order that they may be trained,
grow and develop, and appear in the utmost beauty. Thou art the Giver.
Thou art the Compassionate.” -`Abdu'l-Bahá
Praise and encourage the children for sitting nicely and saying good prayers.
Lesson: (# = pause, praise and correct the children's
answers)
Today we are going to learn about prayer.
Q: Who can tell me why we pray? #
A: 1. We pray because this is the way we talk to God. `Abdu'l-Bahá
says: “Prayer is conversation with God.” When
we talk to God, He hears us. He does not always give us what we ask for,
but He hears us and does what He feels is best for us. 2. We also pray
to help our souls grow. Bahá'u'lláh says: “Remembrance
of Me is a healing medicine to the souls.” Fruits and vegetables
help our body grow, and prayers help our soul grow.
Q: How should we pray? #
A: Show me how you would sit in the presence of a king. # Praying to God
is like praying to the King of Kings. How much greater is God than a king?
# Yes, you are right. He is much greater. Then, how should we behave when
we are praying? # How do you talk to someone you love very, very much?
# How do you show them how much you love them with the way you talk to
them? # We should love God more than any person. So how should we say
our prayers? # (with the most loving voice) `Abdu'l-Bahá says:“When
you wish to pray, you must first know that you are standing in the presence
of the Almighty.”
In our Children's Classes, we will have five rules for how to pray. They
are: 1. Sit properly. 2. Be silent. 3. Sit still. 4. Close your eyes.
5. Use a loving voice. You will also practice saying prayers properly
at home.
Q: When should we pray? #
A: We should pray every morning when we wake up and every evening before
we go to sleep. We can also pray at any other time when we feel like talking
to God. Like when we are happy, sad, lonely, afraid, or when we need help.
Bahá'u'lláh says: "Recite ye the verses of
God every morning and evening."
Singing:
This is a time for children to learn to chant the prayers of God in a
beautiful and melodious voice. Choose one prayer to practice until all
the children can sing it well and sound good together.
Snack/break:
Prepare beforehand a simple and healthy snack to refresh the children.
It can also be a time for the children to talk together and maybe play
a bit but it should not be too lively because you will have to calm them
down and bring them back to class time. Active social play can happen
before and/or after class. Social play is very important for building
friendships and having a fun time.
Story and coloring:
Show a picture of Shoghi Effendi as a small child. Have the children colour
pictures of children praying.
Shoghi Effendi loved to say prayers. One day a pilgrim asked `Abdu'l-Bahá
to write a prayer especially for children. When it was finished, Shoghi
Effendi was the first to learn it by heart.
When he was very young, Shoghi Effendi kept asking his Grandfather to
write him a letter.
“O My Shoghi...,” wrote `Abdu'l-Bahá at last. “Now
is not the time for you to read and write, it is the time for jumping
about and chanting, 'O My God!', therefore memorize the prayers of the
Blessed Beauty [] and chant them that I may hear them...”
So Shoghi Effendi did just that. He learned as many prayers as he could
and chanted them so loudly that not only `Abdu'l-Bahá heard him,
but everyone else as well! His parents told him to chant more quietly,
but Shoghi Effendi said that `Abdu'l-Bahá had told him to chant
loudly so that He might hear him, and that he was doing his best!
`Abdu'l-Bahá smiled and told the grown-ups not to stop him.
Arts and Crafts:
Give each child a binder to be their prayer and Holy Writings book. Add
three-hole punched coloured paper to the binder. Print a prayer that all
the children have memorized on a sheet of paper in large print. Cut one
inch around all the edges. Have all this prepared ahead of time. Have
each child glue the prayer onto a coloured page and then give each child
some stickers to decorate the page. They may also illuminate the page
with crayons or markers or coloured pencils. At the next class after this
one, the children will glue into their binders the Holy Writing they memorized
from this week, which is: "O Son of Being! Make mention of Me
on My earth, that in My heaven I may remember thee; thus shall Mine eyes
and thine be solaced." - Baha'u'llah
Review lesson:
Ask the children what they remember learning today. Praise their answers.
Explain their homework. (see below for homework page)
Closing Prayers/Singing:
Remind the children of the rules for saying prayers properly.
Remind them that:“When you wish to pray, you must first
know that you are standing in the presence of the Almighty.”
-`Abdu'l-Bahá
Related Writings:
"Recite ye the verses of God every morning and evening."
- Baha'u'llah
"O Son of Being! Make mention of Me on My earth, that in My heaven
I may remember thee; thus shall Mine eyes and thine be solaced."
- Baha'u'llah
"[prayer] brings light to thy heart, illumination to thy
sight, life to thy soul, and exaltation to thy being."
-`Abdu'l-Baha
"The wisdom of prayer is this: that it causeth a connection
between the servant and the True One, because in that state man with all
heart and soul turneth his face towards His Highness the Almighty, seeking
His association and desiring His love and compassion." -`Abdu'l-Baha
"It behooveth the servant to pray to and seek assistance
from God, and to supplicate and implore His aid."
"In the highest prayer, men pray only for the love of God."
-`Abdu'l-Baha
"The prayerful condition is the best of all conditions,
for man in such a state communeth with God, prayer is offered in private
and at times when one's mind is free, such as at midnight. Indeed prayer
imparteth life. -`Abdu'l-Baha
"There is nothing sweeter in the world of existence than
prayer. Man must live in a state of prayer. The most blessed condition
is the condition of prayer and supplication. Prayer is conversation with
God. The greatest attainment or the sweetest state is none other than
conversation with God. It creates spirituality, creates mindfulness and
celestial feelings, begets new attractions of the Kingdom and engenders
the susceptibilities of the higher intelligence." -`Abdu'l-Baha
"The core of religious faith is that mystic feeling that
unites man with God. This state of spiritual communion can be brought
about and maintained by means of meditation and prayer. And this is the
reason why Baha'u'llah has so much stressed the importance of worship.
It is not sufficient for a believer to merely accept and observe the teachings.
He should, in addition, cultivate the sense of spirituality, which he
can acquire chiefly by the means of prayer. The Baha'i Faith, like all
other Divine religions, is thus fundamentally mystic in character. Its
chief goal is the development of the individual and society, through the
acquisition of spiritual virtues and powers. It is the soul of man that
has first to be fed. And this spiritual nourishment prayer can best provide."
-Shoghi Effendi
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