Saint Paul Lutheran Church - Wheaton, Illinois

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Overview

All preschool and elementary school children are invited to join us in The Vineyard, St. Paul’s Sunday School, where kids grow strong in faith as they explore God’s Word through hands-on activities.

St. Paul’s Sunday School program for children age 3 through 5th grade is called The Vineyard. Classes meet Sunday mornings from 9:45 until 10:45 from September through May. Visitors are always welcome.

The Vineyard is dedicated to help each child build, strengthen, and live his or her relationship with God. Hands-on, interactive activities are the tools we use to guide the children along their own personal faith journeys. By exploring Bible stories from both the Old and New Testaments each year, children are encouraged to discover God and God’s character, to understand the message of the gospel and God’s plan of salvation, and to internalize what it means to be a Christian and to live each day in relationship with God.

We recognize that our children need to experience God’s Word, not just hear it. Through the Workshop Rotation Model approach, we provide opportunities for our children to experience the feeling and meaning of God’s Word through active participation that is not merely “fun and games,” but rather a fully engaged learning process. School age children will explore the Bible and their faith each week in one of five different workshops which utilize hands-on active learning, such as drama, video production, puppetry, first person storytelling, computer, games, art, science, cooking, and more! Preschool children are introduced to learning about God’s love through stories, songs, activities, and crafts.

For more information, or to register your child for Sunday School, please contact Cherie Schumm at cschumm.stpaul@sbcglobal.net.

Sunday School - 2012/2013

Our Sunday School lessons this year will follow the
theme of “Quest for Identity.”

People of faith travel a path that includes a struggle between everyday experience and their relationship with God. In a quest for an identity, group dynamics can form a sense of inclusion or exclusion in the community. Jacob and Esau battled within the realm of sibling rivalry. Joseph and his brothers fought the same battle, only to find a place of reconciliation. Jesus Christ calls us to be a community of inclusion, highlighted in this year with the stories of The Samaritan Woman at the Well, Zacchaeus and Mary Magdalene. We forge our identities as we build community; both Paul and Martin Luther addressed the issues of living in a Christian community. Each culture responds to the faith story in relation to its own history and customs; this year will explore how various cultures communicate the biblical stories within their own context.

We have a great year planned. There is lots to look
forward to!

In December

The season of Advent is upon us and we are readying ourselves for Christmas. Our Sunday School lessons in December will focus on how the birth of our Lord Jesus is celebrated around the world. The foundation for Christmas
is found in the scriptures and in the reality that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, the Christ, the Savior. The
story is found in the gospels of both Matthew and Luke, although each delivers different aspects directed to different audiences. From the start, the scriptures realized that various cultures would interpret this mysterious arrival
of God on earth within the contexts of their own worldviews
.
As the gospel of Jesus Christ spread throughout the world, the scriptures were interpreted to reflect the local cultures.
Some cultures focus on the birth narrative. The Posada in Mexico remembers the plight of Mary and Joseph in their journey to find a place to sleep. Some cultures focus on Epiphany, the arrival of the three magi to the nativity.

Almost universally, a figure has emerged who hands out presents. Some call him Santa Claus, others call him
Befana, Baboushka, Christkindle, or Papai Noel. Regardless of the name, these legends connect the gift-giving of
the magi and the generosity of spirit among people of faith. If asked, our teachers and lessons will simply refer to
him as a figure who emerged after the scriptures were written and avoid any declaration regarding the reality of
Santa. We will explore various celebrations and traditions from around the world, and without making judgments,
we can evaluate celebrations as to their basis in scripture or their glorification of God.

It is easy for the legends that are post-scriptural to become commercial. Wrapped in the purchase of presents and the display of decorations, the focus of Christmas can be so secular that one might not even know that it is associated with Jesus. It is important to ponder how our own family traditions celebrate the birth of the Messiah.