This worksheet can be used after showing Year 8 students an animated version of the parables called " The Kingdom of Heaven". The "Sower" parable in the video is excellent to ask students where they are in their journey of faith. Are they like;

  1. the seed that is sown on the path
  2. the seed that is sown on rocky ground
  3. the one among thorns
  4. the one on good soil

 

CREATING YOUR OWN PARABLE

 

The Gospel of St. Matthew

18 "Hear then the parable of the sower.

19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path.

20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;

21 yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away.

22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.

  1.  
  2. But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty."

25:1 "Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.

3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them;

4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept.

6 But at midnight there was a shout, 'Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'

7 Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps.

8 The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'

9 But the wise replied, 'No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.'

10 And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut.

11 Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.'

12 But he replied, 'Truly I tell you, I do not know you.'

13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

 

The second parable above tells us that we need to always be ready because we do not know when God will call us to be with him. We need to be ready and follow him always.

To get this point across, Jesus used

 

 

However, the characters, objects and events do not look exactly alike what they are referring to in real life.

 

More specifically, the following was used.

5 foolish maidens People who do not really care about God
5 wise maidens People who care about God and want to be with him in Heaven
Leaving oil behind Sinning, not caring about getting close to God
Bridegroom delayed Jesus not coming yet, we need to wait and be patient
Ladies became drowsy and asleep People sin and forget about God
The bridegroom comes while the foolish were away to buy the oil Jesus will come when we least expect it
The door was shut When we die, it is too late to want to know about Jesus
The Lord says he does not know the ones who arrived late If people have lived their life not waiting for Jesus and not caring, then God cannot acknowledge us after we die

 

(I then showed them a short film which deals with a boy who leaves home, goes through a lot of heart ache, decides to return home and does. It is a parable of the Prodigal Son in a modern setting. If people can't get the film, then it is possible to ask the students to act out a modern day prodigal son themselves rather than watch one on video)

 

As you watch the parable on television, make a list of the major events in the film, in each section of the film, in column 1. The first one is done for you. After we view the film, we will fill in column 2 together.

The young boy wanders the streets and is then in a rented room in an old part of town.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

 

Now, we will try to create our own parable.

First, we need to consider which lesson we want to teach. Below is a list of possible lessons we could teach.

 

 

 

Now, select one of the lessons in the original list and go through the process again. And example is done for you.

If you want something done you need to do it yourself

Step 1

1 business man goes home one day and discovers that his house is too dirty People want help from time to time
He explains he is too busy taking his dog for a walk, which he must do because other wise his dog will get grumpy People need help because they are very busy at work
He hires a maid to clean his house So, you ask others for help and they say they will help you
One after the other, the maids lie around and do nothing, or watch television But, they waist time and forget what you have asked because they are lazy or too busy themselves
You come home at night and at first notice nothing and go to sleep You thought they were doing the work so you don't do it
Soon, you notice that everything is lying on the floor, the vacuum cleaner is in the cupboard etc. When, at the end of the day, you ask them where the work is, they tell you they forgot to do it
You clean the house yourself, all night before next morning You decide you need to do it yourself
It is all done well and you can see your face shine in the mirror You do it properly
Each time, you do your house happily and don't ask anyone anymore The next time, you don't ask anymore

Step 2

Now you are ready to do your draft. Remember, you must first fill in Column 1 and then Column 2 of your own 'story'.