Good Friday

The Good Friday narratives include many dark and difficult aspects including betrayal, denial, duplicity, suffering, pain and death.

Is this material too difficult for children? Often we feel more comfortable going from the excitement of Palm Sunday to the joy of Easter Day.

But the idea that the Christian life should be one of continuous celebration is often at odds with our own and children's personal experiences of death, illness, disability, poverty or divorce.

How do we find ways of telling the whole story of Easter to children so that they can understand both the dark and the light, the despair and the joy?

Good Friday resources

Prayer Stations 1: These ten prayer stations were used in an All Age Service on Good Friday. They include the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus in the temple, the Garden of Gethsemane and the Passion. Each station included a play activity (such as making a dove or a cross) and a prayer activity (lighting candles or making a knotted string whip).

Prayer Stations 2: The Way to the Cross: A look at the story of Good Friday from the point of view of the people who participated in it, including Judas, Simon Peter, Pilate, Simon of Cyrene and Mary.

Prayer Stations 3: These prayer stations were used as part of a Liquid Worship service for Good Friday. They include Jesus before Pilate, the road to Golgotha and the crucifixion... There were opportunities to taste vinegar, bang in nails and make crowns for Jesus the King

Reconciliation: Five different stations were used to reflect on the story of Good Friday. Each one was linked with the rebuilding of Coventry Cathedral after the second world war by using prayers, images and stories. There were opportunites for prayer and creative response.

Good Friday drama: An experiential drama for children that takes them through the events of Palm Sunday, Holy Week, Good Friday and Easter Day. Suitable even for very young children.

Sensory Good Friday: Prayer stations that use our senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell to experience Good Friday.