[Magdalen] Suffer The Little Children?

[shutchinsonca]

While I was in Gaspe we did something similar at the church where we had the Sunday school. 
The children were in Sunday school until the offertory. They joined us for general mayhem of greetings then once settled into the front pews I would go over and ask them an open ended question about what they had done that day (they were on a lectionary based program). This was generally much enjoyed by the children themselves and the adults, and it usually reinforced the sermon.
That done, I called the children to join me in the aisle -- we all reverently bowed and proceeded to the altar, where we used a call and response eucharistic prayer (adapted from Prayer H from the C of E). The prayer ends with a sung Sanctus and the Lord's Prayer. After which the children were joined by their parents at the communion rail. It was up to the parents as to when their child began to receive. But after a session with parents about the nature of baptism  (our bishop was a promoter of receiving upon baptism), most children including infants received. On occasion, a visiting child who was not baptised might receive a blessing.
After everyone was done and a final hymn sung, I would call the children forward and together we would sing a blessing as they led us out.
The kids and their families loved it. They felt they had role, a job in the litergy. They felt important and included. Church had meaning, they knew that they were important to God and their praise was the response -- not in so many words, of course. But they knew.
blessings Susan 


Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone.-------- Original message --------From: Cantor03--- via Magdalen <magdalen at herberthouse.org> Date: 2016-05-08  2:11 PM  (GMT-08:00) To: magdalen at herberthouse.org Cc: Cantor03 at aol.com Subject: [Magdalen] Suffer The Little Children? 


I am aware of a parish that has a regular practice of inviting
the toddlers to come forward to surround the altar during the Canon/
Eucharistic Prayer.  At the conclusion of this Prayer, the  presider
shakes their hands and they trundle back to their families in  the pews.
 
These children have all been baptized, but are too young for  Confirmation
and regular communion which occurs there at age 10.  As a  result,
these toddlers do not take communion which is the obvious outcome
of the Eucharistic Prayer which they have witnessed.
 
IOW the children have witnessed a Liturgy from
which they are then excluded.  
 
I'm all for involving children in the Liturgy, but is this the right way  to
do so?.
 
 
 
David Strang