Encounter Christianity: In Words about Jesus lesson plan 2

2. Jesus' baptism (pages 4-5)

Text from the book

'The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals'.

John was Jesus' cousin. He lived alone in the desert, eating locusts and wild honey. He was respected as a religious teacher and prophet. He preached that people should be sorry for their wrongdoings and baptised them in water. John baptised Jesus in the River Jordan.

What did John think was so special about Jesus?

How could he be so sure that Jesus was greater than him?

Aims of the book

Pupils will:

explore some of the key sayings of Jesus;
be aware of what friends and enemies said about him;
reflect on the layers of meanings in the words.

Background

In the account leading up to the birth of Jesus, Luke’s Gospel tells of John the Baptist being Jesus’ cousin. Now, as an adult in the Gospels, John is regarded as the forerunner of the Messiah. He was ‘preparing the way’. He is often depicted as an ascetic, living an austere life in the desert. John baptised Jesus and many others in the River Jordan. This event is normally regarded as the beginning of Jesus’ teaching mission. The Bible says that at the moment of baptism a voice came from heaven saying, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'.

John is thought to have been a Nazarite, that is a person at the time of Jesus who had adopted a very strict way of life. He was like a hermit living a life of unimaginable austerity. He spoke out strongly, urging people to repent of their wrongdoing. In fact he spoke so strongly that he annoyed the Governor, Herod Antipas, who imprisoned him. When Salome danced before Herod she enchanted him so much he said he would give her whatever she asked. She asked for the head of John the Baptist on a plate and was duly granted her wish.

John had his own group of followers but the story here seems to want to show Jesus was greater than John, for John points out his own unworthiness before Jesus.

Ways of using the picture

What actions can you think of that would be the duties of a servant?

How do you feel when you are in the presence of a very important person?

What do we learn of John’s character from these words? Was he arrogant, humble, confident?

Bible reference: Mark 1.7

Key words

Ascetic
Forerunner
Baptism
Messiah
Austere
Worthy
Humble
Locust
Prophet
Visionary

Activity

You will need:

Paper
Pens
Various photographs or pictures of faces
The class or school photograph

Pass around pictures of faces. These can be photographs from newspapers, magazines or posters. Ask the pupils to choose two: one they like the look of, or relate to, in some way, the other they should find less attractive. The pupils should then, in pairs, describe to their partner the reasons for their choices with the listening partner writing down notes on what the speaker says. They then swap roles.

Next the groups of two become a group of four with each listener telling the rest why his/her partner choose one of the pictures. In the group of four the pupils collect some of the words and impressions being shared. Each group should end up with a variety of words, phrases and opinions.

Read the story of Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist. Read it aloud and several times using your voice to give different nuances on each reading.

Ask the pupils to suggest what John might have seen in Jesus as Jesus approached him. What might have made him realise he was in the presence of a unique person? The words and phrases collected by the pupils may help them to deepen their response.

They could then move to a class photograph looking at each other and using positive words to describe their fellow pupils.

Using the words and phrases, pupils can write an eyewitness account of the meeting between Jesus and John as if they and a friend were watching - they should use the reservoir of words collected.

Learning outcomes

Pupils will have:

had opportunities to develop language skills;
looked carefully and studiously at faces;
reflected on their feelings in relation to other people;
deepened their awareness of the significance of the story.

Extension work

Using the material they have collected the pupils can write their thoughts on pieces of paper to form a collage of thoughts about the story to put on display.

Web sites

http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/piero/

This is a good example of what the site itself calls a 'web museum'. It provides a summary of the life and works of Piero della Francesca and thumbnail images of his most famous paintings (including The Baptism of Christ, John the Baptist and Angels featured on this double page spread).

Other sites of this artist's work that are worth a visit are http://www.christusrex.org

and

http://gallery.euroweb.hu/html/p/piero/francesc/

http://www.whom.co.uk/idk/idkhuman.html

Another enjoyable site on the face theme. Here, you can create a human identikit, adding different shaped noses, eyes, ears, etc to create a unique face.

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