Encounter Christianity: In Words about Jesus lesson plan 6

6. Healing the paralysed man (pages 12-13)

Text from the book

'I say to you, stand up, take your mat and go to your home home.'

These were the words Jesus spoke to a man who was paralysed. Four of the man's friends had carried him through the crowd so that Jesus could see him. Jesus had become well-known as a teacher and healer. Recognising their faith in him, Jesus healed the man who could not walk, leaving everyone amazed by his power and authority.

In what ways did Jesus' words change this man's life?

Why do you think Jesus chose to heal this man?

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.

Learning objectives

Pupils will:

be familiar with one of Jesus’ miracles;
explore the authority claimed by Jesus;
reflect on what a miracle is and means in this story.

Background

It was common to believe, as some people still do, that disease was caused by sin. The Jews believed that only God could forgive sin and so to heal or to absolve from sin could have been seen as blasphemy. Jesus’ behaviour was, therefore, challenging the norms of the day; he was acting out a teaching point by asking, in effect, ‘If I do this, then who am I?’ Healers were not rare in Jesus’ time, nor are they today, so it is important to emphasise that, in this event, the most important aspect was Jesus’ forgiveness of sin. By forgiving sin, he was saying that he and God were as one. This was blasphemy to the Jews.

Jesus’ actions in his miracles are examples of power and the question to those who see the miracles is, ‘Whose power?’ They are effectively acted parables with the question metaphorically posed at the end, ‘Whose power? ‘What does this say to you?’ much has been written about the factual accuracy of miracles but the healing miracles are exhibitions of power and such ‘miracles’ continue today. Many Christians will put down today’s miracles to the power of prayer and the compassion of God.

Ways of using the picture

The man had been let down through the roof to reach Jesus. What do the pupils think this says about his friends’ determination?

When people sin, or do wrong to each other, who should take the first step to heal the hurt or the pain? Should it be the person who has done wrong or the person who has been hurt? Should it be a third person who tries to bring the two people together? How do the pupils resolve differences when they either hurt or have hurt a person?

This story comes from a group of events in the Gospels called the ‘Conflict Stories’. With whom is Jesus in conflict? Why did Jesus want to challenge his contemporaries? Do you think Jesus minded being in conflict with his opponents?

Bible reference: Mark 2.11

Key words

Paralysed
Sin
Authority
Determination
Blasphemy
Conflict
Healing
Miracle
Persistence

Activity

You will need:

A Bible
Materials, such as a blanket to carry the paralysed man
A range of music

This story lends itself to drama; it is a dramatic event on many levels. The pupils can divide into groups with each group developing their own understanding of the story. The aim will be for each group to produce a dramatic play telling and interpreting the story.

Read the story through a couple of times so the pupils are familiar with it.

Ask them to look carefully at the picture. An Asian artist painted it. In their groups the pupils should look at the images used by the artist. What do they like/dislike about the picture? Do they like the colours? Why are the symbols of the hands with bloodstained palms there? What other features can they make out? Ask them to discuss what links they see between the picture and the story. There are no set responses; pupils (and teachers) must use their imagination.

The Key Words suggest a number of approaches that could be part of the drama. The pupils could explore the miracle itself, the persistence and determination of the friends, the joy of the healed man and the conflict between Jesus and his opponents. Encourage them to use music to add to the scene.

The plays can then be presented to the class or performed in a series of acts of collective worship illustrating the very different ways people can interpret the same story about Jesus.

Another (simpler) activity would be to ask the pupils to write a letter to Jesus thanking him for healing the man as if they were in the role of the mother of the paralysed man. They could explore something of his ‘history’, how long he had been paralysed, how he filled his time, what struggles she had had etc. and what it meant to her and him to have such loyal friends and how Jesus changed her son’s life. What opportunities Jesus had offered him by transforming his (and her) life.

Learning outcomes

Pupils will have:

Identified the attitudes of different characters in the story

Reflected on the way the event could be interpreted by different people present

Explored cross-curricular ways of engaging with a Bible story

Had opportunities to act in public and develop speaking skills.

Extension work

Jesus knew that if he healed the man it would cause trouble, but he went ahead anyway. Pupils can think about occasions when they might know there is trouble ahead but still feel it necessary to do something to resolve a situation. Perhaps they have been told to stay in but have to go out to get help, or they have to tell someone something unpleasant. They may be able to think of occasions when they have had to be persistent and determined. After discussion they could write an acrostic poem using one of the key words to express their thoughts and ideas.

Web sites

http://re-xs.ucsm.ac.uk/gcsere/coursework/gobbets/gobbet28.html

This is a fascinating article on the miracles of Jesus, outlining all those that are mentioned and exploring (in a fairly objective fashion) whether the miracles happened and what are their significance.

http://www.gcsereligiousstudies.co.uk/anointing%20the%20sick.htm

This is part of a paper for older pupils, but gives an interesting GCSE approach to the anointing of the sick and Jesus' attitude towards the sick.

http://www.arimathea.co.uk/paralyti.htm

John Chrysostom's learned writings on Jesus' healing of the paralytic is accompanied by a striking icon depicting the story.

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