Rotation.org Writing Team
Pentecost: Wind, Fire, and Faith!
A Shavu'ot Cooking Workshop
Summary of Activities
Students will prepare fruit & cheese "blintzes" –a traditional sweet dessert eaten on the Jewish festival of Shavu'ot —a day otherwise known to us as "Pentecost," and think about how each ingredient reminds us of the Spirit's goodness to us.
Scripture for the Lessons
Acts 2:1-8, 12-18, 36-47 ~ the story of Pentecost
(Teachers should read the entire story Acts 1:1-2:41)
Key/Memory Verse
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” -- Acts 1:8 (NRSV)
Lesson Objectives
See the Bible Background at rotation.org for this set's complete list of objectives.
Shavu'ot, aka "Pentecost," was the festival of thanksgiving and "spring harvest" being celebrated in Jerusalem the day the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples and "harvested" 3000 new followers for Jesus. Prescribed in Leviticus, Numbers, and Exodus, traditional celebrations of Shavu'ot included the eating of bread, cheese, and/or sweet deserts to give thanks for the "land of milk (cheese) and honey" God had blessed the Israelites with. In our day, we remember the blessing of God pouring out his spirit on us and bringing us into the church.
Read the following post here at rotation.org for detailed background About Shavuot, it's meaning and practice.
Preparation and Materials
- Read the Bible Background and scripture.
- Read "About Shavu'ot" post below this one at rotation.org.
- Bibles or printed script of the story.
- Blintz "crepe" makings (see suggested recipe below).
- Blintz cheese filling ingredients (see suggested recipe below).
- Blintz "first fruits" topping (smashed strawberries).
- Honey to drizzle on the blintz.
- Crepe pan(s) or non-stick skillets.
- Spatulas, mixing bowls, mixing spoons.
- Serving plates, napkins, forks.
- Festive Table Setting: Greenery, Candles, Matches, Tablecloth.
Lesson Plan
Open
Welcome your students and ask them to describe their Thanksgiving celebration at their home.... foods, table setting, decorations, what people do that day, guests.
Ask them "why" we have thanksgiving celebrations.
Hebrew Class!
- Write the word "Seven" on the board and have them pronounce it. Ask them what it means, and of course, they will know.
- Now write the word "Shevah" on the board and have them pronounce that. Tell this this is the Hebrew/Old Testament word for the number Seven.
- Ask them "how many days are in a week?" (7, of course!)
- Now write the word "Shavua" on the board and have them pronounce it. Tell them "Shavua" is the Hebrew word for "week."
- Write the word "Shavu'ot" on the board. Tell them this is the plural of "Shavua." It means "weeks." Now tell them that there is a Festival of Weeks mentioned in several books of the Old Testament. It is a Harvest Festival that is supposed to take place "seven shavu'ot" after Passover. Ask: How many DAYS is seven shavu'ot??? (It's seven weeks. 7 x 7 = 49.)
- Finally, tell them that the Harvest Festival of Shavu'ot (Weeks) takes place on the first day AFTER the seven weeks have passed since Passover. What day is 49 +1 day? (It is the 50th Day.)
- Ask: Who knows what WE in the Christian church call the festival that takes place on the 50th Day after Passover and Easter? Pentecost!
- Write "Pentecost" on the board and underline "pente," then write "= 50" next to it.
Say: Pentecost and Shavu'ot are the same festival. They just have two different names. In the Old Testament language, you spell and say "Shavu'ot." In the Greek language of the New Testament you would write and say Shavu'ot as Pente-cost. - Summarize by writing:
7 Weeks = Shavuot = Pentecost = the Harvest Thanksgiving Festival
Find out how much your students know about the Day of the Pentecost Festival and write it on the board. Early in the rotation they may not know much.
**Say: Normally we would do a Bible study right now, but because this is the Cooking Workshop, we need to get some food prepared for our Shavu'ot ~ Pentecost Festival. We'll look at the scripture in a few minutes.
Make Tasty Cheese Blintzes with a Red "Pentecost" Topping
"Blintz" is the old Jewish term for "crepes" or thin pancakes filled with goodness. If you have a crepe maker (or two), use those. They are easy, fun and safe for the kids to use. Otherwise, a large skillet will do.
There are a multitude of very similar blintz recipes online.
Divide your students into groups to mix the crepe batter, make the fruit topping, and mix the cheese. Take turns making the crepes.
See the Recipe Post Below which follows this one here at rotation.org
Getting Ready to Eat
Set a fancy festival table. Add candles and greenery —mentioning that decorating with greenery is a Shavu'ot tradition. (What does green and evergreens represent?)
Place the blintzes on a serving plate. Then sit down and light table candles.
What does the flame remind you of ??? (God's presence at Pentecost.)
Say: At Shavu'ot, nobody ate until an offering had been made to God. God always comes first, because all good things come from God. So let's work on offering God our attention and praise before we eat.
First: We're going to hear a reading of the story of Pentecost, the day the Holy Spirit gathered in 3000 new believers in Jesus.
Scripture Options:
Depending on how much time you have, age of your students, and what week this is in the rotation, you may do a simple reading of Acts 2:1-8, 12-18, 36-47, letting each student read a few verses, or using a storybook. You may also print and use the kid-friendly version of the story found in this lesson set's computer lesson (without dramatizing it). You may ask a few questions or expand on the story, but the following discussion of the blintz ingredients is your life application.
Next: We're going to think about what each ingredient tells us about God, and then taste just a little bit of it. When we've finished offering each ingredient to God, we'll dig in!
The crepes are made with wheat —symbolizing the "harvest" of foods God blesses us with, and the "bread of heaven" God has so often given us. (Remember the manna from heaven and the unleavened bread at Passover? How do we use bread in our church?)
The cheese is made with milk —and milk is a symbol used in the Bible to describe the land's richness, The people of the Old Testament often said, "God gave the people a land flowing with milk and honey." So let's taste the cheese and think about how many good things God gives us.
Fruit topping reminds us of the phrase, "first fruits," which means we give God the first portion of our earnings, not the leftovers. Fruit also means "results," as in, "fruits of our labors," and "fruits of the Spirit," and "we are to bear good fruit." Jesus was the "first fruit" of the Resurrection, and the 3000 on Pentecost who believed were also fruits of the Spirit's harvest. Let's taste a bit of the fruit and think about how each of US can bear Good Fruit for God.
Honey was an expensive sweetener in Bible times. It was precious. That the land "flowed" with honey was a sign of how much God had blessed the land and people. By adding honey to the top of an already sweet blintz, we are saying, "God is not simply good to us, but God is REALLY good to us!" Let's taste a bit of honey to remember that God wants really good things for us, and wants us to share that goodness.
Say: "Together, wheat, milk, fruit, honey all remind us that GOD GIVES GOOD THINGS to us —the greatest gift of which is SALVATION — and we in turn are called to be thankful and share this good news with others."
Dig in!
Close with prayer and clean-up.
Adaptations and Notes for Younger Students
If you have many students, or not much time, prepare the crepes ahead. Let the young ones mix the cheese filling and fruit topping.
Make blintzes to share and invite your students to deliver them with a Pentecost message.
Written by the Rotation.org Writing Team
Copyright Rotation.org
