Here are some suggestions for your parish to help families embrace the ideas from 52 Sundays. You will see some ideas for each week to continually connect with families about the book. Since it is lectionary-based, you will see that many of these suggestions are applicable, even if families do not have the physical book. This list is not exhaustive or necessary. You may reproduce everything from the book for your parish or school needs. These suggestions were written in advance, so please note that some may need to be adapted due to gathering restrictions at that time.
Let families know how they can get the book’s content on the
52 Sundays website
well as additional resources. Encourage people to post what they are doing that week using the
hashtag #52Sundays
on parish social media channels and the parish website. Utilizing your parish communication methods (bulletin, website, social media, Remind, Flocknote, newsletter, etc.), provide links to the
Unleash the Gospel social media channels
as a way for people to connect with other #52Sundays posts. Send messages to families in the parish about 52 Sundays, with a question from the book, reminders about the activity, etc.
For the week of January 3, 2021
Have a staff member share in the parish bulletin what they think it would be like to encounter the baby Jesus. Provide chalk for families to use when blessing their homes with the Family Prayer. Invite families to post pictures of their paper crowns on your parish social media channels. Consider including a prayer for prudence in your universal prayers to connect with the Family Challenge this week. Post a video of a staff member making Apple Crisp.
For the week of January 10, 2021
Create a video of your paschal candle, explaining how you use it at baptisms. Have staff share in the bulletin how they have seen Jesus’ power at work in their lives. Create a fun playlist to post on your parish website for families to access during their Family Dance Party; consider using staff members’ favorite songs. Provide 3x5 cards with the words of
Mark 1:11
on them for families to utilize for the Family Challenge this week.
For the week of January 17, 2021
Inspired by the Gospel where Jesus asked the disciples what they were looking for, have a staff member share what they would say if Jesus asked them the same question. Have your priest share in a video what his experience is of proclaiming, “Behold, the Lamb of God. ” Create a video for families to use during Lectio Divina, where someone reads the reading three times with pauses in between. Consider adding a prompt after each reading for families to know what they are reflecting on during this reading. Invite families to share their projects from the family fun section on your parish social media channels.
For the week of January 24, 2021
Host a live Facebook Event where a staff member or key volunteer leads families through preschool games. They would be the caller in Simon Says or Red Light-Green Light, allowing family members to all play together from their own homes. Invite a parish staff member to share in what ways they honor the Word of God in their family. Provide bookmarks or supplies to create a special bookmark for families to use in their Bibles on this
Word of God Sunday
. Offer an additional opportunity for the sacrament of Reconciliation at a family-friendly time this week to help families complete the Family Challenge. Encourage families to share pictures of their “Catch a (Candy) Fish” recipe on your parish social media channels.
For the week of January 31, 2021
Share on the parish social media channels pictures of the staff making origami, encouraging families to share their own pictures as well. Invite families to pray the Adapted Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel at a specific time each day this week. Consider including a prayer for people to have courage where needed in your universal prayers to connect with the Family Challenge. Post a video of a staff member creating the Sushi Bake.
For the week of February 7, 2021
Have a staff member share in the parish bulletin a time when they turned to Jesus when they themselves or someone they knew were sick. Host a live Facebook Event where a staff member or key volunteer leads BINGO with the suggested words you have provided to families to use on the boards they made at home; consider including words that are special or unique to your parish. Inspired by the Fun Fact, make a video of interesting facts about the parish’s design and/or architecture. Invite families to share on social media how they’ve dedicated their lives to God.
For the week of February 14, 2021
Provide a list of ideas on your parish website for families to do during Lent this year to help families brainstorm for the Family Challenge. Have staff share in the bulletin who has helped them grow in their faith by their teaching and example. Encourage families to post pictures on your social media channels from their Kindness Scavenger Hunt. Invite families to pray the Prayer for Black History Month at a specific time each day this week.
For the week of February 21, 2021
Host a family movie night at the parish or via a digital viewing party where families watch the same movie from the comfort of their homes. Have families submit videos of them reading the prayers in the Family Prayer section; combine the videos together so that different families read different lines of the prayer in one compilation video and post it on the parish website. Invite a staff member to reflect in the bulletin where in the world, outside of the Archdiocese of Detroit, they think it would be interesting to be a missionary. Post a video of a staff member creating the Grandma Bebe’s Beef Stew.
For the week of February 28, 2021
Make a video tour of the stained-glass windows at your parish, explaining some of the history and meaning to each piece. Invite a parish staff member to share a time when they encountered Jesus. Encourage families to post pictures on social media of their marshmallow and toothpick creations; consider challenging them to try to replicate some aspect of your parish in their creations! Find opportunities in your parish programming or online to help families spend some time in silence for the Family Challenge.
For the week of March 7, 2021
Have a staff member share in the parish bulletin ways they’ve been distracted in prayer and ideas to overcome them. Provide kits and/or ideas for families to help decorate their prayer space at home throughout the year. Post on your social media channels some images of God-made things and human-made things for families to use to start the Family Fun activity. Invite families to pray the Righteous Anger prayer at a specific time each day this week.
For the week of March 14, 2021
Remind families that the readings and reflection questions for the Scrutiny readings can be found in the Appendix. Inspired by the Gospel, have a staff member share in the bulletin a time they’ve experienced the light of Christ. Encourage families to share pictures on your parish social media channels of the
John 3:16
signs they made for the Family Challenge. Post a video of a staff member making the Potato Garlic Soup with Rosemary Butter.
For the week of March 21, 2021
Remind families that the readings and reflection questions for the Scrutiny readings can be found in the Appendix. Invite a staff member or key volunteer to write in the bulletin about what makes it easy and/or difficult to put Jesus first in their life. Create an intention for each day of the week for a group that is persecuted for their faith; invite all families to pray for that intention on that given day. Have families submit videos of them reading the prayer in the Family Prayer section; combine the videos together so that different families read different lines of the prayer in one compilation video and post it on the parish website. Invite families to post on your social media channels their creative hula hoop contest challenges!
For the week of March 28, 2021
Remind families that the Gospel during Mass for Palm Sunday can be found in the Appendix. Host an evening, either in-person or live on Facebook, where families can pray the sorrowful mysteries of the rosary together; have a staff member provide some Scripture reflection for each mystery for families during Holy Week. Invite a parish staff member to reflect on what they think it would have been like to be Simon of Cyrene. Encourage families to share pictures of their “Q-tip and Finger Painting” Holy Week art on your parish social media channels. Post a video of a staff member making the Stuffed Red Peppers.
For Thursday, April 1st
Share a video with families of a staff member reflecting on a time they performed an act of service for someone and how that made them feel. Invite families to share pictures on the parish social media channels of their family foot washing activity. Encourage families to pray the
Breastplate of St. Patrick
at a specific time today.
For Friday, April 2nd
Set up an outdoor walking version of the Stations of the Cross for families to pray at their own pace; post the prayers and reflections on your website or parish app for families to easily access on their phones. Have a staff member or a key volunteer make a video to share on your social media channels of how they feel knowing Jesus died for our sins. Create a list of parishioners who have passed away in the past few years who may not have someone visit their grave often; invite families to call the parish to get the name and cemetery location of one of those parishioners so they can visit their grave on Good Friday.
For Saturday, April 3rd
Invite a community member who was initiated at the Easter Vigil in a previous year to share in a video on your website what it was like to be baptized as an adult and what they remember from that Easter Vigil. Create a meditation video with music for the Family Prayer that families can access on your website. Have staff share their favorite reading from salvation history proclaimed at the Easter Vigil in the bulletin this weekend.
For the week of April 4th
Create a parish-wide paper chain of gratitude where parishioners can add their own entries to the chain with supplies at the parish or via an online submission. Encourage families to post pictures of their Easter meal or how they are celebrating. Post a video during the week of a staff member making a Tortilla Roll-Up. Have key volunteers share throughout the week what difference Jesus rising from the dead has made in their lives.
For the week of April 11th
Host a live Facebook Event where a staff member reads a favorite family-friendly book on April 12th for Drop Everything and Read Day. Invite a parish staff member or key volunteer to share what they think it would be like to see Jesus alive after seeing him die on the cross. Share your parish’s image(s) of Divine Mercy on your parish website for families to view while praying the
Chaplet of Divine Mercy
; if you don’t have any you can share, ask parishioners to submit artwork inspired by Divine Mercy and have a gallery online that families can visit. Encourage families to share pictures of their forts on your parish social media channels.
For the week of April 18th
Inspired by this week’s saint, provide families with ways they can help the poor via your parish; this may include a list of upcoming service opportunities, needs for your food pantry, or a video about some of your Christian Service efforts. Have families submit videos of them reading the
Prayer for the Fifth National Encuentro of Hispanic/Latino Ministry
; combine the videos together so that different families read different lines of the prayer in one compilation video and post it on the parish website. Invite a key volunteer or staff member to reflect in the bulletin on a time when they were troubled, and they took that to Jesus. Encourage families to post on the parish social media channels pictures of their homemade bread with a closeup of the cross they put on the top of the loaf.
For the week of April 25th
Host a prayer service for families that includes time for them to write a letter to Jesus for the Family Challenge. Share on the parish social media channels pictures of the staff making the sheep crafts, encouraging families to share their own pictures as well. Invite a staff member or key volunteer to share how they know Jesus knows them personally and tips on how to get to know Jesus as a friend. Post a video of a staff member making Easy Shepherd’s Pie with Roasted Potatoes.
For the week of May 2, 2021
Plan and advertise a come-and-see weekend for the second weekend in May to help encourage families to invite someone back to Mass for the Family Challenge. In the parish bulletin, have a staff member reflect on who encourages them to keep the faith. Also, consider publishing information about becoming a foster family in the bulletin this month. Post a video on your parish website giving a tour of the different images of a vine and branches in and around your parish, sharing any interesting facts or history about the images. Encourage families to post pictures from their nature walks on your parish social media channels.
For the week of May 9, 2021
Inspired by the Gospel, encourage families to pray the Prayer for Friends at a specific time each day this week. Have a key volunteer share in the bulletin a time their mother or a mother-figure in their life shared the love of Jesus with them. Invite families to share pictures of their spiritual bouquets on your parish social media channels. Post a video of a staff member making the Korean Noodle Bowl this week.
For the week of May 16, 2021
Create kits with supplies, like those listed in 52 Sundays, for families to take to make kites at home; encourage them to share pictures of their creations on your parish social media channels. Inspired by the Gospel command to “go and proclaim the Gospel to every creature,” ask a staff member to share which creature would be fun to share the Gospel with and why. Provide tips, trainings, and resources for families to comfortably complete the Family Challenge to proclaim the Gospel to their neighbors and friends. Consider commissioning families at the end of Mass to complete the challenge, offering the prayers and support of the parish.
For the week of May 23, 2021
Ask a staff member or key volunteer to share how their life has been impacted by the peace of Jesus. Encourage families to pray the prayers in the Family Prayer section at a specific time each day this week. Provide a printout of the Fruits of the Spirit for families to use with the Family Fun activity. Have families post pictures of the birthday cakes they make for the Church’s birthday! Host a family rosary on Monday for the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church or provide
Marian resources
for families to use at home.
For the week of May 30, 2021
Post a photo gallery on your parish website of images of the Trinity at your parish, offering fun facts about the images that parishioners may not know. Share on the parish social media channels pictures of the staff competing in a water activity from the suggestions in 52 Sundays and encourage families to share their own pictures as well. Ask a key volunteer or staff member to share which person of the Trinity they pray to the most and why in the parish bulletin. Create a video of the Family Prayer meditation that families can access.
For the week of June 6, 2021
Have a staff member share in the parish bulletin why receiving the Eucharist is special to them. Offer additional family-friendly times for Eucharistic Adoration this week. Invite families to share pictures of them cooking together on your parish social media channels. Post a video of a staff member making the Chopped Corned Beef Appetizer. Consider providing links on your website to the song for the Family Prayer this week for families to easily access.
For the week of June 13, 2021
Have families submit videos of them reading the
Litany of Humility
; combine the videos together so that different families read different lines of the prayer in one compilation video and post it on the parish website. Have staff share in the bulletin their response to “The Kingdom of God is like _____. ”Make a video for your parish website showing some of the smallest and largest things inside your parish. Invite families to post pictures of their gardens on your parish social media channels.
For the week of June 20, 2021
Inspired by the Gospel, have a key volunteer share an experience of being in a big storm. Make a video for your parish website where the staff interviews the priest using the questions from the “Get to Know Your Father” activity. Invite families to pray the
Prayer of St. Teresa of Avila
at the same time each day this week. Encourage families to share their posted signs of
Isaiah 41:10
on your parish social media channels. Make a video of a staff member preparing the BBQ Shrimp recipe.
For the week of June 27, 2021
Create a video tour of your ambry and explain what is stored inside; consider having someone share their experience of receiving the Anointing of the Sick as part of it. Invite a parish staff member to share what they think it would be like to witness Jesus raising a 12-year-old girl from the dead. Invite families to pray the
Prayer for the Sick by St. Augustine of Canterbury
for those who are on the sick list in the bulletin this week. Encourage families to share pictures from their family bike ride on your parish social media channels.
