Narnia: The Sacrifice Of Friendship

Children’s Mass for the Solemnity of Christ the King November 26th 2006

Setting: Christ the King Catholic grade school, grades 1st - 8th

Readings: Daniel 7:13-14, Rev. 1:5-8, and John 18:33-37

“How much would you sacrifice for your friends?”

What comes to mind when you think of a king? Today we celebrate Jesus Christ our King who was willing to do whatever it took for His people, His friends, and His family. Jesus is known as the innocent Lamb who gave up His life for His friends so we might go to heaven.

There is a movie called “Narnia” with that same type of king, only this is a lion king named Aslan, who is willing to sacrifice, offer up his life for his people too. Has anyone seen the movie “Narnia”? This movie came from a book titled “The Chronicles of Narnia” and tells of a magical world named Narnia where the animals can talk. Four children, like yourselves, named Lucy, Susan, Peter, and Edmond discover Narnia through a secret door hidden in a closet. Lucy finds Narnia first and meets Tumnus who is a spy of the wicked white witch. She wins over Tumnus through the friendship she offers him with no strings attached. Later Tumnus must sacrifice his sneaky job spying on others for the witch because he becomes friends with Lucy, and this makes the witch angry. Because of his friendship with Lucy, Tumnus receives a nasty spell from the white witch. Sometimes friendship means standing up for our friends to protect them, and this is exactly what Tumnus did.

All the children choose to risk their safety and to save the doomed land of Narnia from the cold winter that never ends and other wicked spells cast by the white witch upon everybody. Lucy, Susan, Peter, and Edmond could leave and forget Narnia forever, but instead they sacrifice their comfortable lives for their new friends. The idea of sacrifice is commonplace in the movie; Tumnus sacrifices for Lucy; the beavers who become friends with Lucy, Susan, and Peter sacrifice their home to shelter them from the cold; and all the children sacrifice for their friends who live in Narnia. But the ultimate sacrifice comes from Aslan who is captured by the evil followers of the witch and is killed.

Jesus is captured by mean people of his day and is killed but he rose from the dead and today we call Him King. Aslan also becomes stronger after his death and acquires the ability to awaken new life to those harmed by the wicked white witch. The resurrected Jesus can assist all of us too since He is now King over Heaven and Earth. Today we celebrate the great King, Jesus who sacrificed for His friends, you and me. Jesus did not give in to the bad people around Him but stood up to them for His friends. All of us have the ability, with Jesus’ help, to stand up against bad things for the sake of our friends. What would you give up to help your friends? Is there someone who could use a friend just like you?

Best friends are willing to give up anything for each other. Tumnus sacrificed for his friendship with Lucy. The beavers sacrificed their home in order to protect Lucy, Susan and Peter. Aslan gave up his life for his friends. Jesus gave up His life, as an innocent lamb, for all of us. When you are good friends with someone we need to be loyal. What do you think it means to be loyal to a friend?

Jesus has made a great sacrifice for all of us and won for us the chance to go to heaven. Today we thank our great friend Jesus for sacrificing so much for all of us, His friends. Unworthy are all of us to have such a generous friend, but worthy is Jesus the lamb to receive all of our “power and riches, wisdom and strength, honor and glory and praise.” May we show our loyalty to Jesus, the One sitting on the throne, and display friendship to Him every moment of our lives.

--John Bamman, OFM Conv