Broken Friendships
Friendships matter
by Rebecca Parkinson (revised, originally published in 2011)
Suitable for Whole School (Sec)
Aims
To encourage us to think about the importance of friendships.
Preparation and materials
- Before the assembly, make a paper chain by using thin strips of paper. Make a loop with one strip and glue the ends together. Pass another strip through the loop and glue the ends. Continue until all of the strips form a paper chain.
- Optional: you may wish to display a photograph of a friend or family member who has been important in your life. If a photograph is not available, simply describe the person to the students.
Assembly
- Ask the students to think of one of their friends. This could be someone in school, a friend who lives near their home or even a family member.
Ask them to consider what makes that particular person a good friend.
Optional: show the photograph of the friend or family member who has been important in your life.
Tell the students about the person in the photograph, or someone else who has been important to you. - Show the paper chain to the students.
Explain that the chain is made up of all the students in a particular class, group or school. Although all of the people in the group are not best friends, they are all joined in a special way. This is because they are in the same class, group or school, so they will go through life together in some way, spending a lot of time every week in each other’s company. - Ask the students to think of a time when they have fallen out with their friends. How did they feel?
Ask for a volunteer to hold one end of the paper chain while you keep hold of the other end.
Explain that all of the people in the chain are joined together, but when a friendship between two people breaks apart, it affects all those around them.
Pull the paper chain so that it snaps.
Explain that it is only one connection in the chain that has broken, but the whole chain has collapsed because of it. - Explain that, when we have problems in our friendships, we need to sort them out quickly so that the effect of our falling-out with one person doesn’t spread to lots of other people.
- The Bible shows us how important Jesus thought friendship was.
One of the first things we read about Jesus doing in the Bible is gathering a group of friends (disciples) around him. These friends would be with Jesus through good and bad times and, although they had disagreements, they stayed with him throughout his life.
There were times when forgiveness was needed, times when disagreements were had - but throughout Jesus’ life, these friends stuck together. Later, when Jesus had returned to heaven, many of these disciples continued to work together as the Early Church grew. - At different points in the school year and in our lives, it is important to stop and think about our friends. How are we going to treat people around us during the year, during this week, during today? How can our behaviour make other people feel? What can we do to make everyone’s year even better than the year before?
Time for reflection
Ask the students to be quiet for a few moments and think about their friends, people in their class and people in their family.
- Is there anyone they need to say sorry to?
Pause to allow time for thought.
- Can they decide to go and sort it out?
Pause to allow time for thought.
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you that you have given us friends.
Please help us to be good friends.
Please help us to sort out arguments quickly.
Please help us to be quick to forgive,
And always to look for good in other people.
Amen.
Song/music
‘Getting on with life’ by Philippa Hanna, available at: https://youtu.be/IOv5yhxJ1I0 (4.14 minutes long)
