The Benedict Year › Reading Backwards from the Pascha › Unit 2 · The Beloved Son
Week 10 · 16–20 November 2026 · Michaelmas
God will provide himself the lamb
Unit 2 · The Beloved Son: Isaac carries the wood up the mountain, and Origen says that is the Son carrying the Cross.
Session A · the reading
About 55 minutes. Open and read aloud before any framing: no introduction, no “today we’re looking at”. Scripture first, then the Father.
- Genesis 22:6–14; John 1:29; Romans 8:32
- Origen, Homily VIII on Genesis, the second half
Session B · the argument
About 35 minutes, on another day. Never both in one sitting.
The question, once. Where else does a father give up a son? Ask it, then wait as long as it takes.
Video. Sacrifice and Atonement; The Test
The Tile Board
Add a card: The Lamb of God (John 1:29), with the passage and today’s date. Pencil a line to another card only if the child sees one.
Books this week
Optional: one piece of media
The Iron Giant (1999). Watched together, with nothing said about why it was chosen; how the list was made.
If the child gets there alone, the connection is worth ten tellings. If not, leave it open.
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