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PREPARATION
Prepare the clip from Game of Thrones, have pens and paper ready.
DRAGONS, KNIGHTS AND PRINCESSES
10 mins
Is this game linked to the theme of the session? Not really. Does it include dragons which are also features in Game of Thrones? Yes. That will do then. (Another alternative game would be ‘Musical thrones’ which is exactly the same as musical chairs, except with highly ornate thrones.)
This game is no more than a glorified version of rock, paper, scissors, with extra dragons. The key rules to remember are these: the knight kills the dragon, the dragon fries the princess and the princess lures the knight to his doom (or something like that). Split your group into two equal teams and line them up along opposite walls of your meeting space, pairing them with an opponent facing them. Explain who beats who (dragon beats princess etc) and tell them that they should run to the space between the teams and, on the count of three, perform a hilarious, over-the-top action to signify if they are choosing a dragon, knight or princess. Count up the amount of winners on each team and repeat five times to give you a winning team.
IN THE GAME OF THRONES…
20 mins
Tell the group that in this session you will be looking at Game of Thrones and facilitate an informal discussion about their experiences of the show. Consider asking:
• Have they watched the show? Why or why not?
• What do they think of it?
• What do they think is the ‘worldview’ of the show? (You may need to explain what worldview means.)
• How do they feel about the sex and violence that is so common on the show?
• Do they feel that such material should be shown on television?
Show the short Game of Thrones clip from the link section of this website, featuring the conversation between Cersei Lannister and Ned Stark that outlines many of the themes from the show.
Say: this conversation, and one quote in particular, sums up the underlying message of the show: when you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. Often we associate stories of knights, armies and dragons with fairytales – stories where the guy gets the girl, the bad guy is defeated and they all live happily ever after. Game of Thrones isn’t like that. The show isn’t fair - it’s brutal. [SPOILER ALERT] At the end of the first series the main character shockingly dies, and the bad guys win. George R. R. Martin, who wrote the books on which the series is based, has talked about this. He wanted his fantasy series to reflect on what ‘real life’ is actually like. Life, as he sees it, is unfair: the bad guys win, and hope rarely lasts longer than ten weeks. Ask the group:
• What do you think of this worldview? Is life unfair? Is George R.R. Martin right?
• What is the correct response to a world like this? To fight the system or to look after yourself?
KEY POINT 1
In the show, the characters respond with waves of self-interest. Families wage war against other families, nations are divide and just about everyone you care about dies. The message of the show can be distilled into this: life sucks, so take what you can and survive. If everyone else is out for themselves, you ought to be as well. This isn’t just the message of Game of Thrones, this is the message of our 21st Century society.
LOOKING AFTER NUMBER ONE
15 mins
Give everyone a pen and paper and ask them to write down their top three ambitions in life – they could be anything: getting married, having children, earning loads of money or doing amazing work for charity, whatever they like. Then split the young people into smaller groups of three or four and ask them to discuss their lists. Ask them to consider who they would need to step over, exploit, or make the most of in order to achieve each of their goals. Who benefits from them? Who suffers because of them? Encourage the group to examine each of these ambitions, thinking of all the possible consequences. Once they have done this, ask the group whether any of them would change their answers.
ME FIRST!
10 mins
Is individualism the only choice? Does society demand that we put ourselves first in order to survive? Or does the life of Jesus offer us an alternative? Game of Thrones is a fight to the top, where nobody goes out of their way for anyone else, service is seen as something to be scorned, and everyone is grabbing at power. Read Luke 22:24-30 as a group, or in small groups, and discuss these questions:
• Are you surprised by Jesus’ response to this question?
• In what other ways did Jesus show this example?
• How does this compare to the society we live in now?
• How do you think Jesus would act in Game of Thrones?
Say: This passage takes place during the Last Supper. Jesus had just explained to his disciples that he was going to sacrifice himself for others, and yet still humanity is fighting to put themselves at the front of the queue.
KEY POINT 2
Jesus didn’t come as a warrior king, fighting his way to the top. He came as a humble servant, putting others first and demonstrating leadership through humility. This is an amazing countercultural example in a society that is so me-driven, so focused on individual hopes
and dreams. In the world of Game of Thrones, Jesus offers a radical alternative.
CLOSE
5 mins
Give the group some time to reflect with some quiet music in the background. Say: spend the next few minutes reflecting on the areas of your lives where you need to put others first. Where do you need to be more servant-hearted and less me-focused? Hand these over to God and ask him to give you the strength to put others first. Pray to finish.
