Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday that expresses very
well the spiritual roots of our nation.
We are at our best as Americans when we are grateful to God, grateful to
one another, and grateful for the blessings we enjoy as a nation. We are at our best as a nation not by the
force of our military might, but when we in humility give thanks for the
incredible blessings that we enjoy.
We are now living in the aftermath of the horrific terrorist
attack in Paris. We are mourning the
breakdown of the global human family.
How can humans, created in the image of God, choose death rather than
life, choose revenge rather than mercy?
How do we continue to anchor our faith life in the love and compassion
and forgiveness of Christ Jesus?
May we, with God’s grace, move beyond this senseless cycle
of violence to pray for peace and to live in gratitude with the same passion as
those who would wage war. May we
wrestle with the Gospel truth that we
will never get out of the mess of the fear and terrorism that we live in by
going to war. The Thanksgiving – Ad vent
– Christmas message is to live in hope of the coming of the Prince of Peace.
The threat of terrorism, as unnerving as this is for us,
does not give us a free pass on the commandment to love one another. Love was and is and will always be the first
requirement of our discipleship of the Lord Jesus.
On the fourth Thursday of November, we remember our
foundational value of gratitude that was expressed back in 1621 by the Pilgrims
at that Plymouth Plantation.
For us as Catholic Christians, the first Thanksgiving took
place on another Thursday, approximately 2000 years ago, Holy Thursday, in a
rented room in Jerusalem where Jesus gathered with his apostles at the Last
Supper and celebrated the Eucharist for the first time.
To give thanks is to go to the heart of the Gospel. Our spiritual lives stem from our gratitude
for God’s unconditional love for us for being exactly who we are, no better, no
worse, no strings attached. Lord our God,
give us grateful hearts.
In the healing of the ten lepers in the Gospel account, it
is important to note well that divine love and healing went out to all the
lepers in the Gospel account. In the
same way, we are all the gracious recipients of the unconditional and unending
love of God. God’s love is for everyone
but our gratitude response to God’s love is also a most important dimension of our
conversion process. Lord God, give us
grateful hearts.
As we reflect on the reaction of the lepers to God’s healing
love, when only one came back to give
thanks. How about ourselves? Do we always live with grateful hearts? Are there times when we also run away from God’s invitation to love?
Do we run away from God in the midst of life’s struggles? Do we run away from God’s love when we are
fearful? Lord, give us a trusting heart
that is anchored in gratitude for your unconditional love.
I think it can be said with considerable truth that our
lives are directed by the stories we choose to dwell on. Are
the family stories you remember rooted in gratitude? God
gave us a memory so that we can remember and give thanks. The memory enables us to bring forth from the
storeroom of the past the wonderful moments of success, love happiness, so that
we can re-live, re-enjoy them and be grateful.
Lord, give me a grateful heart.
What are your memories in your journey of faith for which we
give thanks. For we wish to pray: Lord, give me a grateful heart. I can remember back as a fifth grader at Our
Lady of Good Counsel School, as I was training
to be altar boy, my dad taught the Latin responses for the Prayers at
the Foot of the Altar. Introibo ad altare Dei. Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meanm. My dad was really proud to see me as an altar
boy and I have a grateful heart to my dad for teaching me in Latin the
words: “I will go to the altar of God,
to God who gives joy to my youth.” Those
words still have much meaning as I go to the altar of God, to God who gives joy
to my youth.” My memory of my dad’s
faith and his desire for me to be an altar boy laid a most beautiful foundation
for me in my journey to the priesthood.
May we remember our family stories and our personal faith
stories. They are our truth that helps
fashion who we are today. May we also
remember and celebrate the stories of God’s love for us that is revealed in the
Scriptures. As St Paul writes in the second scripture
reading, “ I give thanks to God always for you and for how you have touched my
life.” The Scriptures reveal the story
of God’s unending love for us.
When we gather this afternoon around our Thanksgiving table,
we will be grateful for the food, of course, but also for belonging – that we
are with family and friends who accept us and share our lives.
This morning, as we
feast at the table of the Lord, we are grateful for the food, the bread of the Eucharist
that comforts us in this life and nourishes us toward life that is eternal.
And we are grateful for belonging – to this parish community
that loves and supports us and we are grateful that we belong, both in life and
death, to Jesus our Brother.
Lord Jesus, give us a grateful heart.
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