On Sunday, Oct. 8, after praying the Angelus with the crowd gathered in Saint Peter’s Square, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, offered a reflection in which he said, “Am I aware that life and faith are gifts I have received? Do I believe that everything comes from the grace of the Lord? And, above all, in response to grace, do I know how to say ‘thank you’? Do I know how to say ‘thanks’”?
Thursday, Nov. 23 is Thanksgiving Day, a national holiday in our country. Since 1863, the fourth Thursday in November is a day set aside by presidential order “as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” Thanksgiving Day is a day to give God thanks. A day whose roots trace to the autumn of 1621, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, and to the Pilgrims, who with the assistance of the Native Americans, survived their first winter in this land. In celebration of their first harvest, the Pilgrims and the Native Americans shared a festive meal in gratitude to the Creator.
Gratitude lies at the heart of our Thanksgiving holiday. It echoes in our observance of the holiday. For example, our parishes and schools generously collect impressive amounts of food to distribute to those who may not have the means to provide a celebratory meal for their families. Those food donations are an expression of gratitude. The Collect for Mass on Thanksgiving Day prays: “Father all-powerful, your gifts of love are countless and your goodness infinite, as we come before you on Thanksgiving Day with gratitude for your kindness, open our hearts to have concern for every man, woman and child so that we may share your gifts in loving service.”
This “sharing in loving service” is visible in the generous food baskets provided at Thanksgiving by our faithful parishioners and schoolchildren. They are an expression of our “concern for every man, woman and child.” Throughout the year in our parishes and schools, various collections of food continue in order to stock food pantries throughout our Diocese.
Many of our parishes offer a Mass of Thanksgiving, either the evening before Thanksgiving Day or on the day itself. These Masses are well-attended by the parishioners who come together with their faith communities to give God thanks. Each offering of the Holy Eucharist (Mass) is a supreme prayer of thanksgiving. The Greek origin of the word Eucharist means thanksgiving. At Mass, we gather as the Body of Christ to give God thanks. Mass is the perfect expression of gratitude to God.
On Thanksgiving Day, families and friends join together for a sumptuous meal. They sit united at table, name their blessings, and enjoy the meal and one another’s company. The festive family meal on Thanksgiving Day is also an expression of gratitude to God. What will you be giving God thanks for when you sit down with your family and invited guests for your turkey dinner? Do you have an attitude of gratitude?
The values of Thanksgiving Day are religious values. They are the same values for us as for those in 1621 who gathered to give God thanks. This day is about solidarity. As members of the human family, we are in union with one another, bound in common humanity and in the common journey of life. Thanksgiving Day is about welcome. How we receive one another. Those who are like us and those who are different from us. Those whose cultures, languages, nationalities and religions are unlike ours. Thanksgiving Day is about sharing. I see beyond myself, beyond my own world to another’s world. We express our gratitude to God by practicing these religious values of welcome, sharing and solidarity.
My prayers and wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy the holiday. Remember, as the Pope has reminded us, say thank you to the Lord.
Most Reverend Dennis J. Sullivan, D.D.
Bishop of Camden