Today is Thanksgiving.  It’s a national holiday but it is also an appropriate day to celebrate in the church.  We are a people of thanksgiving.  The word Eucharist actually comes from a Greek word that means thanksgiving.  Every time we celebrate Mass we give thanks to God.  Our prayers at Mass speak of our thanks such the preface to the Eucharistic Prayer

Priest:  The Lord be with you

People: And with your spirit

Priest:  Lift up your hearts

People:  We lift them up to the Lord

Priest:  Let us give thanks to the Lord our God

People:  It is right and just

We have a God who has richly blessed us.  Sometimes it is with great miracles that we recognize and give thanks for.  Sometimes, the blessings God gives us aren’t so obvious.  Sometimes we claim the credit ourselves saying it is because of the hard work we done.  Our hard work is important but we must recognize the gifts God has given us to do the hard work.

We should remember to give thanks for the people we care about.  We should give thanks for the food we have, for our homes, for our clothing.

Today is a holiday to celebrate the things we are thankful for but we can give thanks everyday and live life one day at a time.  We rush ahead.  People are already becoming consumed by Christmas preparations.  If you spent some time this week watching TV, you probably saw numerous commercials for black Friday sales beginning tonight.  It starts earlier and earlier.  Two weeks ago I saw a Santa already in the mall.

As a people of thanksgiving and faith, let’s not rush into Christmas consumed by materialism.  Remember that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus.  There will be countless lines for kids to see Santa.  Last year I saw a video by Becky Kelley with the song “Where’s the Line to Jesus?” which I found very inspiring.  You can check out the song at http://wheresthelinetoseejesus.com/.

Let us give thanks for the gift of Jesus in our lives.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff