Giving thanks in perilous times

“The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies.” 

So began the proclamation establishing an annual day of national Thanksgiving. You might think you know the origins of these words, or you might be surprised to find out.

 It is true that the first thanksgiving feast on these shores was done by English settlers, the pilgrims. But they did it only once.

George Washington declared a day of Thanksgiving after the nation won its independence. But it was done only once and only in a few places.

Rather, the origins of an annual day of Thanksgiving came in a particularly horrific chapter of our nation’s history, and in a particularly awful month in that chapter.

 The date the proclamation was signed – Oct. 3, 1863 – was a bare three months after the Battle of Gettysburg, and a mere two weeks after another ferocious battle, at Chickamauga, Tennessee.

The idea for an annual observance of thanks came from Sarah Hale, a widow with five children who was penniless. She caught the attention of the President of the United States who agreed with her. Sarah Hale, by the way, went on to become an advocate for the education of girls and an famous author. You know her best as the author of “Mary had a little lamb.”

 In this, the darkest hours of our national existence, in midst of a terrible civil war that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, the proclamation she inspired implored the nation to count its blessings, and earnestly asked God to bind our wounds.

That our ancestors would pause to give thanks, in spite of everything they had experienced, was extraordinary. They set a selfless, generous for us. We too live in perilous times. With fires raging in Ferguson, with horrific violence in Iraq and Syria, with religious conflict in Israel-Palestine, and with the recent horrors that have come to light right here at the University of Virginia, it would be easy to slip into despair or slide into willful ignorance.

 We should do neither.

Instead, on this Thanksgiving, I believe it fitting and proper to once again pray for the healing of our nation and world; pray that violence will end everywhere; and pray that we will, with God’s grace, become instruments of healing, reconciliation and justice for all.

Like our ancestors, we must begin by giving thanks for our blessings: the food on our table tonight, the love of family and friends, and the work we are given to do that each of us might make a difference.

And so hear again this proclamation, from the pen of the great man who signed it:

“To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God…” 

 “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. 

 “I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens, and I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, 

 “And fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

 “In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.” 

Signed, Abraham Lincoln

The Monday Funnies Thanksgiving Week Edition

The world is a little nuts right now, and we need a few laughs. Here is a new cartoon from Dave Walker just in time for our cooking Thanksgiving Dinner at the church, and some really bad jokes for Thanksgiving from Pat Hill in the overbloated Jokester Department of Fiat Lux. Finally, look below this mess for a video that is, er, probably serious but laugh anyway. Enjoy your Thanksgiving week!

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An industrious turkey farmer was always experimenting with breeding, to perfect a better turkey.

His family was fond of the leg portion for dinner and there were never enough legs for everyone. After many frustrating attempts, the farmer was relating the results of his efforts to his friends at the general store get-together. "Well I finally did it! I bred a turkey that has 6 legs!"

They all asked the farmer how it tasted.

"I don't know" said the farmer. "I never could catch the darn thing!"

* * *

O, COME ALL YE TURKEYS

(Tune O Come All Ye Faithful)

O come all ye turkeys,
Fully dressed or boneless;
Come all ye Armor Stars,
This Thanksgiving day.
Come and be basted,
You will not be wasted;

Oh be our guest for dinner,
Oh be our guest for dinner,
Oh be our guest for dinner,
Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving prayers for your table

May you have a joyful Thanksgiving, and may all of each of us be filled with gratitude for the many blessings we enjoy. Here are a few prayers for your table today:

+ + +

Bless this food
we are about to receive.
Give bread to those who hunger,
and hunger for justice to us
who have bread. Amen

+ + +

May God bless
our meal and grant us a
compassionate and
understanding heart
toward one another. Amen.

+ + +

Beloved Lord,
we do greatly thank You
for the abundance
that is ours. Amen.

+ + +

Be present at our table, Lord.
Be here and everywhere adored.
Thy creatures bless and grant that we
may feast in Paradise with thee. Amen

John Cennick (1718-1755)

+ + +

"O God, when I have food, help me to remember the hungry; When I have work, help me to remember the jobless; When I have a home, help me to remember those who have no home at all; When I am without pain, help me to remember those who suffer, And remembering, help me to destroy my complacency; bestir my compassion, that I be concerned enough to help By word and deed, those who cry out for what we take for granted. Amen."

-- Samuel Pugh 

+ + +  

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, creator of the fruit of the vine: Grant that we who share this wine, which gladdens our hearts, may share for ever the new life of the true Vine, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Blessed are you, O Lord our God; you bring forth bread from the earth and make the risen Lord to be for us the Bread of life: Grant that we who daily seek the bread which sustains our bodies may also hunger for the food of everlasting life, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

+ + + 

Giving Thanks
Based on a prayer by Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Holy and gracious God, we give thanks for the gift of this gathering; for the food before us; the loving hands that have prepared it; and the blessings we share together. Kindle our hearts and awaken hope, that we may know you always as our companion along the way. Forgive us where we have fallen short with each other and with ourselves; heal our wounds, restore our health, strengthen our souls, and help us to be ever mindful the needs of those near us who have so little. Teach us to believe that by your grace all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. Amen.

Please join us for a Thanksgiving dinner this evening

Thanksgiving dinner tonight

(and bring a side-dish), and gather tomorrow for a Holy Eucharist at 10 am. Here is our schedule the next two days.

Thanksgiving Eve - Wednesday, November 24

5:30 pm - Evening Prayer

6:00 pm - Thanksgiving Dinner

6:45 - Hymn Sing

Community Night Thanksgiving Dinner and Hymn Sing -- Iris Potter will cook the turkeys and Jim and Lori Richardson will play host to our annual pre-Thanksgiving dinner. Please bring side-dishes. Following dinner, we will have a hymn sing in the parish hall so be sure to look up in advance which hymns you want to sing.

Thanksgiving Day - Thursday, November 25

10:00 am - Holy Eucharist with Blessing of Thanksgiving Bread and Wine

Join us at 10 am for a brief Thanksgiving worship service. Thanksgiving is an official feast day of the Episcopal Church, so put the turkey in the oven and join us for a time of prayer and thanks for all God has given us. And we will continue our new tradition this year: Bring bread and an unopened bottle of wine or other beverage that you will use for your Thanksgiving dinner. We will bless the bottles, and your meal will carry with it the blessing of St. Paul's.

Back in Charlottesville and onward with Fiat Lux

I hope you have had a wonderful Thanksgiving and some time off from whatever keeps you busy.

As you probably can tell by now, I am back in Charlottesville. I've been in California with my family: my mother who has been ailing, and my sister and her son. I also got to see some of my dearest and oldest friends.

While there, my one remaining uncle died at age 91, the last surviving man in our family from the World War II generation. I would not be here but for my Uncle Van. My mother met my father on a blind date -- fixed up by Uncle Van, who introduced my father (his Navy buddy) to the sister of the young woman Van was dating. Two marriages came of this blind date. My mom and dad; and Van went onto to marry my mother's oldest sister.

Here in Charlottesville, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving worship service Thursday morning, with full choir. We've had an ample Thanksgiving feast (two, in fact), and I am feeling very blessed, indeed, by the love of family and friends and all of you.

In the next few days, we will take up where we left off in this space. I hope you will join me again on this journey, forgive whatever excesses or mistakes I may commit, and lend me your gentle wisdom.

Counting our blessings: The story of Thanksgiving

Here is my Thanksgiving Day sermon. May your table be full and may many blessings bring you peace and joy this day and forever.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have much to be thankful for today, beginning with all of you. Thank you for being here, for sharing with me in this journey of faith that brings us together here in this sacred place.

I have much to be thankful for today. For the love and companionship of Lori; for good health, a warm and comfortable home; food on the table; my family on the West Coast, and friends on both coasts and in between and all over the world.

All of us have much to be thankful for, beginning with this gift of life from God we share, this privilege to walk the earth with each other. I hope today you will pause, and as my grandmother used to say, count your blessings.

This day we call Thanksgiving is one of two secular holidays that are also sacred feast days in the Episcopal Church, the other being the Fourth of July.

You may not know the origins of Thanksgiving as an annual national holiday. Although the pilgrims took a day of thanks for their survival, that really is not the beginning of Thanksgiving as a national holiday.

Nor did it really begin with George Washington, who, it is true, declared a day of prayer and thanks for the nation having won its independence. President Washington’s declaration for Thanksgiving was observed in some places but not everywhere.

Thanksgiving as we know it began with Abraham Lincoln, who in 1863, in the midst of the worst calamity this nation has ever known, declared a national day of thanks that should be observed ever after on the fourth Thursday of November.

What is significant is that Lincoln declared Thanksgiving not in a time of national celebration, but in the midst of a terrible civil war that claimed more lives than all of our other wars combined.

Lincoln was urged to create this holiday by Sarah Hale, who was a single mother of five children, a widow and penniless. Sarah Hale urged Lincoln to declare a day of Thanksgiving hoping it might bring the nation a moment of healing.

By the way, Sarah Hale went on to become a champion for the education of girls, and a famous writer. You know her best as the author of “Mary had a Little Lamb.”

I think Lincoln knew what he was doing when he agreed with her by declaring a day of thanks: It is in those times when it looks bleakest that we are called to stop, to give thanks, to count our blessings. When we do, we might find our courage renewed, our spirit lifted, and we might see God walking next to us, holding us, embracing us, bringing us blessings, and lighting our path with hope.

Our nation is in one of those bleak times before the dawn. We remain engaged in two wars, with little prospect for peace in the coming year. The challenges abroad and here at home are large, indeed. Unemployment is the highest in a generation, and even if you have a job, I can safely bet everyone here knows someone who is out of a job or marginally employed.

Meanwhile, the government of our nation seems badly mired in the politics of fear and partisan polarization. We have a new president who is maneuvering with difficulty across the shoals of state. Whatever your politics, whatever your opinion on this issue or that, he deserves your fervent prayers.

And then pray for the world, and put feet to your prayers. Much of the world is in need of your compassion, in need of healing, in need of hope for a world not yet seen, and in need of action to make that hope real.

Today, let us begin by counting our blessings – all of our blessings, whatever they may be: in material wealth, or in talent and time, or in the love of family and friends. Let us count our blessings, and come to this table to share in the sacred bread and wine of our Holy Communion.

And then let us ask again how we can share our abundance, how we can make real the Lord’s Prayer “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
AMEN

Thanksgiving prayers for your table

Here are a few Thanksgiving Prayers to grace your table this week:

"O God, when I have food, help me to remember the hungry; When I have work, help me to remember the jobless; When I have a home, help me to remember those who have no home at all; When I am without pain, help me to remember those who suffer, And remembering, help me to destroy my complacency; bestir my compassion, that I be concerned enough to help By word and deed, those who cry out for what we take for granted. Amen."

-- Samuel Pugh

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, creator of the fruit of the vine: Grant that we who share this wine, which gladdens our hearts, may share for ever the new life of the true Vine, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessed are you, O Lord our God; you bring forth bread from the earth and make the risen Lord to be for us the Bread of life: Grant that we who daily seek the bread which sustains our bodies may also hunger for the food of everlasting life, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Grace
by Rafael Jesus Gonzalez

Thanks & blessings be
to the Sun & the Earth
for this bread & this wine,
this fruit, this meat, this salt,
this food;
thanks be & blessing to them
who prepare it, who serve it;
thanks & blessings to them
who share it
(& also the absent & the dead).
Thanks & Blessing to them who bring it
(may they not want),
to them who plant & tend it,
harvest & gather it
(may they not want);
thanks & blessing to them who work
& blessing to them who cannot;
may they not want - for their hunger
sours the wine & robs
the taste from the salt.
Thanks be for the sustenance & strength
for our dance & work of justice, of peace.
Amen.

Giving Thanks
Based on a prayer by Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Holy and gracious God, we give thanks for the gift of this gathering; for the food before us; the loving hands that have prepared it; and the blessings we share together. Kindle our hearts and awaken hope, that we may know you always as our companion along the way. Forgive us where we have fallen short with each other and with ourselves; heal our wounds, restore our health, strengthen our souls, and help us to be ever mindful the needs of those near us who have so little. Teach us to believe that by your grace all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. Amen.

Giving Thanks

I have much to be thankful for this year: I begin with giving thanks to God for the plenty we enjoy, for my good health and the many adventures and safe travels of this past year. 

I give thanks for the confidence placed in me by the Bishop, people, leaders and staff of St. Paul's Memorial Church in calling me to be their Rector, and most especially for Lori for her support and love in this huge transition. 

I give thanks for my family and my many friends for supporting us, though some have wondered at times at the wisdom of our moving so far. I do miss you greatly. 

I give thanks to the people, leaders and staff of All Souls Parish in Berkeley for their love and support throughout all this. I miss you more than you know. 

I give thanks for our friends at Trinity Cathedral, Sacramento. You are still our home congregation. Thanks for taking us in again this summer. We know we will return again.

I give thanks for the privilege of my work in the California state Senate, and please know, those of you who work there, you are still in my prayers, and you have my thanks for your selfless service. I hope you get a break soon from the onslaught of bad news. 

And let me give thanks to all of you, dear readers, for following my spiritual, theological, semi-political meanderings on this blog and for your comments and encouragement. 

If you can, please join us later today for a Thanksgiving dinner at St. Paul's beginning at 6:15 pm. Lori is cooking the turkeys, I will do some carving, and please bring a side dish. We will also celebrate Thanksgiving at a special Eucharist at 10 a.m. Thursday -- put your turkey in the oven and come join us. I will give a brief homily.

Here are two Thanksgiving blessings to share with you for your grace at the table. The first was sent to me by our dear friend Karen in Tennessee. The second blessing I wrote, based on the famous prayer of Julian of Norwich. I am going to take a few days break from the blog -- so please have a blessed and joyous Thanksgiving.

Here are the blessings:

Grace
by Rafael Jesus Gonzalez

Thanks & blessings be
to the Sun & the Earth
for this bread & this wine,
this fruit, this meat, this salt,
this food;
thanks be & blessing to them
who prepare it, who serve it;
thanks & blessings to them
who share it
(& also the absent & the dead).
Thanks & Blessing to them who bring it
(may they not want),
to them who plant & tend it,
harvest & gather it
(may they not want);
thanks & blessing to them who work
& blessing to them who cannot;
may they not want - for their hunger
sours the wine & robs
the taste from the salt.
Thanks be for the sustenance & strength
for our dance & work of justice, of peace.
Amen.

Giving Thanks
Based on a prayer by Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Holy and gracious God, we give thanks for the gift of this gathering; for the food before us; the loving hands that have prepared it; and the blessings we share together. Kindle our hearts and awaken hope, that we may know you always as our companion along the way. Forgive us where we have fallen short with each other and with ourselves; heal our wounds, restore our health, strengthen our souls, and help us to be ever mindful the needs of those near us who have so little. Teach us to believe that by your grace all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. Amen.