Sing and play music in your hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Today’s celebration is one of those feasts with secular origin that has been coopted into the liturgy because of its significance. In reality, everyday should be a thanksgiving day. Every activity that we do at any one moment should be done in thanksgiving. Every good moment that we have should be enjoyed in thanksgiving. Every challenge faced and overcome should be turned into an occasion of thanksgiving. But we also know that we have so much to deal with that we often forget to express our thanksgiving. It can also be that we forget who we are as a people who should always be grateful to the Creator. And so I believe having a special day such as today to express our gratitude is a wonderful thing.
Most of us today will spend the day with family. Of all the things that we should be grateful for, I believe our families should be among the top ones. Our families define who we are. Our family members are always our first source of inspiration. We don’t gather as a family just because all is well and cozy in our families. We don’t gather as a family just because we all get along and everybody sings the praises of everybody else. We gather as families, despite all that we might be going through, to thank God for being present in one another’s life. Sometimes our family members can be outright unreasonable to us (or us to them), but without such moments, we might have never learnt how to be patient and kind. We get to demonstrate that we truly love when our love is given without expecting something in return.
Today is also celebrated by taking time off from our labors. This is done in recognition that our labors are our means of joining God in order to participate in the ongoing work of creation. When we work, we not only look for remuneration but we also seek to make our world a better place. We all love good looking cars, apartments, neighborhoods, furniture and even the clothes that we put on. Well, they are good looking and appealing to the eye because somebody used his or her talents and gifts to make them appealing. And so when we take time off to rest this weekend, we do so in appreciation of our labors as we thank God for our abilities and talents.
And most importantly, today’s celebration will be marked by gathering around the family table to enjoy a sumptuous home-cooked meal. I realized that this is one of the few occasions when Americans actually stay home and cook and say grace before meals! A meal is a sacred time for a family, a moment for story sharing, a moment when transgressions are forgiven. On this particular day, the meal that will be shared in our homes will remind us of God’s goodness to us, the God who provides for our needs. Many stories will be shared over the meal. Some of the stories will fill us with joy and gladness, and some of them will fill our eyes with tears. It will be a time to introduce and welcome new members into the family. It will be a time for remembering those who were with us at a time like this the previous year but who have since passed on. Let us ask the Lord to let the gratitude that we are expressing today bear fruit in loving service to our neighbor. Amen.