"Unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks"

I know I just posted about gratitude yesterday, but ... as they say ... 'tis the season. I found this address from President George Washington announcing the first official Thanksgiving celebration as the United States, and I thought it bore sharing.

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

October 3, 1789

Dear Lord, grant us forgiveness for our national transgressions and increase in us Your peace and Your blessings! Amen!

Just a reminder: Thanksgiving Day Mass is at 9:30 (English) and 11:30 (Spanish)!

"Give Thanks for God's Blessings ..."

One of those great Thanksgiving hymns reminds us,

"Sent forth by God's blessings,
the True Faith confessing,
the people of God from His dwelling take leave.
The sacrifice ended, O now be extended
the fruits of this Mass in all hearts which believe!"

 As we wrap up the liturgical year during this 34th week of Ordinary Time and prepare to begin anew on the First Sunday of Advent, we have the chance to take stock of the year past and give thanks for the tremendous gifts God has given us.  Certainly for me, one of those great blessings was being ordained a Priest and sent to St. Michael's!

But each of us also has a tremendous opportunity this week to remember what fuels this gratitude and what supports our growth in holiness during the New [Church] Year: the Eucharist.  The very name means, "thanksgiving," and our participation in the Mass -- the Celebration of the Eucharist -- reminds us every time of how much we have for which to give thanks to God!

As we prepare to sit around turkeys and stuffing, cranberries and pies of all sorts this Thursday, let's take the opportunity also to be present to the Lord's Banquet and to give thanks there for all the ways He has blessed us this year ... so that we can enter more fully into that spirit of gratitude in the New [Church] Year which is about to come upon us!

Thanksgiving Day Mass is at 9:30 (English) and 11:30 (Spanish)!

American Holiness

Maybe you've heard people say, "There will never be an American pope" ... "The American Church is out of line with the rest of the world" ... "What do Americans know about true sacrifice?"

Well, today we hear from the Church that holiness is possible, even for an American. We celebrate the Memorial of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, a wonderful woman who came over from Italy to work with Italian immigrants in New York City and later in Chicago. They were looked down upon by the culture at large as "different" and "less than us."  Yet through this work -- in which she herself was looked down upon -- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini was the first American citizen to be canonized, in 1946.

She was so inspired by the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus that she formed a religious order (The Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart) to help her to do what she was doing: care for the sick and poor in America. The love He has for us is supposed to flow out through us to the world around us, and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini recognized that.

Even though most of us are not part of a religious order, and not many of us are Italian, we are all baptized and thus beloved children of God, sharing in the love of that Sacred Heart of Jesus.  How can we reach out in love to those around us, especially the forgotten and those who are looked down upon as "less than us"? How can we show through our own actions that holiness is very possible, even in Cary, North Carolina, USA?

Gathering as God's Family

In the readings for the High Holy Days of the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, we hear about our identity as God's family. St. Paul begins the second reading for this Sunday:

Brothers and sisters:
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father,
who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement
and good hope through his grace,
encourage your hearts and strengthen them in every good deed and word.

-2 Thess. 2:16-17

 We have the opportunity each Sunday to gather as God's family -- to celebrate what He has done for us! The Sunday Mass is one of the most important times we have to set time aside for "family dinner," to hear what is happening in the life of our spiritual family, to receive encouragement from the Word of God, and ... most importantly ... to receive the Body and Blood of the Lord!

This was really brought home to me a couple of weeks ago as I was doing some errands:

So many things compete for our attention on a weekend and try to distract us from who we are at the core of our being -- sports, TV, homework, yard work, house work, travel, exercise, and a thousand other activities.  They even try to take over our Sunday morning, Saturday evening, and the prime-time 6 PM Life Teen Mass hour on Sunday night. Yet none of these activities can substitute for a weekly reminder of who we are: we are part of God's family, responding to His call to be holy in the midst of the world.  

Let's commit to taking our Sunday opportunity to be encouraged for the week, so that we can share that encouragement of God's love with our brothers and sisters.