November 28, 2024
The Rev. Anne Williamson
A gospel Reflection on Thanksgiving
A reading from the Gospel of Matthew: Jesus said, "I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you-- you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, `What will we eat?' or `What will we drink?' or `What will we wear?' For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:25-33
Jesus is addressing a crowd on a mountainside and in this part of his address, known as the Sermon on the Mount, he is challenging his listeners to worry less and trust more, to order their priorities in a godly fashion. The words Jesus speaks are as relevant in the early 21st century as they were in the early 1st century – order your priorities thoughtfully. Seek first the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness. I have to ask myself - how is it going with the worry less, trust more challenge? Do my prayers, and my actions, have godly priorities?
Although the passage we are considering today does not say in so many words ‘if worried, then pray’, I think prayer underpins the message. Indeed prayer begins this chapter of Matthew’s Gospel, where Jesus teaches his listeners the Lord’s prayer – thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
As we gather for this celebration of Thanksgiving in 2024, how might we endeavor to order our priorities thoughtfully, so that our prayers and our actions are pleasing to God? Gratitude is the place to start I believe.
On Sunday afternoon there was an Interfaith Thanksgiving Service organized by members of the Portsmouth Ministerium, the interfaith clergy group in Portsmouth. The service was centered around the faith communities’ shared values of gratitude, love, generosity and peace.
Practices of gratitude are the antidote to the anxieties around food, drink and clothing. Which is not to say that God does not care when God’s children are hungry, thirsty or inadequately clothed…but when practices of gratitude replace worry, then love and generosity often follow, and where gratitude, love and generosity are manifest, there is peace. Peace not in the sense of the absence of conflict but peace as ‘shalom’, total wellbeing. Total wellbeing for all.
Raba Kaya Stern-Kaufman from Temple Israel shared wise words from Brother David Steindal-Rast (author, scholar and Benedictine Monk) at Sunday’s service:
We grow in love when we grow in gratefulness. And we grow in gratefulness when we grow in love. Here is the link between the two: thanksgiving pivots on our willingness to go beyond our independence and to accept the give-and-take between giver and thanks-giver. But the ‘yes’ which acknowledges our interdependence, is the very ‘yes’ to belonging, the ‘yes’ to love.
So what are some gratitude practices that might lead us to ‘yes’?! Here are a few for your consideration this Thanksgiving season:
· Saying ‘thank you’ before and/or after a meal. Do you have a favorite ‘grace’? My grandchildren taught me the grace they say before their Sunday School snack: Thank you for the food we eat, thank you for the friends we meet, thank you for the birds that sing, thank you Lord for everything!
· Take a gratitude walk – spend time in nature noticing…giving thanks for whatever you notice that blesses you! If getting out for a walk is not a possibility, look out the window and give thanks for the sun, the rain, the birds. Use whatever senses are available to you. Listen for sounds of blessing: birdsong, rustling leaves or perhaps music (I am listening to more music and fewer talking heads – I am happier for this practice!). Or walk your hands through some bread dough or over some soft fabrics or pet a cat, or dog, or a hamster.
· Make a list (I love lists) of blessings each day. This could be incorporated into the Daily Examen, a prayer practice in Ignatian Spirituality which invites us to notice the blessings in our lives and give thanks for them, and to acknowledge the challenges and offer both to God at the end of the day.
· Send a note, an email, a text to someone to let them know you are grateful that they are in your life.
· If you are in a position to do so, make a gift to help nourish or clothe those who are hungry, thirsty or inadequately clothed. If you are in need, please ask for help. Sometimes I have been the giver, sometimes the thanks-giver…that is true for most if not all of us. We all have seasons of more and less. In a community that practices gratitude, love, generosity and peace, hopefully our priorities will be God-aligned, and there will be enough for all.
I am so very grateful for the community of St. John’s.
Thanksgiving blessings,
Anne
The Collect for Thanksgiving
Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.