Deacon Sil's Word For All Thanksgiving Day

Table of Contents

First Reading (Isaiah 63: 7-9)

Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 67: 1-3, 5, 7-8)

Second Reading (Colossians 3: 12-17)

Gospel (Luke 17: 11-19)

References

Resources

Homiletic Ideas

Homily: Getting It Right

Penitential Rite

Prayers of the Faithful

Go To the Table of Contents First Reading (Isaiah 63: 7-9)

The favors of the Lord I will recall, the glorious deeds of the Lord, because of all he has done for us; for he is good to the house of Israel. He has favored us according to his mercy and his great kindness. He said: They are indeed my people, children who are not disloyal. So he became their savior in their every affliction. It was not a messenger or an angel, but he himself who saved them. Because of his love and pity he redeemed them himself, lifting them and carrying them all the days of old.

Go To the Table of Contents Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 67: 1-3, 5, 7-8)

Refrain: The earth has yielded its fruits; God, our God, has blessed us. 1) May God be gracious to us and bless us; may God's face shine upon us. So shall your rule be known upon the earth, your saving power among all the nations. (Ref.) 2) May the nations be glad and shout for joy; for you govern the peoples justly, You guide the nations upon the earth. (Refrain) 3) The earth has yielded its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. May God bless us still; that the ends of the earth may revere our God. (Refrain)

Go To the Table of Contents Second Reading (Colossians 3: 12-17)

Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Go To the Table of Contents Gospel (Luke 17: 11-19)

As he continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee. As he was entering a village, ten lepers met (him). They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying, "Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!" And when he saw them, he said, "Go show yourselves to the priests." As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. Jesus said in reply, "Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?" Then he said to him, "Stand up and go; your faith has saved you."

Go To the Table of Contents References:

1. A Thanksgiving Story, by Andrea Nannette Mejia. (She is now a published author, entrepreneur, actress and mother of three whom she home-schools. She founded Andrea's Heavenly Baked Goods and Chocolates. You may contact her at TNT4GOD@juno.com.) From Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Patty Aubery and Nancy Mitchell, pp. 97-99. Health Communications, Inc., Deerfield Beach, Fla.: 1997. Visit them on the net at http://www.hci-online.com.

Go To the Table of Contents Resources:

Bringing the Word to Life, by Michael R. Kent, pp. 133-134. Twenty-third Publications, Mystic, CT. 1996. The Gospel of Luke, by William Barclay. Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky. 1975. The Letter to the Colossians, by William Barclay. Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky. 1975.

Go To the Table of Contents Homiletic Ideas:

- For He has no hands but our hands to do his work today; He has no feet but our feet to lead others in his way; He has no voice but our voice to tell others how he died; and, He has no help but our help to lead them to his side.

Go To the Table of Contents Homily Getting It Right

There is a movie called "Groundhog Day"in which the actor Bill Murray portrays a weatherman who is sent on assignment to cover the annual appearance of Punxatawny Phil, the groundhog, on February 2. He winds up being snowed in by a blizzard and wakes up day after day and discovers that he is reliving Groundhog Day all over again. At first, he takes advantage of the situation as much as possible for his own advantage. However, as the movie progresses, he learns to care about others and changes from a self-centered person to a loving and caring one. Only then does time resume its normal course in his life.

We are not constantly reliving Groundhog Day, but we are constantly living because God has continued to bless us with this gift of life. And yet how often do we get up and go about our daily business without giving God the slightest thought? How often do we just take God's gift for granted, like the nine lepers did in our gospel passage? Do we ever wake up and thank God for the gift of life that he has given us, the gift of another new day to learn to "get it right", as Bill Murray found out in the movie? And what exactly is it that we need to "get right"? Perhaps this story might help us to answer that question.

• It was the day before Thanksgiving - the first one my three children and I would be spending together without their father, who had left several months before. Now the two older children were very sick with the flu, and I was fast running out of liquids for them, as the doctor had prescribed. When I checked my purse, all I found was about $2.50 - and this was supposed to last me until the end of the month. That's when I heard the phone ring.

It was the secretary from our former church, and she told me that the congregation had been thinking about us and had something to give us. I told her that I was going to pick up some more juice and soup for the children, and that I would drop by the church on my way to the market. When I got there, the secretary met me at the door and handed me a special gift envelope. "We think of you and the kids often," she said, "and you are in our hearts and prayers." When I opened the envelope, I found two grocery certificates inside, each worth $20. I was so touched and moved that I broke down and cried on the spot.

"Thank you very much," I said, as we hugged each other. "Please give our thanks to the church." Then I drove to a store near our home and purchased some much-needed items for the children. At the checkout counter, I had a little over $14 worth of groceries and I handed the cashier one of the gift certificates. She took it and then turned her back to me for what seemed like a very long time. I thought something was wrong. Finally I said, "This gift certificate is a real blessing. Our former church gave it to our family, knowing I'm a single parent trying to make ends meet."

The cashier then turned around, with tears in her loving eyes, and replied, "Honey, that's wonderful! Do you have a turkey and the trimmings for a Thanksgiving dinner?" "No," I said, "but that's okay because my children are sick anyway."

After handing me the change from the certificate, she looked at me and said, "Honey, I want you to go back into the store and buy yourself a turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie or anything else you need for that dinner. And get some Gatorade for the kids."

I went back into the store to do more shopping, and selected a fresh turkey, a few yams and potatoes, and some juices for the children. Then I wheeled the shopping cart up to the same cashier as before. As I placed my groceries on the counter, she looked at me once more with giant tears in her kind eyes.

"Honey, I want to tell you that this morning I prayed that I could help someone today, and God brought you through my line." She reached under the counter for her purse and took out a $20 bill. She paid for my groceries and then handed me the change. Once more, I was moved to tears. This wonderful cashier then said, "Here is my phone number. If you ever need anything, just call."

As I walked to my car, I was overwhelmed by this stranger's love and by the realization that God loved my family too, and that he showed us his love through the kind deeds of this stranger and my church.

The children were supposed to have spent Thanksgiving with their father that year, but because of the flu, they were home with me. It was a very special Thanksgiving Day. They were feeling better, and we all ate of the goodness of the Lord's bounty - and of our community's love. Our hearts were truly filled with thanks. (1)

During our Lord's time on earth, he was able to heal people, just as he healed the lepers in today's gospel. However, now that he has ascended to the right hand of the Father, he can only help others through us. (I should note that the author of this story has since become a published author, entrepreneur and actress. She still cares for those same three children whom she schools at home. And she has also established a business in the Los Angeles area.)

Did you ever notice that it is adversity which brings people together, people who might otherwise be adversaries? (Notice that both of the words "adversity" and "adversaries" are derived from the same Latin root "ad-versus", meaning a turning towards another person usually in a hostile manner or under hostile conditions.) The ten lepers in today's gospel included at least one Samaritan. Samaritans and Jews were not on speaking terms with one another, and yet these lepers raised one united cry for help to Jesus. Their common need outweighed their national divisions and brought them together. So often it takes some adversity to bring out the best in people, like the adversity encountered by the author of our story. As she noted, the hand of God was at work in her life first through the generosity of the church members and then through the concern of a total stranger.

So we come back to our earlier question: what is it that we need to "get right" in our lives? I believe that each and every waking hour of every day, we need to perfect our ability to hear and answer the needs of others. We need to suppress our selfish concerns, the call of the material world to always "take care of number one" and replace it with a heartfelt concern for one another, even to the sacrifice of one's own needs, as Bill Murray discovered in the movie.

The woman in our story came to the realization that God loved her and her family through the generous kindness of the church and the cashier. So as we sit down around the dinner table today and give thanks to God for his blessings on this special day, we need to come to some realizations of our own. First of all, we need to realize that we should be thankful for the gift of life every day of our lives and not just once a year; secondly, we need to realize that we must use that gift of life each and every day to constantly perfect ourselves in God's law of love for one another; and thirdly, we need to realize that it is only in helping one another, in giving away what we possess that we enable others to see the love of God alive in their own lives. And it is only by giving away what we possess here and now that we will ultimately come to possess the greatest gift of all: eternal life.

Go To the Table of Contents Penitential Rite

Lord Jesus, you have blessed us with the fruits of our harvest. Lord, have mercy. Christ Jesus, you mercifully hear and answer the prayers of your adopted children. Christ, have mercy. Lord Jesus, you are the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord, have mercy.

Go To the Table of Contents Prayers of the Faithful

Celebrant: God provides us with all good gifts. We give thanks with all our hearts and continue to ask for the Lord's favor. Deacon/Lector: Our response is "Lord, hear our prayer." May the church throughout the world always and everywhere give thanks and praise around God's holy altar, we pray to the Lord. On this national day of thanksgiving, may people of all races and cultures come to realize their unity under one God, we pray to the Lord. May our country always be known for its generosity and compassion for the oppressed and the poor, we pray to the Lord. May all nations come to share their bountiful harvests with those countries where there is hunger, we pray to the Lord. As we begin this joyful holiday season, may we come to share our own gifts with those who are less fortunate, we pray to the Lord. May we thank God daily for the gift of life and use that gift to show God's love to others, we pray to the Lord. For all of the intentions which God knows are in our hearts and which we recall in silence. (Pause) For all of these intentions, we pray to the Lord. Celebrant: O gracious and loving Father, you continue to bless us with your kindness even when we fail to render thanks. Hear and answer the prayers which we, your grateful people, offer in the name of your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Deacon Sil Galvan Copyright (Additional resources at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/1383.)