Give Thanks!
Nov. 23: Thanksgiving Day
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
The Hallow App1 has a section called Virtue Day by Day for kids. Every week, they pick a virtue to explain, and they discuss it every day from a different angle—what it is, how you can do it, what are counterexamples to avoid, etc.
This week, naturally, the virtue is gratitude. It’s probably the simplest virtue for children, yet one adults forget very easily. One thing I’m always grateful is saying prayers at night with Amelia. Since she was a little kid, we thanked God for everything that happened that day, listing off everything we could remember.
It was a very basic prayer, before she even learned any rote prayers, and we’ve continued doing it. I like to think that at least some of her cheerful disposition comes from her nightly prayers of gratitude.
Reading I
Sir 50:22-24
And now, bless the God of all,
who has done wondrous things on earth;
Who fosters people’s growth from their mother’s womb,
and fashions them according to his will!
May he grant you joy of heart
and may peace abide among you;
May his goodness toward us endure in Israel
to deliver us in our days.
Ben Sira reminds us, in the writing of this passage, to thank God first, before our petitions. It’s okay to ask God for help, but don’t forget everything He’s already done.
Responsorial Psalm
145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
Generation after generation praises your works
and proclaims your might.
They speak of the splendor of your glorious majesty
and tell of your wondrous works.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
They discourse of the power of your terrible deeds
and declare your greatness.
They publish the fame of your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord
We must pass our faith and gratitude down through the generations. That’s why national holidays like Thanksgiving are important—if we don’t consciously transmit our values, they’ll be lost. The annual cycle of holidays reminds the whole society to give thanks and praise.
Reading II
1 Cor 1:3-9
Brothers and sisters: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will keep you firm to the end, irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Paul traveled the world preaching the Gospel, but he doesn’t take credit for its success. Instead, he thanks God for making up for any lack on his part.
We should always remember that we’re never on our own. God supports us in ways we may not even be aware of, so we should always be thankful.
Alleluia
1 Thes 5:18
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
In all circumstances, give thanks,
for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
This follows a pair of verses that say “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing.” The advice is simple, but effective.
Gospel
Lk 17:11-19
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee. As he was entering a village, ten persons with leprosy met him. They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, 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.”
Faith alone is not enough. All ten lepers had faith. They called out to Jesus, because they believed He could heal them.
We don’t actually know why the nine didn’t come back, but I found this list2 of possibilities—
One waited to see if the cure was real.
One waited to see if it would last.
One said he would see Jesus later.
One decided that he had never had leprosy.
One said he would have gotten well anyway.
One gave the glory to the priests.
One said, O well, Jesus didn’t really DO anything.
One said, just any rabbi could have done it.
One said, I was already much improved.
None of these are justified, of course, but I’d be lying if I said I couldn’t identify with at least some of these.
We shouldn’t make excuses to not give thanks, nor thank the wrong person.3 The miracles in our lives may not be as obvious curing leprosy, but we still have a lot to be thankful for.
In all circumstances, give thanks to God.
I swear I’m not being sponsored; I just like the app! But also, if anyone knows how to get sponsorship, lemme know…
I think it’s from someone named J. S. Lamar, but the footnotes on Studylight are unclear. Some websites who copied the list didn’t even cite the source, ironically, since a citation is a formal, academic sort of thanks.
Of course, sometimes multiple people deserve thanks, including God and the human He worked His will through.