Sermon, Thanksgiving (Year A) 2023

 Happy Thanksgiving!!

It is the time to be grateful – and thankful – for the harvest!

Now, we are fortunate to be living in a time and place where for most of us, we have the ability to store food or purchase supplies in ways that will get us through the winter months.

It wasn’t too long ago that Harvest Thanksgiving festivals was a time to remember the frailty of our human condition, the necessity of a good harvest for basic survival.

And with the gift of technology, we have a more stable food system throughout the cold months. Thanks be to God!

However, this technology also meant that we took the harvest a little bit more for granted – we started expecting a stable food supply chain. And while this is a good thing, it means that much of society started slipping away from that intentional time of gratitude.

Oh sure, we still have our feasts – apparently some 2 billion turkeys will be enjoyed in Canada this weekend. Many will share expressions of thankfulness. It’s lovely.

And how excellent for the church to maintain the festival of Harvest Thanksgiving – to keep us mindful of not just being thankful, but also grateful.

And yes: there is a difference.
Thankfulness is a sentiment, a feeling. It can be transactional; it is usually directly related to an action or event.
Gratefulness is a demonstration of appreciation. It’s an action, an on-going choice, stemming from a surrounding context.

And in today’s festival, Thanksgiving, we are being invited to put those two together – to layer them – not unlike the 2 billion turkey sandwiches that are likely going to be enjoyed later next week.

Thanksgiving – the giving of Thanks as an intentional action – is a common reality in our faith. The very Eucharist – our holy meal – the word Eucharist itself means Thanksgiving. So every time we gather together to share this bread and wine, we are celebrating the Lord’s Bounty by giving thanks. How special that today we also do so in the beauty of the community’s bounty!

Giving Thanks.
It’s a powerful ministry; it’s a powerful affirmation of our faith.

The French word for this festival, for Thanksgiving, is Action de Grâce. Actions of Grace.
What a great way of saying Giving Thanks.
Actions of grace.

To be thankful is to engage in actions of grace.

This is to be living in that head and heart space where we focus on the good – the joy – the hope. The love.

When we dwell in that space, it consumes us: it encompasses us – it fills our lungs along with the air we breathe.
It sates our bellies along with the food and drink.
It fills our ears along with the music that we hear.

You get the idea – it becomes a part of us. It becomes our context: to be a people of faith is to be a people who live in the context of gratitude.

This takes us beyond the context of fear and scarcity and “never enough” mentality that is so easily creeping through society.

It invites us to re-focus our attention into a theology of abundance.
It’s not about a comparison (the I have more or better than they do thinking), but a journey towards a thankful heart that celebrates whatever is before us.

Being thankful brings us back into right relationship with God, who cares for us. It reminds our hearts and minds of the delight of knowing who loved us into creation, and living into the reality of BEing exactly who our loving Creator made us to be.
This is where our scriptures guide our journey, towards that thankful space and grateful action.

God gives us the gifts and resources that we have, and God gives us the opportunity to demonstrate a similar practice of abundant sharing.

We are blessed with the ability to connect with one another, with God, and with God’s gifts through creation.

God reminds us in Deuteronomy of the bounty of the earth that is beyond our own making – that we receive (and are called to share).

The psalmist praises how God provides wonders that remind us of the blessings of this world.

Writing to the Corinthians Paul reminds the community that they have been given the opportunity to share – and that they can do so cheerfully, to their own discretion.

And the Gospel of course highlights the power of gratitude.

It's helpful to note that while Jesus sees a 10% return on investment – and that feels small – he does not revoke the gift to the other 9 people. He doesn’t chase them down, he let them be.
These 9 were so distracted that they did not notice their restored health. They were oblivious to their own well-being.

They were caught up in the ways of the world, they were only thinking that their priests could cure their ailments. And yet, as they went on their way, the miracle of God was already at work within them: and they didn’t notice.

I don’t think Jesus was upset by their actions and inactions; I think he was disheartened that they were living outside of the context of gratitude.
Because they were unaware of the blessing Jesus had given them – and likely unaware of the abundant blessings that were already all around them.

How sad to be so caught up in a way of thinking that you miss the goodness of God.

But Jesus did point out to his disciples what that meant.

The one who returned and gave thanks – Jesus assured him that his faith was a source of being well.
That his wholeness was being restored by his attentiveness to the world around him.

This man was living in that context of gratitude: a place of love and joy and hope – a place of faith where healing happens.

This is a faith that is steeped in gratitude. A faith that encourages generosity. A faith that embraces community. A faith that promises the wholeness of well-being.

And it is likely that this man went on to do good things, for from his wellness he could now re-engage with his community.
He could contribute again to the wholeness of society.
He could use the gifts that he had received to be a gift to the others he encountered.
He could bless as he was blessed.

And so this is our opportunity today, and everyday.
To live in faith.
To let it wash over us, to let the context of gratitude overwhelm us in ways we can’t even imagine.
To be thankful for what we have, and to be grateful for the opportunities to serve.

To deepen our faith, a faith that inspires actions that are born from this gorgeous mystery of gratitude.

To be blessed with the gifts of abundance, and to go into the world to be a blessing.

The opportunity is ours: to come before God – exactly as we are – imperfect, wounded, uncertain.

To come before God asking for mercy; to receive the miracle of spiritual healing; to be assured by God that our faith has made us well.

The opportunity is ours to see that this great work is already happening for us:
And to respond with gratitude, and truly give thanks.