A Thanksgiving Reflection
Thanksgiving is a posture of the soul, an act of remembering. For the heart, gratitude is not just proper manners or seasonal sentiment; it is worship. It is our response to God, who gives Himself without measure, whose love sustains every breath, and whose providence weaves beauty and purpose even from the threads of our trials and tribulations.
At the heart of our faith stands the Eucharist—a word that literally means thanksgiving. Every Mass is a great act of gratitude, the holy offering of thanks to the Father through Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. When we approach the altar, we do not just recall blessings past; we encounter the Living Presence of the One who is the source of ALL blessings. In the Eucharist, thanksgiving becomes transformation—our ordinary lives are taken, blessed, broken, and given, just as Christ offered Himself for us.
To give thanks is to see the world through the eyes of faith. It is to recognize that every good thing—our families, our work, our health, our very existence—is a monumental gift. But to go even deeper, it is to trust that God is present in ALL things, even in what we do not understand. Gratitude does not deny suffering; it redeems it, for it sees beyond the moment to the promise of resurrection.
True thanksgiving strengthens the heart. It moves us beyond the table to the poor, the lonely, and the forgotten. It teaches us that to be grateful is also to be generous—that every blessing received becomes a blessing to be shared. In the poor, Christ waits for our response of love; in serving them, we give thanks not just with our lips but with our lives.
As we gather with our family and friends, may our gratitude rise to God like incense. Let us remember those who have less, forgive those who have wounded us, and cherish those who walk beside us. Let every meal be an echo of the Eucharistic Feast, where heaven and earth meet, and where thanksgiving is perfected in love.
Our lives, lived in faith and thanksgiving, become hymns of praise to the God who gives all and withholds nothing—even His own Son.
May our hearts whisper with Mary, the first disciple of gratitude:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”