Praise the Merciful Lord that Fall has officially arrived. The calendar can say all it wants, but in the South the tell-tale signs are Pumpkin Spice Everythings and donning boots and a scarf when it’s 79 degrees. I’m seven years deep in Southern living after being grown in Nebraska, but despite the geographical and occasional cultural gaps between here and Omaha, the one sure sign of Fall I can always count on is Thanksgiving. Wonderful Thanksgiving turkey, sweet potatoes, corn. Food and family are abundant and most importantly, the spirit of gratitude for God’s gracious blessings upon us.
What occurred to me recently, though not for the first time, is that the annual celebration of Thanksgiving involves more than just present-day festivities; it’s a hearkening back to the very first cause for celebration – a good harvest and later, friendship between the colonists and Native Americans near Plymouth. President George Washington declared Thanksgiving a national holiday, decreeing it “as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.” It’s on every Thanksgiving Day that we’re supposed to recall these original events and participate in them.
photo by Catholic Church (England & Wales)
Similarly, but on a much more sacred scale, attending Mass is not only a present-day celebration of the Last Supper, Passion, and Death of Christ that happened 2,000 years ago; rather all Eucharistic celebrations bring us back sacramentally to the original events themselves. The term Eucharist means “thanksgiving,” and it was instituted on the night of the Last Supper when Christ celebrated the Passover meal with his disciples. The traditional Passover meal is also a celebration of thanksgiving coming from the book of Exodus when the Israelites were being freed from hundreds of years of slavery in Egypt.
The parallels between ancient Passover meals and Christ’s Last Supper and Death signify a “new Exodus and new covenant,” according to Dr. Brant Pitre. It was in ancient Egypt that the Israelites celebrated freedom from an oppressor and though we are certainly not slaves being released in the same sense that they were, Christ’s Passion and Death liberate us from the spiritual oppression of Satan. God freed the Israelites from Egypt sending them to the Promised Land and, knowing the way would be hard, He provided food for the journey by showering bread (manna) from Heaven, which the Israelites accepted and consumed. God’s provision is not limited to ancient times but is much more abundant now because instead of showering manna, He offers us the Bread of Life in Mass. Christ died for us (Romans 5:8), which was indeed a gracious gift, but it’s not enough for a gift to be given; it has to be received as well in order to fully participate in it. Attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion are vital to our souls because life on earth is not easy and we need spiritual nourishment for the way.
It’s appropriate to think of the Eucharist in this way, especially during the month of Thanksgiving, and most especially in the context of the upcoming Year of Mercy. Receiving and cherishing a gift are the highest gestures of gratitude a person can offer. Considering God’s gift of the Holy Eucharist, let us give thanks to the Lord, our God. It is right and just.
Mac and cheese is a necessity for Thanksgiving.